There is an interesting free app for the iPhone entitled Walk n’ Play. Developed by Chinmay Manohar in the Department Endocrinology, Nutrition and Diabetes of the Mayo Clinic, Walk n’ Play tracks normal day to day physical activity. Once you put in the height and weight of the user, it tracks your movements and tells […]
1. Earth Day Crafts: Create collages out of recycled materials. The children can cut up recycled cardboard or magazines to create a collage. Perhaps think of a theme such as healthy foods or exercise. Maybe write the child’s name in large bubble letters and glue on the recycled pictures. 2. Earth Day Challenge: Who can […]
The American Occupational Therapy Association is offering a free trail period to the American Journal of Occupational Therapy through June. AWESOME! Check it out at http://ajot.aotapress.net/
Have you ever heard of Drums Alive? It is an aerobic fitness class using therapy balls and drumsticks. This is a great activity incorporating rhythm, aerobic fitness, crossing midline, proprioceptive input and muscle strengthening. In the Drums Alive classes they put the therapy balls on aerobic steps but you could just put them in cardboard […]
The UnitedHealthcare Children’s Foundation is a non profit charity that offers grants up to $5000 for families to help pay for medical services and equipment for children with special needs. This can include physical and occupational therapy, wheelchairs, orthotics, eyeglasses and more. They will also help pay for certain services or items when insurance does […]
Chronic fatigue syndrome is rare in children with estimates of approximately 0.05% have this diagnosis. The day to day lives of children with this diagnosis are greatly affected. Pediatric therapists should be aware of this disorder and how it effects the activities of daily living of children. Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is characterized by: debilitating […]
Occupational therapists have long known the benefits of a child developing hand dominance. A new study published in Pediatrics reports on children with mixed handedness. A longitudinal study was performed in Northern Finland on 7871 children ages 7 and 8 and then 16 years old. The results indicated that children with mixed handedness are at […]
A recent study in the Journal of Pediatric Urology indicated that the best time to toilet train a child is between 24 and 32 months of age. Children who did not receive toilet training until after 32 months had more issues with bed wetting, day wetting and urge incontinence. The researchers concluded that the timing […]
Here is a new activity video idea that encourages fine motor skills, muscle strengthening and coordination. Need more fine motor activities? Check out… Creative Clay ActivitiesClay Play MatsFine Motor Activity Pack #1Fine Motor Breaks
The most recent issue of Pediatrics reports on 20 healthy preterm infants that were exposed to a 30 minute period of Mozart music for 2 consecutive days. The resting energy expenditure of the infants was significantly lower during the 10 to 30 minute period of listening to the music. There was no difference in resting […]