New Blog to Read

http://www.momenough.com/
This is a blog recommended by one our occupational therapists here at Children's Therapy Center. It is written by a mother and daughter team sharing thoughts and ideas of their own, as well as guest bloggers, to help mothers (and fathers!) maneuver parenting.
There is a blog post - Does your child struggle to get going in the morning, slow down at night or stay focus any time of the day? - that is particularly related to some of the sensory concerns related to many of the children we see here at Children's Therapy Center that could be of use for ideas at home!
Let us know what you think!

Fun with Handwriting

Pediatric Occupational Therapists are often called upon to help children improve their handwriting. Children who need this extra handwriting help are sometimes reluctant to write, and even dislike writing. In these instances, a therapist must come up with fun and creative ways for the child to practice writing.

Here are a few fun games that can get a child to practice handwriting. The child can play these games with a therapist or parent – they might even enjoy it!

Word by Word

Materials

Paper, pencil and one playing die

Instructions

For this activity, the therapist and the child write a story together! First, choose a title for the story. It could be “Hunting for Dinosaurs,” “The Magic Spell”, or anything else that the therapist or child can think of. The therapist goes first, and rolls the die. Whatever number she rolls, that’s how many words of the story she has to write. For example, if she rolled a 4 she could write, “Yesterday I saw a”. Then the child rolls the die, and writes the number of words that they rolled. The therapist and child keep rolling and writing, alternating turns, until the story ends. Another way to conclude would be to set a number of rolls. “We’re almost done. We each get three more turns and then we’ll be done”.

Monster Cafe

Materials

Paper and pencil. Crayons or markers optional.

Instructions

Have the child create a menu for a special or unique restaurant. For example, if the child likes monsters, they could create a menu for a Monster Cafe, that includes the appetizers, main courses, desserts and beverages that monsters would like to eat. Example items from one boy’s menu include “slime guts with chocolate, mud and rocks meatloaf, and dirty sneaker ice cream.” Creative children with vivid imaginations would enjoy this activity, since they can create any menu item they choose.

Other menu ideas include a menu for an ice cream parlor for clowns, a diner for kids, or a fast-food place for aliens! This activity can get creative children inventing and practicing handwriting in a fun, motivating context.

Let’s Argue

Materials

pencil, paper, and a judge

Instructions

This fun handwriting game gives the opportunity for child and therapist to have a written debate. First, pick a topic. This could be any two-sided issue, such as:

-         Which animal makes a better pet: a cat or a dog?

-         Yes or no: should kids be allowed to eat whatever they want?

-         Who is the cooler superhero: Batman or Spiderman?

-         Yes or no: should kids get to go to bed whenever they want?

-         Which sport is more fun, soccer or football?

The options for topics are endless! Whether the therapist or child chooses the topic, a fun written debate can take place. The child chooses which side of the argument they will take, and the therapist takes the other. Then each person writes 5 (or more, or less) statements/reasons to support their side. At the end, both lists are read to a judge (who doesn’t know who wrote which one) and the judge decides who wins.

            Kids can have a lot of fun “debating” with their therapist. When the debate is written, handwriting can become very motivating! Have fun.

Have fun writing!

Riding the Bus

Riding the bus can be unexpectedly overwhelming experience for your child, which could affect their day at school and/or their evening once they get home. Being on a bus offers a variety of sensory experiences that may compound into too much for one sensory-sensitive body to handle.

First, it's important to consider the new environment (even if your child has been on the bus in the past). There will be new children, possibly a new driver, people sitting in different seats than they are accustomed to, or a new bus in general. If possible, try to help your child find a buddy to sit with on the bus so that they have a familiar person to look to each time they ride. It can also be helpful to have the child have the option to consistently sit in the same seat. If you child is extremely sensitive to these routines, it may be helpful to work with the bus driver to make sure that seat will always be available. Otherwise, it would also be an opportunity to discuss with your child that the seat availability may change from day to day.

The sights, sounds, and/or a combination of these things can easily be overwhelming for a child. Visually, a lot children moving around throughout the bus in combination with the fast moving scenery passing by can be overwhelming, but may also make your child feel unwell. Bright sunshine in their eyes can also be overwhelming. Seating your child in the front of the bus to reduce the input of so much stimuli can be helpful, as well as considering wearing a hat or sunglasses. As many of you know, the volume level on a bus can be extremely loud! The bus drivers can help as much as possible to keep the volume level of your child's peers to a dull roar but other techniques may also be useful. You could try incorporating headphones (calming music would be the best), ear plugs, or even a thick stocking cap in the winter to block out some sound. Having the windows open on the bus also increases the volume level to include the noises from outside and also the sound of the wind. Remember, this doesn't bother all people, but it can be extremely bothersome to a sensitive child. Depending on the child, it could be better for them to sit in the back of the bus or in the front of the bus, depending on the above factors.

Some general ideas of activities or items to use on the bus to help keep your child in a calm state could include having a fidget available for your child. This could be a simple keychain attached to his or her backpack, a small piece of silly putty, a rubber band to fidget with around the wrist, or something similar. Headphones can be a great way of drowning out sounds and also gives the opportunity to incorporate music that can be calming for their bodies. Chewing gum (the thicker, the better) is a great calming tool. Having a great peer to interact with on the ride helps the time go faster and can also distract the child from some of the stimuli around him or her.

Once they get off the bus, they still may be feeling overwhelmed and could likely benefit from a "sensory break". This could include some quiet time by themselves, heavy work, complete the brushing program, swinging, listen to calming music, etc. These activities can also be helpful before getting onto the bus, as well!

Questions, other ideas, comments, concerns we can address??? Let us know!!!

The importance of routine

Routines are so important in children's lives to help establish expectations, develop better behavior and a sense of personal control.

According to the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning,
Studies have documented that schedules and routines influence children's emotional, cognitive, and social development. Predictable and consistent schedules in preschool classrooms help children feel secure and comfortable. Also, schedules and routines help children understand the expectations of the environment and reduce the frequency of behavior problems, such as tantrums and acts of aggression.

For kids with special needs, a daily routine allows them to know what to expect and how to prepare for it.  If a child doesn't know what to expect they are in a constant state of worry or heightened anxiety for what's to come next. And if "what's next" is something they feel they can't handle, negative behaviors tend to come forward including meltdowns, and tantrums.

Depending on the child routines for morning, meal times and bedtime are important to establish many aspects of healthy living, good habits and good behavior.  Visual picture schedules work great for day to day activities. Large calendars with pictures of doctor appointments, 1st day of school, soccer practice or dentist visits are a way for children to get prepared for what's to come.

If you have any experience or insight on the importance of routines, please share!

Facebook!!

Don't forget to check out our Facebook page for additional ideas, tips, articles, and happenings at CTC!
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Childrens-Therapy-Center/159943524060224

The Brushing Program

The Wilbarger Brushing Program has been around for over a decade. More and more people have heard about this sensory treatment and seen its results firsthand. We prescribe this home/school program either as a tool for calming, or most commonly, to decrease tactile (touch) defensiveness (extreme hypersensitivity). As therapists, we teach families and other caregivers the protocol by demonstration, use of handouts, and close monitoring. This is to ensure optimal outcomes by making sure technique is correct and that high frequence of every one and a half - two hours it is performed for a minimum of two weeks. The families that see the benefits are the ones that follow through with this high frequency thus creating further motivation to continue the program. Unfortunately the benefits are not seen when the follow-through is not consistent. Families that are not able to achieve this high frequency do not see results are not commited to continue with the program. Depending on when your therapist went to training, you might see some variation in the actual "speed" of the brushing, but one thing they should be telling you is that the deep pressure you use to the specified areas is most important. We want to get those deep receptors in the skin, not the light touch receptors that trigger a negative "fright, flight, or fight" response. We use a surgical soft plastic brush and cover the surface area of the skin of the arms, hands, legs, feet, and back. Then we follow up with some proprioception (input to the muscles and joints). The whole thing is like a massage. If your child has oral sensory defensiveness, we may try an oral brushing protocol, along with the body. The whole protocol should only take a few minutes to complete. The positive outcomes we see are many. Included may be the following: less irritable, improved focus and attention, improved tolerance to complete hygiene tasks and wearing a variety of clothing, less rigid behaviors, improved calming, better sleep and improved eating, just to name a few. Ask your therapist if the program could help you and your child.

Interactive Metronome

Interactive Metronome (IM) is an assessment and treatment tool used to help children with their neurological processes of motor planning, sequencing, and processing. The program provides a structured, goal-oriented process that challenges kids to synchronize a range of hand and foot exerices through a computer program. There is a reference tone provided via headphones and children attempt to match that tone with repetitive actions, including clapping their hands, tapping their feet, and a combinaton of the two. Feedback regarding their performance is provided via auditory and visual cues through the headphones and computer screen. The program is designed to be used for children at the development age of 6 years old and above.
Through this intervention approach, children have been noted to improve:

• motor skills
• attention and concentration
• cognitive speed
• executive functions
• language processing
• memory
• motor control and coordination
• phonological awareness
• reading and math fluency
• self-control of aggression/impulsivity
• sensory processing
• stuttering

If you child is demonstrating difficulties in the above areas and would be interested in learning more about Interactive Metronome, speak to your child's therapist!

http://www.interactivemetronome.com/