Occupational Therapy
What is occupational therapy (OT)?
Occupational therapy focuses on helping children achieve the highest level of independence through functional activities. A child's "occupations" include playing, self care, and learning. An occupational therapist can evaluate a child's skills in activities of daily living (dressing, grooming), fine motor skills (including handwriting), concentration and memory skills, or sensory processing and compare them to what is developmentally appropriate for their age group. Occupational therapy uses purposeful activities to minimize the effects of disease, injury, congenital deficit, disability, or developmental delay.
At the Children's Center for Therapy, therapy is designed to feel like play. Swinging, crawling through tunnels and crashing into soft foam blocks are exciting ways for children to build their core strength and sensory reactions.
How do I know if a child could benefit from Occupational Therapy?
The following are possible signs that a child could benefit from OT:
- Difficulty with fine motor skills, (buttoning, cutting paper)
- Handwriting not age appropriate
- Difficulty with hand-eye coordination activities
- Under sensitive or extra sensitive to touch, taste, sound, or movement
- Clumsy movement or poor coordination
- Difficulty jumping, skipping, or running
- Doesn't interact well with peers, difficulty with social skills
- Falls frequently
- Weak or poor muscle tone
- Very high muscle tone
- Difficulty transitioning between tasks
- Difficulty paying attention or focusing on tasks
- Has difficulty with daily living skills- dressing, grooming, eating