This paper has been more useful to older kids (6+) that I see for handwriting help than any other paper on the market, and almost any other tool Problems With Handwriting? You Need The Best Eraser , Great Mechanical Pencils Can Improve Your Child’s Handwriting Skills . Why? Regular lined paper, and almost all worksheets, are usually jam-packed…… Continue reading Does Your Older Child Hate Writing? Try HWT’s Double-Lined Paper
Category: sensory processing issues
Does Your Child Hate Big Spaces? There is a Sensory-Based Explanation for all That Complaining
When you see it, it looks like Helen Keller crossed with a Roomba. A child enters a space, even a familiar space, and runs the perimeter without stopping to play or examine things. They may trace the room with their fingers, or repeat this process many times before they “land” and engage in some kind…… Continue reading Does Your Child Hate Big Spaces? There is a Sensory-Based Explanation for all That Complaining
Quickshifts: A Simple, Successful, and Easy to Use Treatment For Regulation, Attention, and Postural Activation
What if you could add a sensory-based treatment that targets specific sensory, motor, and behavioral goals? What if it doesn’t require expensive equipment or a large therapy space, and you could see the effects within a very short time? Since adding Quickshifts to my therapy sessions, I have been able to successfully address some of…… Continue reading Quickshifts: A Simple, Successful, and Easy to Use Treatment For Regulation, Attention, and Postural Activation
Does Your Special Needs Child Have a “Two-tude”? Its Not Just the Age; Its Cumulative Frustration Minus Skills
I spend a lot of my work week with toddlers, and they can be a challenge. One minute sunny, the next screaming because their cookie broke. Special needs toddlers can have a ‘tude as well, but many professionals sweep it under the rug. They tell parents that this is normal, and that they should…… Continue reading Does Your Special Needs Child Have a “Two-tude”? Its Not Just the Age; Its Cumulative Frustration Minus Skills
When Writing Hurts: The Hypermobile Hand
Many children resist doing their homework, but most kids say “Its so BORING!” not “My hand hurts too much”. If a child is complaining of pain, and they don’t have a joint disease such as JRA, the first thought is hypermobility. The good news is that there are a few fast fixes that can decrease…… Continue reading When Writing Hurts: The Hypermobile Hand
Why Is The Wilbarger Protocol So Hard To Get Right?
The Wilbarger Protocol has been a staple of therapeutic treatment of sensory processing disorder for decades. I will reveal my age, and admit that I learned directly from Pat Wilbarger. She was an amazing teacher and a highly skilled clinician to see in action. But I have lost count of the number of times…… Continue reading Why Is The Wilbarger Protocol So Hard To Get Right?
Safety Awareness With Your Hypermobile Child? Its Not a Big Thing, Its the Biggest Thing
Therapists always try hard to be optimistic when discussing their pediatric client’s future. Why not? Kids have amazing potential, and we aren’t fortune tellers; there are so many things that can go right. As therapists, we also should share the reality of how bad choices create unfortunate consequences. Among them are the long-term…… Continue reading Safety Awareness With Your Hypermobile Child? Its Not a Big Thing, Its the Biggest Thing
Afraid to Toilet Train? Prepare Your Child… and Prepare Yourself
I spend an extra 30 minutes at the end of a session this week helping a mom build her courage and confidence so that she felt ready to start toilet training soon. Her child is over 3, has sensory and motor issues, but shows tons of signs for readiness: dry diapers for increasingly long periods,…… Continue reading Afraid to Toilet Train? Prepare Your Child… and Prepare Yourself
Sensory Stimulation is not Sensory Treatment
I thought that I might never hear it again, but there it was. Another parent telling me that a member of her child’s treatment team had placed her hands in a rice-and-bean bin. “Why?” I asked. “She said it was sensory.” was the response. This particular child has no aversions to touch, and no sensory-seeking…… Continue reading Sensory Stimulation is not Sensory Treatment
Stop Your Child From Chewing on Clothes or Toys
Babies love to munch on their toys. They nibble at book bindings, chew the heck out of their loveys, and some little ones really love to chew their pacifiers. As they grow, most children let go of this behavior. Chewing and biting for sensory exploration and state modulation diminishes and a child’s behavior evolves into…… Continue reading Stop Your Child From Chewing on Clothes or Toys
Sensitive Child? Be Careful How You Deliver Praise
Sensitive kids need encouragement as much as the next child, but they can have a paradoxical reaction when you praise them. What do I mean? You compliment your child by saying “GREAT job! I knew you could do it!”, and they react by becoming angry or even arguing with you. They may even try to…… Continue reading Sensitive Child? Be Careful How You Deliver Praise
Should You Install a Child-Sized Potty for Your Special Needs Child?
I know that some of you don’t even realize that such a thing exists: a toilet sized for preschoolers and kindergarteners! Well, you won’t find it in Lowe’s or Home Depot on the showroom floor, but you can buy them online, and it is an option to consider. Here are the reasons you might put…… Continue reading Should You Install a Child-Sized Potty for Your Special Needs Child?
The Not-So-Secret Solution for Your Child With Motor And Sensory Issues: Dycem
In adult rehab, occupational therapists are regularly providing patients who have incoordination, muscle weakness or joint instability with both skill-building activities and adaptive equipment such as Dycem. In pediatrics, you see a predominance of skills training. Adaptive equipment shows up primarily for the most globally and pervasively disabled children. I think that should change. Why? Because…… Continue reading The Not-So-Secret Solution for Your Child With Motor And Sensory Issues: Dycem
Could Your Pediatric Client Have a Heritable Disorder of Connective Tissue?
Therapists see lots of hypermobile kids in clinics and schools. I see hypermobile children every week in their homes for private sessions, consultations and ongoing treatment through Early Intervention. My estimate is that at least 25% of kids over 5 and almost 50% of the younger kids I have treated have some degree of…… Continue reading Could Your Pediatric Client Have a Heritable Disorder of Connective Tissue?
Raising a Gifted Child? Read “A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children” For Successful Strategies To Navigate the Waters
Raising a gifted child isn’t always rainbows and first place ribbons. Especially in the early years, the intensity, drive and complexity that gifted children bring to the table can come out looking like bossiness, perfectionism and extreme sensitivity How To Spot A Gifted Child In Your Preschool Class (Or Your Living Room!). Many books try…… Continue reading Raising a Gifted Child? Read “A Parent’s Guide to Gifted Children” For Successful Strategies To Navigate the Waters
Is Your Hypermobile Child Sitting In An Awkward Position? No, She Really DOESN’T Feel Any Pain From it
Hypermobile children end up in some impressively awkward positions. It can feel uncomfortable just to look at the way their arms or legs are bent. It can be an awkward position with any part of the body; shoulders that allow an arm to fold under the body and the child lies on top of…… Continue reading Is Your Hypermobile Child Sitting In An Awkward Position? No, She Really DOESN’T Feel Any Pain From it
Three Reasons Why Your Constipated Toddler May Also Have Bladder Accidents
Kids with chronic constipation are a challenge to train. It can often appear that withholding is the issue, and to be certain, fear and pain are real issues. But there are some physiological problems caused by constipation that contribute to bladder problems, and they aren’t always what your pediatrician is thinking about. The constant fullness…… Continue reading Three Reasons Why Your Constipated Toddler May Also Have Bladder Accidents
Is Your Kid With ADHD Also Gifted, or is Your Team Missing Their Giftedness?
Are you hearing that your child is a management problem at school, but is a joy at home? Do you see them thrive when your older child’s friends include them in play? Does your child sustain their attention and manage their behavior well when the class goes on field trips or has speakers come…… Continue reading Is Your Kid With ADHD Also Gifted, or is Your Team Missing Their Giftedness?
The Best Ride-On Toy For Younger (or Petite) Toddlers
As an occupational therapist, I have always found it difficult to recommend a toddler ride-on toy for younger or smaller kids with low muscle tone and hypermobility. Most of these toys have such a wide seat that children must propel themselves with their knees rotated out and pushing forward on their toes. Exactly the…… Continue reading The Best Ride-On Toy For Younger (or Petite) Toddlers
The Best Toilet Training Book for Neurotypical Kids: Oh Crap Potty Training!
My readers know that I wrote a book on potty training kids with low tone ( The Practical Guide to Toilet Training Your Child With Low Muscle Tone: Potty Training Help Has Arrived! ) but I have to admit, I learn a lot from other authors. Jamie Glowacki has written a terrific book that speaks clearly and…… Continue reading The Best Toilet Training Book for Neurotypical Kids: Oh Crap Potty Training!