Pediatric Occupational Therapy Services

Your child might need occupational therapy if they experience any of the following:

• Weak hands or gets tired easily while doing fine motor tasks 
• Appears clumsy or has difficulty with age appropriate motor tasks/games
• Has trouble with writing or cutting, including using too much or too little force
• Difficulty learning how to dress, groom, and feed themselves 
• Immature grasp or finger positioning on eating and writing utensils 
• Difficulty with vision tasks, such as tracking during reading or catching a ball 
• Having trouble with size and spacing within designated boundaries when writing 
• Overly sensitive or under-responsive to sensory stimulation including touch, textures, tastes, sound, and movement.
• Excess moving and difficulty sitting still 
• Decreased focus and attention 

Does your child’s fine motor skills impact their ability to successfully complete school work, play and self-care activities?  Is your child struggling to complete pre-writing, writing tasks, and cutting tasks? Is mealtime a struggle because your child is a picky eater or has trouble chewing, feeding themselves, or using a cup or straw?  Does your child have difficulty regulating their arousal level – seeking or avoiding sensory experiences that impact their ability to complete everyday activities? If you have answered yes to any of these questions, then we can help!

After completing the intake process and completing the necessary forms, you will bring your child in for their appointment. The child will proceed with the therapist to our sensory gym where the evaluation will take place. Our evaluations are designed to assess how children navigate everyday environments. We will evaluate the child's level of functioning and performance in the areas of fine motor, sensory processing, bilateral integration, self-help skills, and developmental milestones. The evaluations usually include parent/client interviews, clinical observations of tasks and activities, and standardized assessments when necessary.

• We will conduct a skilled assessment using standardized tools when applicable; determine the child's ability to interpret, integrate, and respond to sensory input; and assess occupations and performance skills, such as self-care (ADL), gross motor, fine motor, perceptual, visual-motor, and social skills.

• The client will be given opportunities to perform tasks in a variety of environments within our gym (on the floor, on equipment, stairs, table top activities), and if needed smaller and quieter rooms are available. Although parents do not usually proceed to the evaluation session, a clinician may ask you to join depending on your child’s age and their ability to transition into the session. Evaluation findings are always reviewed with the families to assess for consistency and reliability of results. 

We aim at developing a plan of care in coordination with other disciplines who may be treating your child and provide individualized services that are tailored to your child. This may include, but is not limited to, performance in dressing or feeding activities, developing body awareness and processing of their surroundings and environment, as well as enhancing handwriting skills. Therapy is provided in a client-centered, play-based intervention for skill development by using compensatory and remedial approaches with emphasis on sensory strategies and visual prompts, positioning of self and equipment, as well as providing structured activities and modifying environments.

We strongly feel that therapist collaboration is an integral part of a client’s therapy process. It allows for skills to be practiced, mastered, and generalized amongst multiple disciplines. Our team consists of occupational therapists, physical therapists, speech and language therapists, social workers, and art therapists. There is no “I” in “team”, and we feel strongly that if our therapist can work together with the family, it will lead to better outcomes. 

We collaborate with caregivers, parents and other professionals to help the child in the following ways: 

• Provide suggestions for skill attainment in classroom and other settings
• Advise on appropriate community programs, sports, and events. 
• Prepare and provide tip sheets, in-service training, and online information.
• Establish partnerships with other professionals in the community to appropriately refer out to other specialties when necessary. 
• Building relationships with others in the community, supporting and designing programs and events for outreach, as well as participating in research opportunities and providing students with opportunities to learn about OT.

An OT can provide the following services for your child: 

• Evaluate the child's level of functioning and performance in the areas of fine motor, sensory processing, bilateral integration, self-help skills, and developmental milestones.
• Develop a plan of care in coordination with other disciplines who may be treating your child and provide individualized services that are tailored to your child. This may include, but is not limited to, performing in dressing or feeding activities, developing body awareness and processing of their  surroundings and environment, as well as enhancing handwriting skills.
• Assist the child and family to establish age-appropriate habits and routines, such as self-care, play, and social participation.
• Recommend proper supports and adaptive equipment to facilitate the development of age-appropriate abilities and greater independence.
• Adapt and modify activities, environments, and contexts to support performance and participation in everyday life situations and settings.

• Consultation services: We collaborate with other professionals, such as psychologists or classroom teachers to provide suggestions for skill attainment in other settings.
• Education: We prepare and provide tip sheets, in-service training, and online information, as well as establish partnerships with other professionals in the community to appropriately refer out to other specialties when necessary.
• Advocacy: We aim at building relationships with others in the community, supporting and designing programs and events for outreach, as well as participating in research opportunities and providing students with opportunities to learn about OT.

Yes! Along with providing direct sensory integration intervention, our occupational therapists can educate parents on sensory strategies that can be utilized at home to help your child’s sensory needs as well as provide you with outside resources that can aid your child to feel more comfortable in their skin.

Yes! The focus of school-based OT is limited to academic necessity, whereas outpatient OT considers needs across all environments including home and community settings

OT can support the development of fine motor strength, endurance, and coordination, all of which are necessary for producing handwriting. We may also address handwriting from a visual-motor or visual-perceptual standpoint to improve legibility.

Proprioception refers to the sense that allows us to know where our bodies are in space, even if we aren't looking at them. Proprioception also allows us to assess and execute movements needed with accurate force and speed. For example, if you are picking up a cup of water, proprioceptive input allows us to reach with an appropriate amount of force and speed so that the cup doesn't get knocked over or missed entirely!

Body awareness is directly related to our sense of proprioception. Body awareness allows us to know where we are, what position our bodies are in, and what movements we are making with our bodies without needing to look at our limbs/bodies throughout those movements. Proprioceptive input allows our bodies to develop a sense of body awareness over time, through the use of repeated actions that become learned throughout childhood development - kind of like an internal "road map" for our bodies/movements. If this "road map" isn't properly developed, we may see children presenting with poor body awareness who appear clumsy or uncoordinated; they may also rely heavily on their visual systems when moving throughout their environment.

Interoception refers to the ability to adequately receive and appropriately interpret internal signals located in the organs.  Interoception allows you to know when you are hungry, thirsty, or need to use the bathroom. Interoception also impacts your ability to feel and recognize your emotions, for example when you are scared your heart rate will increase.