Occupational Therapy

Special Education

Who to Contact

If you have specific OT needs, contact your child’s occupational therapist or teacher of record.

Quick Links: This page contains tons of resources. You can scroll, or use the links to jump to a section.

Fine Motor Skills

Use the arrows to expand/collapse each section:

Neat Pincer Grasp:

The following activities are great ways for your child to manipulate objects in their environment using a more mature neat pincer grasp.

    • Peeling tape or stickers
    • Pick up coins and insert into piggy bank
    • Picking up small food pellets one at a time during snack time
    • See additional activities from the The OT Toolbox, Therapy Street for Kids and other websites listed below

Hand Strengthening:

Did you know that there are 34 muscles which move our fingers and thumb?! 18 in the forearm and 17 in the palm. Hand strengthening is essential for FUNction!

    • Tweezers / Tongs / Clothespins Activities
    • Spray Bottles (water plants, clean countertops, etc.)
    • PlayDoh and Silly Putty
    • Lego Building
    • Q-Tip Painting (free printables available online)
    • Additional activities are listed on the Therapy Street for Kids and other websites listed below

Bilateral Coordination:

Stringing Beads

      • Get creative and use pony beads, pasta noodles, cereal, etc! If your child is having difficulty, have them use a pipe cleaner instead of a loose string.

Scissor Skills Development

      • TIP #1: Children should use scissors appropriate for their age and size of hands (safety scissors if needed) and be closely supervised. If necessary for your child, keep scissors stored in a location they cannot reach.
      • TIP #2: Teach children to practice gripping scissors correctly. Provide demonstrations and prompting to hold the scissors in a “thumbs up” approach. You can place a sticker on their thumb to provide that extra support with a visual.
      • TIP #3: Using smaller, thicker paper (index cards or cardstock) allows for more control when cutting.
      • See the Developmental Progression of Scissor Skills and recommended activities on Mama OT, The OT Toolbox, and other websites listed below.
      • Click here for a fun cutting activity!

Crossing Midline

Crossing Midline is an important developmental skill that allows for an individual to spontaneously cross their body’s midline to participate in daily life activities. Delays with crossing midline can impact hand dominance, motor skills, as well as visual skills related to reading and writing.

    • Rainbow drawing: Have your child sit on the driveway/sidewalk then use colored chalk to make a rainbow arch, starting on their left side and making a full arch all the way to the other side of their body.
    • Figure 8’s on the wall or ceiling using a flashlight
    • Many household chores incorporate midline crossing such as: moving laundry from the washer to the dryer, folding towels, hanging clothes in the closet, sweeping with a broom, etc.
    • Simon Says with crossing midline poses
    • Additional activities are listed on the Therapy Street for Kids and other websites listed below

Visual Motor/ Visual Perceptual Skills

Building with Blocks:

Create a block design, then have your child try to match it. Start small (3-block bridge; 5-block train) then get creative with larger amounts and bigger designs!

Creating Pre-Writing Shapes:

(I - O + square X triangle) Design pre-writing shapes using multi-sensory strategies (shaving cream on a baking sheet, foggy mirror after a bath, sidewalk chalk, lining up snack food then eating the shape, etc.)

Implementing Figure Ground skills:

What’s Different Worksheets, Hidden Picture Worksheets, I Spy games/books, Word Searches, Where’s Waldo, Dot-to-Dot Worksheets

Core and Upper Extremity Strengthening

Use the arrows to expand/collapse each section:

Obstacle Courses:

Use items around the house such as hula hoops, cushions, placemats, masking tape, paper, sports balls, etc. Have your child work with you to create an obstacle course with 4-5 steps. Help them use their imagination for activities requiring jumping, walking, balancing, crawling, log rolling, etc. Line items up so they know the sequence. Have them run through it, helping them when needed for safety. They will probably want to repeat it several times or change it to create a new obstacle course.

Animal Walks:

Handwriting

Use the arrows to expand/collapse each section:

Posture:

  • Upright posture (avoid leaning head on hand, or laying head on table)
  • Feet should reach the floor (use a stool or thick book, if needed)
  • Rule of 90 - your hips and knees should both be at 90 degree angles for ideal positioning; with the desk positioned 1-2 inches above your bent elbows!

Pencil Grasp

Letter Formation

Spatial Organization

(intended for students in Kindergarten and above)

  • Baseline Orientation: Encourage your child to keep their letters on the line, no floaters TIP: Bold the baseline with a vibrant colored marker to help your child see the baseline.
  • Spacing between words: Encourage your child to use a finger space or popsicle stick as a spacing aid.
  • Letter Sizing: Use verbal and visual prompting to teach your child the varying sizes of letters for appropriate line placement. For instance:
      • Tall Letters: b d f h k l t
      • Small Letters: a c e i m n o r s u v w x z
      • Descending/Tail Letters: g j p q y
      • Encourage your child to learn letter sizing through play! For instance: Color all of the tall letters in a word search PINK; small letters YELLOW; descending letters BLUE. Scatter index cards of letters on the floor, then wheelbarrow walk to gather all of the tall letters, hop like a bunny to gather all of the small letters, then crab walk and gather all of the descending/tail letters.
  • Adapted Paper Recommendations:
      • Highlighter Paper is a great visual prompt for keeping small letters in the highlighted space.
      • Your child should be proficient with using tri-lined paper before transitioning to standard wide ruled notebook paper (generally around 3rd grade).
  • Creative Ways to Practice Handwriting
      • Make Lists (shopping lists, wish lists, to-do lists, top 10 video games list, top 10 vacation destination lists, etc.)
      • Copy down a recipe, then become chefs together!
      • Journaling
      • Writing should be fun, not forced. If your child is adverse to the activity, find a new way to approach it!

Keyboarding Resources

Self Care / Life Skills

Use the arrows to expand/collapse each section:

Shoe Tying:

Dressing:

  • Build time into your daily routine to allow your child to try dressing themselves on their own. Practice dressing skills in a playful way when possible.
  • Help them practice picking out clothes appropriate for various weather situations. You can create or find games that address this skill.
  • If your child has difficulty following directions, try being more specific and reducing the amount of steps you give. For example, If you tell your child to get dressed and brush their teeth, and they have difficulty with completing each of these steps independently, try breaking it down. Instead, give them 1-2 steps at a time. For example, “put on your shirt” or “put on your shirt and pants”. Give them praise for completing the steps, then give them the next steps.
  • Resources for games related to dressing skills:

Handwashing:

Visual Charts Global Handwashing Day

Household Chores/Responsibilities:

AOTA Tips for Morning / Night Routines:

Sensory Processing

Use the arrows to expand/collapse each section:

DIY Sensory Bin:

Pour sand, rice, dry beans, packing popcorn etc. into an empty plastic container or shoebox. Hide various toys or puzzle pieces within the sensory media

Heave Work

Heavy Work such as pushing and pulling helps provide proprioceptive input to our sensory system, which assists in the overall regulation.

  • Animal Walks, Wheelbarrow Walks, Push-Ups, Jump Rope, Jumping on a Trampoline, Help Carry in Groceries/Laundry Baskets, Gardening, Pushing a Wagon or Stroller, as well as the “Core and Upper Extremity Strengthening” activities listed above.

Play Outside:

Sidewalk chalk, bubble play, take a walk, ride bikes/scooters, gardening (pull weeds, plant flowers)

Calming Corner:

With all that is going on in the world, we all need a place to go that feels safe - a place to re-center and re-charge. Encourage your child to create a small personal space just for them! Add pillows, blankets, relaxing music, stress balls or fidgets, whatever helps them relax!

Resources