Motor Development and Coordination
Occupational therapy helps kids play, improve their school performance, and aids their daily activities. It also boosts their self-esteem and sense of accomplishment. With OT, kids can:develop fine motor skills so they can grasp and release toys and develop good handwriting, printing or computer skills. Fine motor skills are finger and hand skills such as writing, cutting, opening lunch boxes, and tying shoelaces. We offer a 10-12 week program where a variety of opportunities are offered for children/youth to develop and review the foundational skills for their fine motor development. Some of these skills are: Visual Motor Integration, Bilateral Integration and Coordination, Sensory and Reflex Integration, pinch and grip strength, separation of the sides of the hand, arch development, finger isolation, thumb web space, and opposition to name a few. All of these skills play a role in refined use of the fingers and hands.
Motor Skills Development program!
Is your kiddo struggling with zippers, cutting, legible printing, a functional grip? Does your child struggle with learning new motor skills? balance? coordination? Does he/she frequently fall, trip or fall on others? Is he/she having trouble being organized and planning activities, movements or projects? If your answer is yes to any of the above, this 12 week program is just for your child/youth.
In this program your child will engage in a variety of experiential activities in an evidence based program that will help him/her to develop motor and printing skills. Assessments are done throughout the program and referrals may be done to other community partners for further assessment and therapeutic care. The program includes a variety of sensory enhanced activities, reflex integration and vagus nerve activation assessment and exercises with our occupational therapist. Children and youth experience a variety of experiential labs and discussions where they learn the basics of lifestyle habits, choices and activities that can empower active living. Children and youth lead their own program, set their own goals with our OT. We typically meet during a weekday afternoon after school or during the day if a child/youth is homeschooled. We mostly meet for individual/private sessions in the clinic and there are some group experiential activities and outings.
Children and youth tend to benefit and embody the learning best when they sign up for the entirety of the program. This program can be covered through Autism Funding, At Home Program, Respite, extended health and other types of funding for occupational therapy. The program is around $2,800 and registration will take place on December 1, 2024. We can only take 10 children/youth in one cohort. The cohort takes place from January to May every year.