April is OT Month! So, this is a great time to reflect on ways that our Children’s Therapy TEAM OT’s make reaching therapy goals (which is really hard work for kids) also loads of FUN!
Top 10 ways to make OT FUN:
- Celebrate – Celebrate each accomplishment…cheer, hoop and hollar!
- Motivate – Know what kids love. If Spider Man makes their heart flutter, well therapy work can always be disguised as Spider Man training.
- Zip – Take time to zip…yes zip! The zip lines at our clinics offer invigorating fun.
- Sing – For young kids singing is a natural, fun way to transition.
- Game on! – Board games, charades…you name it. Games are a great way to work on skills without even realizing you are working.
- Splash – OT in the pool…why yes! Our warm-water pools ensure kids can have fun in the water, work on building strength and social skills and not freeze while doing it.
- Dash – Race your therapist! We love seeing our therapists cram their legs into a kid’s tricycle and hit the runway against a child whose feet are on the pedals and ready to roll.
- Dance – Hit the music and we are ready to move. The macarena, for example, crosses the mid-line and is great for developing body awareness.
- Laugh – Giggle time, jokes…whatever it takes. There is a lot of sound scientific research behind the many benefits of laughter to the human body.
- Swing – Each our our clinics is equipped with several swings. We could go deep into the science of what vestibular motion does for the body, but take our word for it…many kids love it!