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You Know You Are An OT....! Challenge for World OT day!

25/10/2017

 
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Happy World OT Day!  This has also been "OT Week" in Australia!  I have been involved in lots of promotion across social media to promote "occupational therapy" in some very exciting events!

One of these events has been the "You know you are an OT" challenge!  Occupational Therapists (and OT assistants) are special people who are so passionate about their jobs! 

Here are some of the memes I shared about being an OT. 
  • You know you are an OT when you see an advertisement for a sponge and you think it would make a great sensory tool.
  • You know you are an OT when your kids are constantly correcting YOUR pencil grip!
  • You know you are an OT when you are at a store and the kids ask "Don't you want to buy that for work?" so that they can play with it too!
  • You know you are an OT when you are making resources on the weekends and in the school holidays.
  • You know you are an OT when you have more toys in the car than people.
  • You know you are an OT when play is work and work is play.
  • You know you are an OT when you can't fill in "occupational therapist" on the form without going out of the space provided.
  • You know you are an OT when you spend longer in the toy shop than your kids!
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There were also some fabulous contributions to the challenge by occupational therapists and OT assistants across the world. Here are some of my favourites:
  • You know you are an OT when you get a writing sample in your child's first day of school pic! Preferred Therapy Toys
  • You know you are an OT if you can't order without assessing the waiter's pencil grasp. Miss Jaime OT
  • You know you are an OT when you analyze recycled shipping materials and find cool ways to use them at work. Cotalife
  • You know you are an OT if you recycled household items as fine motor tools. Ruizd_2326
  • You know you are an OT when you take your kid to gymnastics and think about how you could make the exercise harder or easier for your therapy kids. OTandgrowwithme
  • You know you are an OT when you are taking photos and sending emails to colleagues about the state of the hospital shower chair instead of gazing adoringly at your new born baby! Lunchesandfoodfun
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I have also been busy this week organising many Australian OT week online events with the lovely Anna from Kids Play Space for the "Australian Paediatric Facebook Group". 

We also asked group members to answer "You know you are an OT"...  Here are some of my favourites!
  • Carla says "You know you are an OT when you notice that you keep randomly assessing people's sensory processing".
  • Tash says "You know you are an OT when you constantly have playdoh in your fingernails!"
  • Ana says "You know you are an OT when you love Red Dot and The Reject Shop a little too much !"
  • Jacky says "You know you are an OT when you describe your weekend in terms of Therapeutic Listening Quickshift Albums...mine was a Sentimental Strawberry plus Reg3".
  • Joanna says "You know you are an OT when you buy clothes based on whether you can crawl through a tunnel and attend a professional case conference in the same day. Ditto for shoes. Can I slip them on and off easily?"
  • Carolyn says "You know you are an OT when you describe to others that you play for a living and the tools of your trade include a Lycra swing, a skateboard, LEGO and a variety of pencils!"
  • Gabrielle says "You know you are an OT when you're trying to relax and watch some tv but all you can think of is how to correct the actor's pencil grasp!"
  • Elise says "You know you are an OT when you talk to your husband in slow, one step instructions at the end of the day".
  • Kahli says "You know you are an OT when your hands are constantly every colour but skin colour 🌈 and you analyse your own pencil grip".
  • Kelsee says "You know you are an OT when you buy work clothes based on how suitable they are for an obstacle course!
  • Claire says "You know you are an OT when you are so impressed when you meet a typically developing child with skills that some of your students/clients/customers dream of having".
  • Elyssa says "You know you are an OT when you assess the motor skills of every kid at the park."

This is has been so much fun to celebrate World OT day in this way! I hope some of these made you smile or chuckle or just nod your head in understanding!

Give your OTs some love this week and let them know that you appreciate them!  Cheers to my fellow OTs!



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Cindy Chuan is a registered Occupational Therapist practising in Sydney Australia.  She has two young children who are a constant source of inspiration and learning.  Cindy loves working creatively to help children to reach their potential, finding opportunities in everyday living and making learning fun.

Cindy is the author of the Occupational Therapy blog Your Kids OT 
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Learn Letters and Pre-Writing Patterns with Magnets!

18/10/2017

 
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Magnets are so fascinating for kids! How do they work? What makes them attract or repel something?

Using the fascination children have with magnets ... I created a fun way to learn pre-writing patterns and learn letters too!

What do you need?
* two-sided plastic frame (I use this frame from IKEA  and took out one of the plastic sheets)
* magnets
* whiteboard markers (and eraser)
* felt/glue (optional)

The felt and glue are optional.  I added a small piece of felt to my magnets to prevent scratching the plastic frame.

What do you need to do?
  1. Draw a pattern, shape or a letter on the plastic frame.  You can ask your child to do the drawing or if you are teaching them a specific pattern, shape or letter; you might want to draw this yourself!
  2. Attach the magnet to the frame (place a part on each side of the frame).
  3. Have your child trace the pattern, shape or letter with the magnet!
  4. Rub it out and try a different shape or letter!

I hope you enjoy this video showing you what you need and what you need to do to learn pre-writing patterns and letters with magnets!
Note: The last time I included a video in my blog post, my loyal newsletter subscribers couldn't see it!  Please also find the video available on You Tube at this link !
Why I love this activity!

This activity has so many great benefits!
* Pincer grasp - Encourage your child to hold the magnet between their thumb and index finger.
* Separation of the two sides of the hand - Encourage your child to tuck away their 3rd, 4th and 5th fingers.
* Wrist Extension - As this frame is vertical; your child's hand will naturally be placed in a position of wrist extension.
* Bilateral coordination - Encourage your child to use their dominant hand to hold and move the magnet, whilst using the non-dominant hand to hold the frame.
* Visual Tracking - Your child should naturally watch the magnet as it traces the pattern, shape or letter.  If they can't track visually - check out my variation below!
* Shape and letter formation - Use this activity to teach pattern, shape and letter formation as your child will "feel" their hand moving in space as each letter is formed (spatial awareness).  This learning through movement is called "kinesthetic" learning.  Children can also learn the planning involved with forming patterns, letters and shapes.  You may want to add a verbal element so that your child may repeat this to help with understanding the steps involved.  The verbal prompt may also help them to plan when they form these patterns, shapes and letters on their own.

The development of these skills are so important for handwriting on paper! This activity provides an excellent way to build "handwriting" skills without having your child "just write" for practice.  It provides multi-sensory learning, is "novel" and fun! It is really quick to set up (once you gather your supplies). It is also transportable ... perfect for the mobile therapist! 


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Variations
  1. You could assist your child by holding a magnet on one side of the frame whilst they hold another magnet on the other side of the frame.  Guide your child along the pattern so that they can watch how the magnets stay together.  This will help them with visual tracking, eye-hand coordination and motor planning.
  2. You can have your child use both hands to hold magnets on either side of the frame.  This will work on bilateral coordination skills.

For more activities to promote the development of fine motor skills; see this page with a list of my articles on this subject!

Does your child love magnets? Do you have an IKEA nearby?  I would love to hear if you make any further variations to this activity idea!


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CindyChuan is a registered Occupational Therapist practising in Sydney Australia.  She has two young children who are a constant source of inspiration and learning.  Cindy loves working creatively to help children to reach their potential; finding opportunities in everyday living and making learning fun.  She is also addicted to making printables!

Cindy is the author of the Occupational Therapy blog Your Kids OT
Catch up all the latest blog articles at https://www.yourkidsot.com/blog

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    Hi, I'm Cindy and I am an Occupational Therapist. I enjoy working creatively with children to see them reach their potential. Read more about me here.

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Disclaimer: The information on this site is general in nature and should be used for educational  and entertainment purposes. The activities are safe for most children, however, you should consult an Occupational Therapist or health professional to address specific movement, sensory or other medical conditions.  This blog does not replace formal therapeutic professional advice given by a health professional or medical practitioner.  Reviews and endorsements of products will only be made based on my expertise and personal opinion; and deemed worthy of such endorsement. The opinions shared in sponsored content will always be my own and not that of the advertising company or brand. Content, advertising space or posts will be clearly identified if paid, affiliated or sponsored.  Affiliate links may  be found throughout this website in advertising. This means that if you follow through with a purchase from these links, Your Kids OT will receive a percentage of the sale. Your Kids OT undertakes to meet the requirements of the "Social Media Policy" as published by Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).  Further information about this policy can be found here.

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Hi, I'm Cindy and I am an Occupational Therapist. I enjoy working creatively with children to see them reach their potential. Read more about me here.

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