Quick Neuro review...
Improve hand skills with rubber bands!
Doriet Bialer, OTD, MA, OTR has developed a number of hand splint designs using only rubber bands and surgical tape. These splints are quick, temporary, inexpensive and easy to do "on the fly".
Her new manual, "Functional Hand Splints: An Easy DIY" demonstrates step-by-step how to 'twist and turn' a rubber band to improve various grasp patterns, even a dynamic tripod grasp for handwriting. Imagine, walking into a classroom, with just rubber bands and tape, and immediately being able to influence a students skills!
Available as a set with manual and enough materials to get you started, manual only (you have to gather materials) or materials only (refills).
Visual Tracking Activities with Touchable Bubbles
YES! A bubble that doesn't always break when you touch it or when it lands on a surface. Players can REALLY VISUALLY TRACK the bubble then use coordination skills to catch it. Can you make a snowman or catch 5 on a paper? MORE INFO HERE...Some things to try:
- Catch a bubble on each finger
- Make a snowman
- How many bubbles can you stack on top of each other?
- Make several dots on a sheet of paper. Then try to catch a bubble on each dot.
- Called out different body parts to catch a bubble on (elbow, thumb, back of hand....)
- Complete a simple path while holding a bubble.
Buying info: Here
Pustefix Bubble Bear - The original premium bubbles with pop-up wand!
This bear, with the chubby tummy, was the first bubble container with a pop-up wand. Gently squeeze his belly to make the wand appear. Unlike cheap knock-offs, this cutey has a semi-closed inner top that the wand emerges from reducing spills & mess. It also contains PREMIUM bubble juice that produces more consistent bubbles per blow. Nothing is more frustrating than huffing & puffing repeatedly only to get one lone bubble! We even offer bubble juice refills! More info HERE...
Bubble cups: Oral motor- Respiration, Lip Closure, Blowing without fear!
Bubble cups: a favorite by staff & child
What's a bubble cup? Take a sturdy cup and make a hole slightly below the upper rim. (The lower on the cup wall the more "huffing & puffing" will be required). Next cut a square (double layered) from a handi-wipe it needs to be about 2" larger than the cup's rim. Secure it over the cup top with a rubber band. Place a straw in the hole you made. Now turn the cup upside down and dunk the handi-wipe top into a bowl of very soapy water. (Avoid getting water into the straw or hole). Players blow through the straw creating long piles of bubbles on top. Since there is no bubble juice actually in the cup, there is no fear of a mouthful of yuck! (Most children learn very quickly to coordinate suck vs blow with this motivating
YES! TOUCH, CATCH, STACK... Finally a bubble that doesn't allows break when you touch it or when it lands on a surface. Players can REALLY VISUALLY TRACK the bubble then use coordination skills to catch it. Can you make a snowman or catch 5 on a paper? MORE INFO HERE...
Activities that address: Suck, Breathe, Swallow - Talk, Listen, Process
Suck, Breathe, Swallow.... Talk, Listen, Process too!
Chances are you've seen "suck, breathe, swallow coordination" in action. Think of an infant drinking a bottle. Many times you'll notice that they stop drinking too take a deep breath. The same is seen when a child is very upset and trying to tell you something while crying. It frequently becomes frustrating for both the child and listener because they are having trouble coordinating it all at once. Remember your Mom telling you not to talk with food in your mouth? Yes, it's impolite, but it also takes requires less coordination and avoids choking or gagging on food while talking.
Let's strengthen oral-motor skills (No, not by talking more! Let's Play!)
Beans 'n Straws:
Use suction through a straw to lift a bean and transfer it to a container. (Make sure that beans will not fit up straw!) Increase the distance to the container to require greater breath control.
Papers 'n Straws:
Similar to bean's, but lightweight, so should be easier. Use different color papers or tissue paper to make a collage or picture as they go.
Let's Race or try it in a Group!
Any of these activities can be done in a group. Give each player a plate or paper towel and ask them to transfer beans or papers from their plate to a neighbor's. Or make teams and do a relay race.
Life Savers on a Stick:
This is an adaption of an old game where players transfer candy pieces from one to another via toothpick... This updated version uses wood skewers (with tips dulled by a nail file). Candy can be carried 10 steps then transferred to a partner or dropped into a container. Sticks must be kept straight out, not up, so gravity can not help. Add more rings for weight. Remind players that they can only hold the stick in their lips. No teeth allowed!
BUBBLES - ALWAYS A FAVORITE!
If you need a reason to do bubbles- Breath Control is it!
Table-top Bubbles:
Begin by getting the table damp. Give each player a thin straw and small cup with bubble juice. (Home made with dish soap is just fine). Dip the end of the straw and blow onto the damp table. Can you do a bubble in a bubble? or a big bubble surrounded by 6 small bubbles? Remember to keep all surfaces and straws damp to keep the bubbles flowing.
Bubble cups: a favorite by staff & child
What's a bubble cup? Take a sturdy cup and make a hole slightly below the upper rim. (The lower on the cup wall the more "huffing & puffing" will be required). Next cut a square (double layered) from a handi-wipe it needs to be about 2" larger than the cup's rim. Secure it over the cup top with a rubber band. Place a straw in the hole you made. Now turn the cup upside down and dunk the handi-wipe top into a bowl of very soapy water. (Avoid getting water into the straw or hole). Players blow through the straw creating long piles of bubbles on top. (Most children learn very quickly to coordinate suck vs blow with this motivating activity!)
Touchable Bubbles (A therapist favorite!)
YES! TOUCH, CATCH, STACK... Finally a bubble that doesn't allows break when you touch it or when it lands on a surface. Players can REALLY VISUALLY TRACK the bubble then use coordination skills to catch it. Can you make a snowman or catch 5 on a paper? MORE INFO HERE...
Pustefix Bubble Bear - The original premium bubbles with pop-up wand!
This bear, with the chubby tummy, was the first bubble container with a pop-up wand. Gently squeeze his belly to make the wand appear. Unlike cheap knock-offs, this cutey has a semi-closed inner top that the wand emerges from reducing spills & mess. It also contains PREMIUM bubble juice that produces more consistent bubbles per blow. Nothing is more frustrating than huffing & puffing repeatedly only to get one lone bubble! We even offer bubble juice refills! More info HERE...
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Cup & Scoop in the classroom improves hand skills
Cupping or Scooping can easily be incorporated into daily tasks in and out of the classroom.
Here are some examples:
Palmar arches are what gives hands shape and functionality. They appear plump, with many bumps and valleys. A hand with weak arches may appear flat with limited muscle development. Fine motor tasks like writing and buttoning can be a challenge and hands may fatigue quickly.
So let's work on those arches by CUPPING!
Yup- good ole cupping and scooping uses all 3 arches.
 
Drink water from a faucet using hands as a cup. (Sneak in hand-washing practice first!)
Offer hand lotion - a great sensory warm up before fine motor and writing tasks. Encourage rubbing each individual finger several times, as well as the palms and back of the hands.
Scoop up quantities of objects - Loose the shovels and cups from the sand or rice table. Only hands allowed.
Board Games- The very nice dice shakers can be re-purposed as pencil holders or flower pots!
Teach how to cup hands together, leaving a space for the dice to shake freely.
Clean up, Clean up, Everybody SCOOP some toys!
 
Practice the "Baby Bumblebee Song!" (while searching for the correct lyrics & accompanying hand motions- we found several versions. This one is cute & slightly longer than the original - we think you'll like it.)
I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee,
Won't my mommy be so proud of me, (Cup hands together as if holding bee) I'm bringing home a baby bumblebee, Ouch! It stung me! (Shake hands as if just stung)
(continued)
I'm squishing up the baby bumblebee,
Won't my mommy be so proud of me, ('Squish' bee between palms of hands) I'm squishing up a baby bumblebee, Ooh! It's yucky! (Open up hands to look at 'mess') I'm wiping off the baby bumblebee, Won't my mommy be so proud of me, (Wipe hands off on shirt) I'm wiping off the baby bumblebee, Now my mommy won't be mad at me! (Hold hands up to show they are clean)
I'm bringing home a baby dandelion,
Won't my mommy be so proud of me, (Cup hands together as if holding flower)
www.dltk-teach.com
Here are some of our favorite products with Dice:
Even Steven's Odd!
In this fast paced dice game everyone races to roll their 6 dice until they get the numbers that complete the challenge on the card. For 2-4 players, and 2 levels of challenge cards
Multi-Matrix Game: So this isn't really a dice game, but it uses dice! Actually 25 colored patterned dice & 25 white number dice. That can be a lot of scooping to clean up or to re-arrange pieces. The game itself is actually a series of visual-motor tasks that can be as simple as matching, 1 to 1 correspondence to much more complicated tasks such as copying a from a distance, scanning, sequencing, organization and more. Comes with video tutorials.
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Barrier Games develop organization, direction following & giving
Directions: Giving & Following in a Cooperative Game
Robot-Programmer Game:
There are 3 levels of play, but set-up is the same for each. Create, at least 6 locations and place matching treasures at each so you can tell that teams have been at each location. (Maybe #1 has all bean bags/#2 all plastic eggs/#3 wood blocks/#4 paper balls/#5 pencils/ #6 plastic cups etc). You need 1 more location than there are teams. Players work in teams of 2 or 3. Player 1 is the robot, who can only follow orders given and the others are programmers in charge of the code/directions. Have each team sit on a rug square or other floor marker as their "home". Place chairs and other obstacles throughout the play area. Programmers must navigate their Robots to a location, collect a treasure and return it home, before navigating to another treasure.
Rules:
- Robots can only walk in a straight line.
- Turns can only be right or left. So to turn completely around 2 commands are needed.
- Turns commands do not include any steps forward.
- "Pick up a treasure" or "Put down treasure" needs to be a command.
- The number of steps to be taken can be given in 1 command (Forward 3 steps)
- Robots STOP when they are about to bump into an object or another robot.
Basic Version: Programmers follow their robot and give commands verbally as they go.
Standard Version: Programmers draw arrows & numbers on small pieces of paper that the robot follows. Several papers may be given at once, but they must be followed in the order presented.
Advanced Version: Programmers draw arrows & numbers on a single paper. The robot follows the directions; must start again if changes are needed to the program, which can be made on the same paper as needed.
Another Therapist Designed Product
Therapist designed box of finger fun! Includes tasks to work on small muscle control of the fingers. Materials include a custom-made adjustable butterfly device, a pencil-like magnetic device, small container, chips, wooden balls, shoelace & instructions for completing unusual and motivating challenges for the hand and fingers from the finger muscles needed for writing.
More info here
Designed by you...
We currently carry over 35 products developed by working therapists, teachers and parents, and over the years there have been many, many more. Typically, makers of products are looking for the next big thing, the next yo-yo or fidget spinner. Although that would be great, here at PFOT, we are OT's ourselves. We know how the smallest item may have a huge impact and value to the right client. So big or small - all ideas are taken very seriously.
Here is a best seller:
Rona's Design Copy:
Rona is a therapist at a school for very high functioning students with learning disabilities. As a result, this is not your usual design copying book. It is divided into sections from the very basic to expert or black diamond level. There are 75 designs. Some copied right next to the original design, some on a separate sheet of paper, some with the full grid. some without. There's a level for each of your clients to work on.
Pizza Delivery A Group Activity
"Pizza Delivery!"
This is a modified version of the competitive "Save the Pizza" game. Now team members work together to complete an obstacle course without dropping their pizza box. Obstacles can include stepping over & around "boulders" (objects); Crawling under or through "tunnels" (tables/desks); Carefully crossing a "highway with speeding traffic" (large balls rolled toward them); "Jumping over a river of snakes" (a wiggling jump rope). How many pizza's can your team deliver before time is up?
Parent Permission for Weighted/Compression use
Here is a Parent Permission Form that you may download and use prior to initiating the use of or trial of any weighted-compression item. Please edit, add letterhead & complete prior to sending home with a client. Share with others!Find permission slip here!
Group Juggling
Group Toss/Juggle:
Activity Idea for Group or pairs
Quicksand Partners: In a large space, mark off a play boundary. Then fill the space with various size hoops, shapes or ropes laid in circles of varying diameters. Play in teams of 2 - a hiker and a rescuer. The hikers must start on any side of the play area and jump over the hoops, shapes and ropes to get to the other side. If they land in one of the shapes/hoops, they are stuck in quicksand and can not move until they catch a bean bag tossed to them by their rescuer, who is anywhere outside of the play area. You decide how many tries - bean bags can be used each time to get "unstuck". (A variation for older students, may be that they only get 5 tries for the whole course. For some, place a black paper /"rock" in the middle of a wide diameter that may be too large to clearly jump over.)
Mountain Breathing: A great strategy to encourage a breathing break when upset, stressed or escalating. Demonstrate then ask the child to do this by themselves. Spread out the fingers on 1 hand. Use the other index finger to trace the outside of the thumb as you: "Let's Climb the mountain-Inhale slowly (1,2), slide up the mountain to the top - STOP (hold breathe) to see the view 3,4; then (exhale slowly) slide down 5, 6"; Repeat on all fingers.by PFOT.com
Indoor recess activity ideas
Brrr- Baby it's cold out there! Only a snowman is happy in the cold weather that is overtaking much of the US right now. So what to do when kids can't go outside after lunch? Here's some ideas to spark your creativity.
PickUp Sticks (Ask parents to save and collect unused chopsticks- put colored tape on tips or decorate with markers) |
| Rug Square or Construction Paper Hopscotch Game Gets students up & moving - which is a very good thing! |
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| Pipe Cleaner Fun: Make letters, shapes, animals, etc. then straighten out and use again! Here is a link to our pipe cleaner special: PIPE CLEANER SPECIAL |
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| Block Design Copy: There are many games that provide both the blocks & design cards to copy. But if you're looking to DIY- start with any block you have on hand. Be sure each player has the same blocks. 1 designs then others copy. |
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