If you’re looking for simple ways to keep your toddler busy and learning, getting outside is one of the best places to start. Santa Cruz offers so many natural opportunities for play from beaches to parks to quiet walking trails and those everyday moments outside are where real development happens. The best part? You don’t...
Toddlers are learning so much, so quickly and not always in ways that are easy to see. From learning to move their bodies, to trying new foods, to handling big emotions… these early years are full of important milestones. That’s where pediatric occupational therapy comes in. This OT Month, let’s take a closer look at...
Spring is the perfect season to get your toddler moving and it’s also a great time to support their occupational therapy (OT) goals! Simple, playful activities can help build core strength, hand skills, and coordination, all of which are essential for everyday tasks like sitting, feeding, drawing, and playing. Here are some OT-inspired spring activities...
This blog is the final part of our hand development series. Over the past four months, we’ve explored how infants and toddlers move from early reflexes to more refined, purposeful hand movements. Now, this checklist brings all of those milestones together in one simple reference for ages 0–2. You can use it to track your...
When it comes to building connection with your toddler, sometimes the simplest moments are the most magical especially around holidays! St. Patrick’s Day offers a fun backdrop for playful interactions that spark learning, communication, and emotional connection. Using DIR/Floortime principles, these back-and-forth games can feel like magic for both you and your child. What is...
Part 4 of Our Hand Manipulation Development Series Between 18–24 months, toddlers want to do what adults do. They want to help, build, feed themselves, scribble, and join in play. At this stage, hand skills are no longer just about exploration, they support independence, imitation, and confidence. When hand development doesn’t keep pace with these...
(Part 3 of Our Hand Manipulation Development Series) By 12–18 months, toddlers want to do everything themselves, and toddler hand development plays a big role in how smoothly feeding, play, and communication unfold. When hand skills lag behind that drive for independence, frustration often follows. This stage isn’t just about milestones, it’s about how well...
(Part 2 of our Hand Manipulation Development Series) Between 6–12 months, your baby moves from simple grasping to intentional, coordinated hand skills. This stage is full of exploration — banging, transferring, dropping, poking, and picking up smaller items with more precision. But when certain skills don’t appear on time, it’s worth paying attention. These early...
(Part 1 of our Hand Manipulation Development Series) Your baby’s hands are busy developing the building blocks for future skills, even when it looks like nothing more than grasping your finger. In these first six months, hand skills help set the stage for crawling, eating finger foods, playing with toys, and eventually learning to write....
As summer rolls in, most families are ready to press pause on the school-year hustle — no early morning routines, no packed lunches, no nightly homework struggles. It’s a welcome break! But while summer is a time to slow down, it’s also the perfect window to focus on important skills, without the pressure of a...
