Summer has ended, and school is starting up again. Gone are the days of summer—the camps, the open space, the freedom. Lots of kids love summer because of the lack of demands, expectations, and the opportunity for relaxation. Both kids and parents often have mixed feelings about the return to school. Some kids crave routine...
Being purely right handed is the “norm”. Being left handed is less the norm, but often comes with "laterality dominance". “Pure” ambidexterity is even less common. Either way you look at it, being left handed lends to certain challenges. Here are some tricks to help!
Making sure your child gets quality sleep is key in development and daily function. Establishing a consistent and predictable nightly schedule can be highly beneficial in achieving that quality sleep. Determining an effective sleep routine can be challenging for families, especially because every family and their needs are unique. Regardless of the age of your...
Summer is a great time for children to engage in fun activities that both entertain and work on important skills needed for development. Fine motor skills in particular are an important part of everyday life and can be worked on through a variety of fun activities. Fine motor skills involve the coordination of small muscles...
As the Fourth of July is quickly approaching, it is an exciting time, anticipating festivities and fireworks! However, it is important to remember that these exciting celebrations, may be overwhelming for some individuals, including those with sensory sensitivities. Those facing sensory processing difficulties may not be able to enjoy these celebrations in the same way...
Recently, I had the opportunity to collaborate with the California Floortime Coalition in an effort to collate “Options for Behavioral Health Treatment for Autism.” The effort was in response to the Comprehensive Autism Care Demonstration Annual Report. This report is in response to Senate Report 114-49, pages 157-158, accompanying S.1376, the National Defense Authorization Act...
Self Regulation is the cornerstone to early childhood development. As a matter of fact, self regulation is the number one predictor to academic success in children ages 3 to 5 years old. The ability to self regulate is not something that you’re born with. You mean, my kid doesn’t come with a self regulation button?...
Developmental, Individual-differences, and Relationship Based (DIR) model DIR is the Developmental, Individual-differences, and Relationship Based (DIR) model. This evidenced based model is used to help autistic people and others with developmental challenges. Developed by Dr. Stanley Greenspan, DIR considers the critical role of social emotional development starting at birth and continuing through a lifetime. The model...
As a pediatric Occupational Therapist in Mountain View, CA and the Bay area, I have been working with autistic children with sensory sensitivices and their parents for over 25 years. I love Halloween! It is “just right” for for my nervous system. A little scary, a little loud, a bunch of yummy treats and a...
Billy is a 7 year old boy who loves outer space. He knows a lot about outer space. Billy is very active but he gets irritable very easily. He doesn’t like loud sounds, but he makes them all of the time. Billy likes things to be “his way” and he often gets argumentative about getting...
