Occupational Therapy Services

It can be daunting and confusing when as a parent, you approach occupational therapy for your child. We are here to help you every step of the way and can answer any and all questions with discretion and consideration.

WHAT IS OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY?

OT’s use our expertise to make life easier and more joyful for our clients, patients and their families. We assist in improving skills and understanding behaviours so our clients can achieve their goals….whatever that may be.

Occupational therapy is an assessment-based approach to developing, supporting and improving cognitive, physical, sensory and motor skills. So what does this actually mean??

Occupational Therapists are trained to look at your child’s functioning in a unique way.  We observe  their posture,  how they move, how they use their hands to complete a range of tasks such as holding a pencil, opening their lunch box or catching a ball.  We look at the way they use their visual system to  navigate through a crowded playground or follow the words across a page.  We ask questions about their sleeping routines, what they eat and how they play.  We talk to  teachers and parents about what they observe and we ask them to tell us all the amazing things they can do.

We have specialist training in Sensory Integration which means we can look at the way your child is responding to all the sensory information in their world, such as what they see, hear, touch, taste and smell. We also know how the sensory information within their body such as their movement system, body awareness and feelings within their body such as hunger, tiredness, anxiety or excitement can affect them.

OT’s collate all this information to determine why your child is finding some things challenging and more importantly, how we can work together to make your child’s life easier and more joyful.

Before we begin any occupational therapy (OT) programme, we need to conduct an OT assessment. Assessments provide us with a baseline data of a child’s strengths and limitations so that we can formulate a therapy plan and map out key goals moving forward.

Assessments can take up to two hours and are a combination of clinical observations, liaising with the school, standardised and non-standardised assessments and a final parent feedback meeting to discuss results and recommendations.

Assessments we currently undertake include the following:

• Movement ABC: This helps to identify and describe any motor impairments in children and adolescents.

• Developmental Test of Visual Perceptual Skills: This test is designed to assess visual perceptual skills in children.

• The Beery Buktenica Test of Visual Motor Integration: If a child has difficulty with tasks like colouring, handwriting, tying shoes or catching balls, this test can help explain why.

• Sensory Integration and Praxis Test (SIPT): This test demonstrates how a child organises and responds to sensory input, allowing us to identify difficulties.

• Sensory Processing Measure (SPM): The SPM collects information about how a child behaves, their coordination and participation in the community, at home and at school.

• Sensory Profile: A Sensory Profile helps to determine how children process sensory input in everyday situations.

• The Handwriting Without Tears Print Tool: This test helps to assess and address challenges with handwriting.

• Clinical Observations based on Ayres Sensory Integration: The Ayres model looks at the impact of sensory processing on how a child learns, their emotions and their behaviours.

Our senses select what we need to focus on and what we need to ignore – this is known as sensory integration. Children who experience Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) or Sensory Integrative Dysfunction find that the way their nervous system receives messages and turns them into a functional motor or behavioural response encounters some problems. Symptoms range across a broad spectrum and can significantly affect activities in daily life.

At Young Folk Therapy, we have the training and experience required to diagnose and help treat children with sensory processing difficulties and practice treatments in sensory-rich environments within schools. Our therapies are totally focused on the child and we ensure every session is safe and fun.

School-based group therapy

Children are often more motivated, compliant and engaged when they are in a small group with other children who have similar needs. Small group therapy is the preferred method for occupational therapy, when appropriate. A maximum number of four children can be grouped together based on a combination of strengths, areas of weakness, age and timetable considerations.

School-based group therapy is usually structured into blocks of 10 sessions: 9 therapy sessions plus one meeting involving parents and teachers.

Home and school-based individual therapy

For some families with younger children or children with greater needs, home-based therapies can be a convenient and appropriate option. We are happy to come to your home to provide occupational therapy on a weekly basis, if required. For some therapies, such as feeding therapy for picky eaters, this is only available within a home environment.

Therapies are also available one-on-one for individuals both at home and at school.

Floortime therapy is commonly utilised for children with autism spectrum disorders and children who are facing educational, social, emotional and developmental challenges. The objectives of the DIR® Model are to build a healthy foundation for social, emotional, and intellectual abilities rather than focusing solely on isolated behaviours. The therapy starts by joining the child at their level first, then tailoring activities to the child’s unique challenges and strengths.

iLS training is able to build neurological pathways by training for brain and body integration. The approach sees children wear specialised bone-conduction headphones while listening to carefully curated music of different frequencies, while they complete specialised activities. The iLS system can be an effective and fun therapy for children who face challenges from autism spectrum disorders as well as learning and concentration difficulties.

The SOS approach starts by assessing a child’s eating habits. We conduct initial consultations to determine whether your child’s eating habits are problematic. Therapy focuses on helping a child to explore and learn about the different properties of food in a playful, relaxed way. This gradually increases a child’s comfort levels around different food groups, textures and flavours to effectively address picky eating and problem-feeding behaviours.

Young Folk Therapy are available to host and facilitate evidence-based discussions, workshops and seminars on a broad range of important and interesting topics related to child development, sensory integration, picky eating and more.

If you are a school or organisation looking to start a conversation and explore the potential of occupational therapy, we’d love to hear from you.

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