Do you want to encourage pretend play in children with disabilities? Here are 6 suggestions about using adaptive toys during pretend play and other tips. What Does the Research Say on Adaptive Toys and Pretend Play for Children with Cerebral Palsy? Research on adaptive toys indicate that children with cerebral palsy display less effective expression […]
It can be a challenge at times to encourage children with physical disabilities to participate in leisure activities. The Canadian Journal of Occupational Therapy published a small study to determine the effectiveness of environment-based interventions on participation of 6 adolescents with physical disabilities. A 12-week intervention occurred with a focus on removing environmental barriers and coaching parents. […]
Once a piece of adaptive equipment is put in place to use with a student, therapists need to follow up frequently. Whether the adaptive equipment is a pencil grip or a tablet, on going assessment is needed. Here are 5 follow up questions to answer after implementing adaptive equipment:1. Is it being used at all? […]
School based therapists are frequently involved in monitoring sitting and standing postures in order for students to access the educational curriculum without compromising range of motion. It is the pediatric therapists job to ensure that deformities are avoided through proper positioning. Obviously, this can be monitored and followed during the school day. But what happens […]
How cool is this? Using a 3D printer, there is the capability to make prosthetic hands. Watch this video to see how it came to fruition and how they made it all happen. The last few minutes of the video show some children in action using their robohands. I happen to be highly interested in […]
Pediatric therapists frequently modify or adapt equipment for children. Whether it be a writing utensil or sports equipment, sometimes children don’t need a specialized tool to participate in the activity but just small adjustment to the typical equipment. Here is a simple example – perhaps a child would write more legibly with a shorter pencil […]
Found this excellent resource on ideas to adapt books for children with disabilities from the North Carolina Assistive Technology Program. There are tips on simple low tech suggestions and more high tech suggestions. Worth a look if you interact with any individuals with disabilities. Read The A-Z of Adapting Books for Children with Disabilities.
Need to get some ideas to write letters of medical justification for adaptive equipment? Check out some of these websites to spark your letter writing: Rifton – How To Write Letters of Medical Necessity Easystand – Offers a checklist of what to include in your letters. LMN Builder – If you write many letters a […]
I have recently come across several interesting websites regarding adapting musical instruments. School based occupational and physical therapists are frequently adapting tools in the classroom. Here are several websites for suggested adaptations: One Handed Woodwind Instruments A Day’s Work – This is a commercial website of items for sale. Although you can get some great […]
Workshop Solutions is jammed packed with information about homemade assistive devices for people with disabilities which I heard about from Barbara Boucher website Therextras. There is a full list of mobility and communication devices that two men have compiled. There are many photos to support the text which describes various pieces of mostly homemade equipment. […]