I don’t know about you guys, but when I was in grade school, I was always carrying a huge trapper planner, my lunch box, thermos, school supplies, and a few library books in my bookbag. The bag honestly was SO heavy. But it seemed normal. My shoulders would hurt, and the skin would be a little red from the weight. The only time that the weight of my bookbag came into question was at my annual pediatrician appointment, when they checked for scoliosis. While I did not have scoliosis, or an abnormal curvature of my spine, my doctor did educate us on how the weight of the bag can cause strain and poor posture.

The American occupational therapy association (AOTA) deemed the third Wednesday of September to be “Backpack Awareness Day.” As Occupational Therapists, we have knowledge about the anatomy and physiology of the body, ergonomics, and child development. Your child’s backpack should change in size and function as your child grows. But wearing the backpack incorrectly, making it too heavy, and/or wearing the wrong size can gradually affect your child’s body over time.

A child’s shoulders and neck have many muscles, nerves, and blood vessels. If restricted or compressed by a heavy backpack, it can cause numbness, tingling, and/or pain down their arms. Carrying a heavy load can also cause a compressive force on the spine, making the space between the intervertebral discs smaller, and it can distort the natural curvature of the spine.

The body often tries to compensate for the weight of the backpack, and can force kids to lean forward when they walk if they bag is too heavy. For some children, it can increase their risk of falling.

In some cases, children will wear a backpack using one strap. This creates an uneven weight distribution and can cause a child to lean to the opposite side to compensate for the uneven weight. This leaning strains neck and shoulder muscles.

The key factors to keep in mind are: the type of book bag your child has, the bookbag’s size/dimensions and how that relates to wearing the bag, and how to pack the bag.

There are many different types of backpacks and names for them. Some of the more common options are as follows:

• Standard backpack– this is the most standard type of backpack. It usually has two straps, one large opening, and potentially one smaller compartment in the front. Two straps mean that the weight of the bag is more evenly distributed.
• Sling bag/messenger bag– this usually has one single strap that goes over the shoulder, and the pockets are smaller. It is meant for lightweight items and quick trips, not books and heavy loads. By having only one strap, the weight of the backpack is not evenly distributed across your child’s upper body and torso. This is not an ideal choice of a backpack.
• Functional Backpack– similar to the standard backpack except it has more features. Features usually include more pockets, and are reinforced and have more structure. Many of the compartments have designated slots and pockets for specific items; some include a key ring for your child’s keys, pencil holders, and water bottle holders. Having two reinforced and padded straps, this is a good choice for a child’s backpack.
• Rucksack– this is also similar to a standard backpack but it can have additional straps (like a chest strap). They usually has a main compartment that closes with a buckle flap versus a zipper, and they are usually able to carry more weight comfortably.  By having extra straps that can go around your child’s chest and/or their waist, this can help to prevent the shoulder straps from slipping, and provides better weight distribution. The only potential downside is if the main compartment of the back pack closes with a buckle instead of a zipper, the contents of the bookbag may not be secure. This could be a good choice for some children.
• Drawstring backpack– lightweight bag, with one major compartment and a drawstring closure. It is not sturdy, and does not have padded straps to distribute weight. This bag is flimsy and is meant for lightweight items; this is not an ideal school bookbag.
• Rolling backpack– Similar to a functional backpack, but it has an extendable handle and wheels. It can hold heavy items and won’t put added weight on your child’s body. However, it can be difficult to pull around the school building (especially stairs), and can be a tripping hazard. This may be a good choice for some students.

Key added features to think about when choosing a backpack:

• Sternum strap– a strap that can be worn across the chest to connect shoulder straps and keep them from sliding back and off the shoulders.
• Hip strap– a strap that can be worn across the hips to provide additional support and weight distribution.
• Mesh panels– on the area of the bag that makes contact with your child’s back can provide ventilation to prevent your child’s back from getting too sweaty.
• Waterproof– to help keep your child’s belongings protected in the rain, or if their water bottle spills.
• The number of pockets-having multiple pockets can be helpful with organizing, but too many can make it easy to lose items in the bag.
• Laptop compartment– is your child carrying a tablet or laptop? Consider having a bag with a padded, separate laptop compartment to protect it.
• Fasteners– Be mindful of fasteners, can your child do these? You want to foster independence, so either ensure that their backpacks have fasteners they can manipulate and/or practice with your child so that they can become more independent with the back pack.

Size and dimensions

Ever look at a child carrying a bookbag and think to yourself that the bookbag is bigger than them?!?! Well, in some cases, you might have been right; they were wearing the wrong size.

When choosing a backpack you should be mindful of the dimensions. Backpacks should not be longer than a child’s back. There are two measurements that are important; maximum height and maximum width. To determine maximum height measure the distance between the top of your child’s shoulders and to their waist (around their belly button) then add two inches. Your child’s back will have different dimensions at different points. Therefore, you want to measure the space between your child’s shoulder blades (when they are relaxed, not when they are pulling their shoulders back), and then add an inch or two. The back pack should be able to be centered between their shoulder blades, can be a few inches below their waist (belly button area), and the shoulder straps should be snug but comfortably rest on the shoulders. You do not want the straps to be too tight and restrict their range of motion, but you also do not want them to be too loose and allow the bookbag to hang too low on the body.

Packing the bookbag

There are several important factors to consider when packing your child’s backpack.

• First off, your child’s backpack should not weigh more than approximately 10% of their body weight. In other words, if your child is 50 pounds, the backpack should not be heavier than 5 pounds.
• As often as you can, at least once a week, check your child’s backpack to ensure that they are only carrying items that they need for that day at school, and for that night to do homework. Any unnecessary items, take them out.
• Is your child allowed to have a water bottle in school? Consider having them pack an empty bottle, and fill the bottle up with water in school.
• Instead of packing their lunch box and putting it inside of their backpack, encourage your child to carry it in their hand to decrease the weight on their back.
• When packing the bag, load the heaviest items closest to your child’s back. Having heavier items closer to your child’s body helps them to maintain an optimal posture and balance when wearing the backpack. Conversely, the lighter items should be at the front of the backpack, and sharp items should also be away from the back (like scissors).
• When arranging the items in the bag try to pack it so that the items will not shift and slide around when moving.
• Once you establish the ideal way and amount of things that need to go into your child’s bag, teach your child how to pack their bag. While you can help them pack it before school, your child’s teacher may not be able to help them pack it before they leave school. If your child has difficulty remembering how to pack it, take a picture of it ideally packed and tape it to the inside of the bag. You can also try color coding and numbering the items. For example, does your child like rainbows? Put a red sticker and/ or a #1 on the item that belongs closest to their back. Put an orange sticker and or a number 2 on the next item, etc. 
• Modeling and practice should also be included for putting your child’s backpack on and taking it off. Especially practicing the fasteners! 
• Lastly, if your child’s teacher insists on your child carrying heavy items to and from school, consider talking to them about the 10% body weight rule, and see if they are open to reconsidering the daily necessary academic items.

Check out our handout for a quick and easy summary of the information above. Thanks for reading!

It is not what you do for your children, but what you have taught them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings.”

Ann Landers

Chores – We grew up despising that word. And now our kids do? However, as Pediatric Occupational Therapists (OTs) who support children with their functional and meaningful daily tasks, we know the benefits of chores are numerous. From sensory input to sequencing – developmentally appropriate chores have it all.

This blog post will list out chores that are appropriate for each developmental age, their benefits, how to help children become more independent with chores and how to reframe the idea of chores to make them a more rewarding and positive experience for all children.

Benefits of Chores:

We wouldn’t be OT’s if we didn’t first talk about chores and how they relate to ‘Activities of Daily Living’ or ADLs. ADLs is a term commonly used by OTs which refers to the meaningful everyday tasks that a person engages in to have a successful life. These include bathing, getting dressed, feeding etc. Instrumental Activities of Daily Living or IADLs, on the other hand, are similar to ADLs, except that these tasks require more complex and higher level skills to complete. Although they may not be essential to basic survival such as eating and bathing, they are still important to have meaningful engagement in the world. Examples of IADLs are: home management, meal preparation, etc. Therefore, teaching children to become more independent with chores sets them up to have meaningful engagement in the real world.

Learning how to do age-appropriate chores not only helps to foster independence and accountability but also helps children work on many skills such as their fine, gross and visual motor skills, bilateral coordination, language development, sensory input, sustained attention, sequencing, organizational skills and more – all skills they will need to success in the school environment as well.

Now let’s break down the specific skills mentioned above and how they can be acquired by engaging in chores (you may also find the italicized words in our glossary section):

• Sensory Input  – Doing chores can provide a lot of sensory input especially for children who seek movement, touch, visual stimulation and even auditory stimulation (ex listen to the sound of a spray bottle squirting water or the rag wiping left to right). One sensory input, in particular, that is enjoyable to children who either seek and/or avoid sensory stimulation is called proprioception – and a type of proprioceptive input that can be achieved through chores is categorized as ‘heavy work activities’. Heavy work provides a calming and organizing effect on a child’s body when they receive deep pressure in their joints by carrying, lifting, pulling and/or pushing items. This can be achieved by carrying a laundry basket filled with clothes, vacuuming, and even putting groceries away.
• Gross motor skills: Lifting, transferring and coordinating the body to complete chores works on strengthening a lot of the larger muscles of the body.
• Bilateral Coordination – Using both hands to lift, manipulate and transfer items allows both sides of the body to work in a coordinated and organized manner.
• Fine motor skills: Many chores work on strengthening the finer muscles of the hands which is especially important for handwriting. Examples include pressing down on a spray bottle, wiping spills, hanging laundry with clothespin, etc.
• Visual motor skills: Seeing where the “mess” is and coordinating body movements to clean up the mess allows the eyes and body to work together, a skill that is essential for tasks like cutting.
• Tactile input/ tactile desensitization: Many household cleaning materials such as rags, mops, dusters come with various textures. Encourage your child to explore and become more normalized with touching different textures to prevent tactile sensitivities.
• Attention and Sequencing: By completing chores, children have to visually attend to the task until it’s complete and follow a sequence of steps. This helps work on increasing their attention span and sequencing skills.
• Language: Encourage your child to learn the names of various cleaning items, practice identifying the properties of the objects, practice social skills of turn taking and following directions. 

Chores by Developmental Age

Before I talk about ways to help children become more independent with chores and have a positive outlook on these tasks – here is a list of chores that are appropriate for your child based on their developmental age:

Helping Children Become More Independent with Chores:

• It is important that chores are developmentally appropriate for your child’s age (see chart above) for safety purposes and also for the just-right-challenge (a task that is not too difficult but challenging enough to promote learning).
• Children can do chores long before they can talk about it. Since children learn by first seeing, modeling how to complete the chore is important when demonstrating how to safely use the equipment and coordinate the body movements.
• There are different types of supports or cues to provide your child (ie physical, verbal, visual, etc). When providing physical support, place your hand under or over the child’s hand to guide them through the action of completing the chore. When providing visual cues you can place a sticker on the part of the broom stick, for example, where your child’s hand should be placed and/or mark the spot on the floor where they should collect the scraps of paper on the floor with their broom. Verbal cues can be given as well (ex: “Use both hands to hold the broom, move in a side to side motion etc). Gradually diminish any and all cues provided as your child learns to become more independent with the given task.
• Remember to not teach them these skills when in a rush. Practice takes time.
• Understand that there may be a cultural component to completing chores.

Making Chores More Pleasurable:

Many children view chores as a undesirable and time wasting task. Here are ways to change that perspective:

• Consider describing and engaging in chores with the “growth mindset”. In other words, children should perceive difficult tasks as something beneficial and important to their wellbeing. For example, instead of thinking “ugh, I have to clean up my room” – think “I deserve to have a clean room so I can be safe and find everything I need.”
• Consider framing chores as a way in which you are doing your job to help the family versus a punishment when doing something wrong.
• As an adult and model figure for your child, always check to make sure your own views and statements on chores are seen in a positive light. For instance, while washing the dishes, if you appear upset or bothered, this portrays the idea of washing dishes as something dreadful. However, if you verbalize in front of your child how great it feels to have clean dishes for the family, they will view this task as something important to keep the household functioning.

Playing with Cleaning Toy Sets:

Cleaning toy sets are a great way for children to associate cleaning with joy. It is also a great opportunity for parents to work on many skills required to help your child become more independent with certain tasks. Check out our Toy Review tab for recommended ways to play with a dust set:

Some examples of ways to engage with dust sets are:

• Tell your child the names of each of the objects, what they do, and on what surfaces do you use each item.
• Demonstrate their use with the toys and show them with your adult version of each item.
• Go over the properties of each item- the bristles on the dust pan broom are scratchy, the fabric on the duster is soft. What colors do you see? The mop is blue and white, the broom has green bristles. The green broom is long or tall, the red dust pan broom is short or small.
• Compare the properties of their toys and your real life items. Daddy’s mop is tall and it is red and white. Versus their mop is short, and blue and white.
• When going over the names, properties, and use of each item, if your child does not have the verbal vocabulary to participate, encourage them to point.
• Encourage your child to use the objects during play. Do they have a play kitchen, a play house? While making a fake meal in their play kitchen, pretend that they made a mess and have them use the toys to clean it up. “Aww man, I dropped crumbs on the floor, can you grab the broom and help me sweep them up?” “Woops, we spilled some milk on the floor, can you grab the mop and help me clean it up?”
• When your child makes a non food related mess, see if they can use these toys to help you clean it up. Making a valentines day card at the table with tissue paper, or cutting paper? If scraps fall on the floor, encourage them to get their broom and dust pan to clean it up. 
• Encourage the child to put each one of the items back on the stand. This helps them to learn how to clean up their toys and stay organized.
• Encourage your child to teach their siblings, friends, or relatives how to use the items.

Find the complete list in our Toy Reviews tab. And of course, always reach out for comments, questions and/or suggestions for future blog posts and toy reviews. See you in our next post!

Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood.”

Play – the universal language of all children. The tool and means for children to learn and explore the real world.

As a Child Life Specialist who helps children cope in medical settings, I get to witness the extraordinary effect that play has on a child – whether the child is engaging in play as a distraction from a stressful or invasive procedure, playing as a way of normalizing the medical environment they are in or by engaging in medical play for the purpose of familiarizing themselves with medical tools – it is truly amazing .

As Pediatric Occupational Therapists, Christine and I also recognize play as being one of the primary occupations or meaningful daily activities for all children. Play builds confidence in children, fosters creativity and self-expression, and improves social skills, problem-solving skills, fine motor skills, gross motor skills as well as visual motor skills.

For parents or supportive adults like yourself, it is important to encourage opportunities for children to engage in free play, whether it is indoors or outdoors. This blog post will discuss the different types of play, how to play with children to enhance their motor and cognitive skills and ways to support children who may need assistance in engaging in play.

Types of Play

There are several types of play. Most of them are observed to occur at various developmental ages and stages. Some children, especially children with special needs, shy children, and/or children that do not have opportunities to play with other children, may need some support from caregivers to acquiring skills in and/or learn various types of play.

Here are some common types of play:

• Solitary play– this type of play is when children are playing with objects or toys by themselves, and do not seem to be observing or engaging in the environment around them during this play. Ex. Using a shape shifter.
• Onlooker Play – this is when a child is looking at other children playing without the desire to join them Ex a child watching children play on the playground while sitting on the bench
• Parallel play– This is when children are playing near each other, but seem to be doing their own thing, and are not engaged with each other. They may look at each other occasionally but they are not usually trying to influence their peers. Ex. One child is building a block tower at a table while another child is playing with a car on the same table.
• Associative play- This is usually when a child seems to be more interested in their peers and their play. Children are more engaged with each other, and there isn’t usually structure to their play. Ex. Two or more children are building their own block structures in the same area, sharing blocks.
• Imaginative play- Children are imagining worlds, roles, and situations, and encouraging other children to participate in their imaginary situation. Ex. One child is a veterinarian, another child has a sick stuffed animal pet.
• Cooperative play– When children work together for a common goal. Ex. Organized sports, playing board games together, building a sandcastle together.

Helping your child to get the most out of their toys:

Children may not always know how to play or engage with the toys that are given to them. Children that are young, have special needs, and/or have never seen that type of toy before may need an adult to show them how to use their toy to maximize their learning.

While some toys may seem to have limited uses, there are many ways to enhance your child’s learning by using any toy they are given. Here are some examples to do just that:

Language

Using a lot of language while playing any toy is essential in increasing your child’s vocabulary and receptive skills. Teach your child the names and various properties of the toys. For example, “this is a toy car. The colors on the car are red, black, and white. The car is small, feels hard and has a smooth surface; the paint is shiny”. It is also important to narrate your own actions as well as your child’s when playing with the toys. “I am rolling the car up a hill. Vroooom… beep beep goes the horn. I see you are stopping the car from getting across, I will drive around you”. The more language you use, the more you are encouraging your child to understand and/or use language during play.

Promoting Social Skills

Using any and all types of play is great to improve a child’s social skills. Set up situations where your child has to share, and/or ask for toys. Thank them if they let you use the toy. Drawing rainbows? After verbally going over the colors in a rainbow, hold onto the green and purple crayon, that way when they get to those colors in the rainbow, they have to ask you for the crayon.

Following Directions

Play can be a great way to teach your child how to follow one step, or multi-step directions. Whether it is during an organized game, or imaginative play. Start with giving simple, and clear one step directions, and gradually increase the complexity of the directions and number of steps. For example, while playing Simon Says, you can practice one step commands such as “touch your nose” or advance to multi-step directions such as “touch your nose then touch your ears”.  While engaging with blocks, you can have your child place the red block on top of the green block to have them practice following directions.

Modeling

Since most children are visual learners, it is important to model or show your child how to perform any task you want them to perform with an object or toy. It is also important to note, that you should always try to model how to use new objects, perform new tasks, or play with new toys.

For example, when attempting to brush a doll’s hair, you pick up the doll, place it in front of you, grab the brush, and show your child how you hold the doll with one hand and brush the hair with the other, moving the brush from the top of the doll’s head to the tip of their hair. Then, give the doll and brush to your child and verbally encourage them to do the same. If needed, gently place your hands over or under your child’s hands and perform the action with them. Gradually reduce the amount of help you give them, until they can brush the doll’s hair on their own.

It is also helpful to use toys to model real life activities such as potty training, wearing a mask or going to school. When kids see their favorite toys engage in certain activities with them, it can increase compliance and reduce challenging behaviors associated with those activities.

Facilitate Self-Expression:

It is always great to use play as a means for children to express themselves and showcase any suppressed feelings. For example, after a stressful doctor’s visit, you can play ‘doctor’ with your child to see how he or she may have felt during the visit. When your child is observed to aggressively insert a toy needle into her doll’s arm, that can reflect how she perceived the needle she had gotten. This type of play allows parents an opportunity to address these feelings in a safe space. “Seems like that pinch doesn’t feel too good, but I also see how quick it was to go away!”. Similarly, pretending to play a scene from your child’s day at school or an encounter they had at their friend’s house can be a great way to practice safety, social skills and develop appropriate coping strategies when needed.

Physical Support

Depending on your child’s age and abilities, they may need some physical support when learning how to play with toys. They may need assistance in holding an item, manipulating it, putting it back, and playing with it. When giving physical support to your child, it is important to gradually diminish the amount of support you give them as they become increasingly more independent with the task. Some ways to provide this support is by placing your hand over or under your child’s hand while engaging and manipulating a toy, holding the item or toy for them, verbally reminding your child what to do next with the item, pointing to the object that they need and more.

Check out our ‘Toy Reviews’ tab on more ways to help foster your child’s acquisition of developmental skills with the toys you have at home or with some of our favorite toys that we have used during our therapy sessions. A new toy review will be released each month. Join the email listing to get it straight to your inbox.

And of course, always reach out with questions on specific ways to enhance various skills with your child’s favorite toys.

Note: Affiliate links were used in this post. I recommend products that I have personally found to be effective. I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you if you use any of my affiliate links which will be used to maintain this site. Full disclosure policy here.

When it comes to remote learning or home schooling, your child may have a hard time focusing and feeling calm when their environment is perceived to be overstimulating for them. In other words, their brain is perceiving the sights, sounds, smells, tastes and textures in their environment as way more stimulating than they may actually be. To understand how that may feel, imagine trying to focus on a new skill while hearing a constant screeching sound of nails on a blackboard or trying to read with bright florescent lights being flashed in your eyes. Similarly, our kids with sensory processing issues may be having a hard time focusing when their environment is not made comfortable for them.

For our sensory avoiding children who are constantly over-responding to sensory stimuli, it is important to decrease or remove feasible sensory stimulation from their working environment to create a more calming atmosphere for them to learn in. Below are some ways you can do just that.

Quiet Area:

Be mindful of the sounds in the house especially when your child is engaging in their school-work. Sometimes it may be something as simple as closing a window or quieting a sibling that will prevent your child from feeling overstimulated with sounds. Avoid having your child work in high traffic areas of the house where family members are constantly walking in and out of. Turn off the TV and/or all other visible screens. Have other siblings engage in a quiet activity while your child is completing his work.

Noise Reducing Headphones:

If you find that your child is still distracted by noise in the room despite your efforts of quieting the room or that they are quick to cover their ears over sounds that may not be avoidable, have your child wear noise reducing headphones to block out irrelevant sounds. These headphones will still allow your child to hear the main voice in the room such as the parent giving instructions. You can also look into these headphones with an audio connection to a laptop if your child is tuning in to his remote school lesson.

Laptop Settings:

When your child logs onto their remote lesson, be mindful of all the sensory stimulation that comes along with that. Decrease the brightness of the screen if your child is sensitive to bright lights. You can also switch to night-mode on the laptop (available on both Macs and Windows computers), use an anti-glare screen filter for the screen or even have your child wear anti-glare glasses. Be sure to place the laptop in an area of the room where there are no lights directly facing the screen to avoid a glare. In addition to adjusting the glare and brightness of the laptop screen, adjust the volume as well so that it is not too loud for your child. Kindly request students to mute their volume if they haven’t done so already while the teacher is speaking to the class. Lastly, make sure that your child is viewing his screen in the ‘active speaker view’ and not the ‘gallery view grid’. This will ensure that he sees only the person talking and not have all his peers displayed on one page, which can be visually overstimulating.

Sound Machine:

A sound machine that can provide calming sounds such as water and ocean waves is always great. But always see what sounds your child reacts positively towards. A sound machine also muffles excessive background noise and can mitigate the impact of sudden loud sounds which may otherwise startle a sensory avoiding child.

Dimming/Turning off Lights:

In between lessons or when your child is starting to feel overstimulated, you can dim or turn off the lights to give your child a break from the visual stimulation.

Reduce Visual Distractions:

Avoid setting up your child’s workspace by a decorated wall or a wall with too many picture frames, colors and/or patterns. Sitting by a bare-wall with neutral colors is encouraged. Having your child’s workspace by a window can also welcome a lot of distracting sounds and visuals, which may impede in their ability to sustain focus and engagement during their remote lesson. Set up desk dividers if your child is sharing the workspace with a sibling. Also, try to limit visual distractions on your child’s workbooks by covering up the page to only show the math problem he or she is working on. When your child is writing, you can block out excess lines on the page to only display the line your child is writing on by folding the paper or covering the other lines with a dark colored paper or folder (to provide contrast).

Calm Down Area:

If you find that your child is feeling really anxious or overstimulated, you can create an area in the house for them to ‘calm down’. Whether it is inside a tent placed in the corner of their room or underneath a table, creating a space to help your child return to baseline before returning to their remote lesson is important. Inside the ‘calm down’ area, you can have calming music/sounds, as well as calming toys such as glitter wands, a water tube, or even textured toys that they prefer.  

Mindfulness and Deep Breathing Activities:

Mindfulness activities are a great way to help your overstimulated child calm down during times of high anxiety. Helping them focus their energy on one particular area of the body or one particular area in the room, naming/observing various sensations around them (what they see, smell, feel, taste, etc) or engaging in deep breathing exercises are just a few of many ways mindfulness activities can redirect your child to a more calm state. Check out this book for more mindfulness activities to try with your child that are playful and easy to do. If your child is having a hard time engaging in deep breathing exercises during times of high anxiety, you can try to get them to take deep breaths by blowing up a balloon, blowing at a pinwheel, blowing a party blower noisemaker or even pretending to be a dragon.

Hope this post was helpful. Please share any tips or suggestions in the comment box for more strategies that work for sensory avoiding children. And of course, reach out to me if you have any questions or suggestions for future blog posts. See you in my next post!

It often happens when a child just plops down on the floor of aisle 7 of the grocery store, screaming at the top of his lungs and simply refusing to get up off the floor. Not knowing right away what his needs may be, especially if he is non-verbal, further exacerbates the situation, leading the parent and child to become more frustrated at the circumstance.

At times like this, a parent may quickly and forcefully lift their child off the floor in ways that may cause more harm than good if not done properly, for both the child and the caregiver. Not only are safe lifts helpful in mitigating the embarrassment of public tantrums but they are also crucial when trying to remove your child off the floor during emergencies or any unsafe situation. Regardless of your child’s age and weight, here are 3 safe lifts to help you get your child off the floor safely and efficiently.

Before we get into the techniques of the lifts,  keep in mind that it is important to always inform your child what is about to happen and why to facilitate compliancy: “I am going to help you stand up because this is not a safe place to sit.” Always make sure your own body mechanics are safe before lifting your child: ie do not, I repeat, do not bend with your back but rather with your legs. Lifting while bending your backs can lead to serious injuries. Get as close to your child as possible when lifting them. And never pull on your child’s arms or legs as this may risk dislocating their joints.

Let’s Get Into It!

Here are 3 safe ways to get your child from the floor to a standing up position:

Technique #1: Criss-cross arms method from behind:

Technique #2: All 4-s (quadruped) to sit to stand

Technique #3: Bending hip/knee method

If your child is lying down on the floor, here are three safe ways to get them to first sit up. Once they are sitting up, follow the sit to stand methods mentioned above.

If your child is lying on his/her back – Technique 1

If your child is lying on his/her back – Technique 2:

If your child is lying on his/her stomach:

Hope these videos were helpful. For any comments, questions or suggestions please write them in the comment section below or email me directly at madeha.ayub@seedsforspecialneeds.com.

See you in my next post!

There are so many things that can distract your child in the classroom setting, whether it’s the assortment of fall leaves on the wall painted with a variation of greens, yellows and reds or the sound of Mrs. Larson’s voice down the hall telling a student to stop calling out.

As an Occupational Therapist working in a school setting, one of my roles is to modify the classroom set up to create a more calming and conducive environment for our children to learn in. When it comes to children with ADHD specifically, who are so easily distracted, classroom modifications may include taking down excess artwork from the walls, dimming lights, or placing their desks away from high traffic areas such as the classroom door.

Now that the gears have shifted and more students are learning from home, I can’t always expect parents to modify or alter their homes completely. The great news is you don’t have to. Here are 14 simple and easy strategies to help your child with ADHD focus during remote learning. 

1. Limit Distractions

As soon as my young bright-eyed students join the zoom call for their telehealth sessions, I notice the area around their workspace. Often, I would see toys on the floor, the tv on in the background, the dog intermittently coming to lick their foot or even younger siblings crying in the background. The first step, which may be an obvious one, is to remove or limit distractions from the room. If other siblings are present in the room, have them engage in a quiet activity or set up desk dividers if they are sharing the workspace. The area should also be away from high traffic areas of the house where people are constantly coming in and out of. Placing your child by a bare wall, away from windows and decorated spaces is also encouraged.

2. Declutter the workspace  

Creating a clutter-free workspace is key in helping your child stay focused and organized for their remote lessons. If your child is drawing a picture to show what they did over the weekend, try to have out what is absolutely necessary for the activity and clear everything else off the table. If they are coloring an image, have them use one type of coloring utensil (either crayons, markers, or colored pencils and not all three). Also, try to stick to the primary colors since having too many options for colors may make it distracting for our kids to finish their work on time. It is also helpful to have out the required materials prior to your child starting the activity so they don’t spend time deciding which items to use when it is time to work.

3.  Consistent location

Try to allocate a specific area of the house as your child’s ‘workspace’. Kids would sometimes log onto their remote lesson from their living room while plopped up on the couch and then decide to sit on the kitchen table the next time while eating a snack. A consistent location helps your child associate his workspace with, well, work. Changing the location constantly gives our kids more distractions to ward off as new places come along with new distractions. It also makes it more difficult for your child to stay organized when they now have to scurry to locate and transfer their supplies to a different area of the house.

4. Visual Schedule

A visual schedule with the upcoming lessons or activities for the day is a great way for your child to know exactly what to expect without feeling too overwhelmed by their work. Keep the schedule in clear sight, preferably on their desk, so they can easily look at it when losing focus. Making the schedule ‘visual’ with images (ie. a book for reading class, an addition sign for math) helps our kids to quickly understand the schedule especially if they have not yet learned to read. Furthermore, have your child check off each activity or lesson that has been completed to help them monitor their progress.

5. Use Sensory Strategies

Incorporating sensory strategies is a great way to help our kids feel more ready to learn. Similar to how we bite our pencil while thinking of the answer to that math problem or even pace back and forth in a room when memorizing our times table, our kids sometimes need movement (vestibular input) and/or deep pressure (proprioceptive input) to help them focus. Sensory strategies that help with both deep pressure and movement can include a seat cushion to sit on, a wobble stool, engaging in animal walks or even carrying heavy items in the house. (Refer to my blog for more sensory strategies for remote learning.)

6. Lay on the Stomach

Who says you can only work sitting up at a desk? Whenever possible, (and I do this quite often), have your child work while laying on their stomachs (prone position). Visually, this allows them to focus just on the area directly in front of them as opposed to sitting up at the desk and being able to easily see everything in the room, having more distractions in plain sight. Laying on their stomachs also serves as a great sensory strategy as we discussed before, which helps your child receive deep pressure throughout her body while completing her work.

7. Break up the activity

Breaking up the lesson into smaller blocks or periods allows our children to sustain attention for shorter periods of time. It makes the task of completing their work without getting distracted more attainable, which can help your child feel good about the work they are getting done. Giving your child a little sensory break between lessons can prevent them from feeling overwhelmed and help them feel more ready for the next block of the lesson. You can further break up a task or activity into smaller parts by having them complete one portion of it before moving on to the next. For example, if your child has 20 math problems to complete, cover the page to show the first five and then proceed to the next five when they are done.

8. Noise reducing headphones

This is probably one of the most commonly used strategies when working with kids with ADHD. The headphones that I use in the school setting help to reduce sounds while allowing the child to still hear the main voice in the room. This is great in helping our kids block out any distracting or irrelevant noise in the room while still being able to hear the voice of the teacher, therapist or parent to ensure they can still hear the instructions of the activity or receive verbal reminders when needing to be redirected to their work. If your child is tuning in to their virtual lesson, be sure to get headphones with an audio connection to a tablet or laptop.

9. Give choices 

Giving choices is one of the best ways to improve behaviors and engagement with our kids with ADHD. Choices can be given for the type of activity you want your child to engage in: “would you like to start with reading homework or math’ or the initiation of an activity “should we start the math lesson in two minutes or three?”. You can even give them a choice of the type of reward they will earn once they completed their work “are we working for the ninja turtle floor puzzle or some pretzels?”. Our kids did not ask for remote learning so giving them more control over the situation will not only improve behaviors but keep them engaged even longer if they know this is something they chose to do.  

10. Set a timer

Timers are a great visual reminder to help your child initiate their lesson, transition between activities, or even end an activity without putting up a fight. It is easy for our kids with ADHD to lose track of time and not realize how much time may be lost when they become distracted by other things. Have your child help set the timer to promote compliancy and even provide choices before deciding how many minutes to set the timer on. An example of what to say before setting a timer can be: ‘We have to start our math lesson soon, let’s set a timer so you know when to start cleaning up your toys. Should we set the timer for two minutes or three minutes?’. A timer that visually displays time decreasing either by an hourglass or a pie chart may be preferred over decreasing numbers to make it easier for our kids to see how much time they have left.

11. Take a deep breath

With their mind and bodies moving so quick, help your child take a deep breath before or in between their lessons to help calm them down, relax their muscles, free their mind and be more ready to learn. If your child is having a hard time stopping to take a deep breath or may not have the receptive skills to comprehend what is being asked of them, you can easily facilitate deep breathing by having them blow bubbles, move small objects while blowing through a straw, blow on a pinwheel, blow up a balloon, or even play dragon (“Let me see your fire breath!”).

12. Strength-based work

It is easy to focus on what your child shouldn’t be or isn’t doing but focus on your child’s many strengths and use it to help them reach their goals of sustained attention. If your child enjoys painting, incorporate that into their math lesson. Similarly, if you child enjoys toy cars and racetracks, use it to help them understand shape and angles. Using their strengths not only serves as a motivating factor in completing their work but also helps your child feel more empowered when they know they are skilled at certain tasks.

13. Schedule a time to talk

It is really easy for our kids with ADHD to get sidetracked and go off on tangents when they remember the lady they met at the grocery store who wore a funny hat or the dog that did a cartwheel on their way to school. Cutting them off to redirect them to the task can frustrate them with the activity. Rather, let your child know that what they have to say is very important to you but right now is not the best time to talk about it: “I really want to hear what you have to say but right now we are working. Let’s talk about it when we are done with our work”. You may also give your child 5 minutes before the start of an activity to share anything they have a dire need to discuss, setting a timer to help them know when the five minutes are over. If they did not get to finish, you can reassure them that we will return to this conversation at the end of the activity.

14. Reward positive behavior 

Your child has a lot on their plate. Remote learning has been a challenge for all our kids so do try to reward positive behavior whenever possible, especially if your child had engaged in an activity longer than what they are used to. And always remind them what it is that you are rewarding them for to encourage consistency. Also, be sure to have realistic goals for your child. If your child has an attention span of 5 minutes before they are up and out of their seat, reward them for sustaining engagement for 6 minutes the next day. Any small gain is big step in becoming more functional.

Please share any tips in the comments section on what helps your child stay focused at home. I (as well as other parents) would love to see what works! See you in my next post!

For parents who are home-schooling their children or have temporarily switched to remote learning, it may not always be easy to support a child at home who has sensory needs. A child with sensory needs or a sensory processing disorder (SPD), may perceive the sensory environment (the sights, sounds, tastes, textures and smells around them) slightly different – either their brain overresponds to information coming from their sensory environment or it under-responds.

For example, if you swing a child whose brain is over-responding to incoming sensory stimuli, they may become afraid, seal their eyes shut or maybe even start crying. That is because their brain is interpreting the motion of swinging as too much stimulation. On the flip side, a child whose brain is under-responding to incoming sensory stimuli, may keep telling you to “swing me higher”, since their brain requires a lot more sensory input to perceive the sensation of movement.

When a child with SPD feels that their external environment does not meet their sensory needs, they will naturally seek out sensory experiences or on the contrary, avoid certain sensory experiences. By implementing sensory strategies in your home, you can help your child feel more calm and ready to learn by increasing or decreasing external sensory stimuli according to your child’s specific needs.

Since this is a detailed topic, I will be separating this post into two blog posts: one for sensory seekers and the other for sensory avoiders. The focus of this post will be for sensory seekers.

Sensory Seekers

Sensory seekers are our kids who may be under-responsive to sensory stimuli and hence seek out stronger sensory experiences. These children may prefer a lot of movement (vestibular input), deep/firm touch (proprioceptive input), various textures (tactile input) as well as various smells, sights and tastes. Keep in mind, a child who is sensory seeking, may not seek out all the above sensations. Every child has their own unique preferences so always cater to your child’s own sensory needs.

Sensory Strategies Before Starting their Lesson

If you find that your child has a hard time initiating their work or is struggling to stay in their seat, you can start off with a 5-10 minute sensory activity or exercise before initiating their schoolwork. Below are some sensory activities to engage in before initiating a lesson or in between lessons when your child starts to lose focus or is struggling to remain engaged.

Self-squeezes: Helping your child provide his or her own self with deep sensory input is helpful when they may not have other sensory items around. For example, you can have them squeeze their palms together, their fingertips together or even press their thumb into the palm of the opposite hand while moving it in a circular motion. You can also have them use the palms of their hands to give their arms firm squeezes.

Image Credit: sensory-processing.middletownautism.com

Animals walks: Engaging in animal walks is a great way for your child to feel deep pressure in their muscles, joints and ligaments without you having to spend a dime. Bear walks, crab crawls and slithering like a snake are all ways to feel pressure in the body. Turn it into a game and guess what animal your child is pretending to be!

Wheelbarrow walking: The kids’ favorite!

Wall push-ups: Wall push-ups are great because they can be done literally anywhere where there is a wall. Playfully tell your child to ‘push the wall but don’t tear it down!’ to encourage them to apply more pressure with their hands/arms and hence receive greater sensory input in their joints.

Chair Push-Ups: As your child is seated on a chair, have them place their hands (palms face down) underneath their thighs and tell them to push themselves up. ‘Let’s see how strong you are!’ Have your child hold the position for 3-5 seconds and then slowly lower themselves back down into the chair. Try this 5 times.

Jumping Jacks : An all-time favorite!

Heavy Work: Having your child carry and transfer heavier objects in the house is a great way for their joints and muscles to receive input. You can make it functional by having them carry their laundry basket (filled with clothes, of course) to the washing machine, carry groceries to and from the car or even carry dishes to the dining table. Pushing and pulling heavy objects is another great and easy way for your child with SPD to feel input in their joints. Have them push/pull tables, chairs or even a heavy door.

Body sock:  A sensory seeking child may also enjoy wearing a body sock which provides deep pressure throughout the joints with its resistive stretchy material.

Tunnel:  Having your child crawl through a tunnel is a great way to receive sensory input all throughout the body as they find themselves crawling or slithering their way out. Add more fun by placing a piece of puzzle on one end of the tunnel and have them complete it on the other end.

Trampoline: Jumping on a trampoline whether it is indoors or outdoors is a great way for your child to receive a lot of sensory input. A trampoline provides both movement as they jump as well as tactile feedback when they land and bounce back up.  

Pogo Stick: Another great way for your child to receive both movement and deep pressure is by having him/her jump up and down on a pogo stick. Your child may even engage in this activity indoors when the weather does not permit.  

Theraputty: Theraputty is not just great for hand strengthening but it also provides a lot of sensory input for our sensory seekers. Hide small beads or toys inside the putty and have your child find it. Or have them roll the putty out and make pancakes!

Fidgets:  It may be helpful to keep hand fidgets by your child’s desk for a quick sensory break from their work when need be.

Sensory Strategies to incorporate WHLE they work

Therabands: placing TheraBand around the front legs of your child’s chair enables them to feel constant tactile feedback with their feet/legs while engaging in tabletop activities. For additional input you can wrap a pool noodle over the theraband to allow your child to roll his or her feet over the noodle.  

Sandpaper: Some of our kids with SPD may be pressing down too hard on the paper with their pencil. This may be due to their need for sensory feedback while writing. Putting sandpaper below your child’s writing paper will provide sensory input due to its gritty texture. If this affects writing legibility, try placing a corkboard underneath the writing paper instead.

Weighted pencils: Adding small weights/bolts to your child’s writing utensil is also a great way to help them receive sensory input during writing activities.

Weighted lap pad or a weighted shoulder wrap: These are great strategies to help your child receive deep pressure/input while completing their work at a table or desk. You can even use these in various settings such as when your child is at the dinner table or even in the car.

Alternative Seating for Sensory Seekers: It may not always be easy for our sensory seekers to sit still in their chairs – and they may not always have to. Providing them with sensory input in their chairs will decrease the chances of them getting up to seek out the sensory input themselves. Below are some alternative seating methods to try with your child during their remote sessions. Keep in mind that for some kids, a movement chair may be a source of distraction while for others, it can help them focus. Similar to how many of us pace back and forth while stressed out or in deep thought, our sensory seekers may also require movement to focus and to relieve anxiety. You may have to test out different types of movement chairs before finding the right one for your child.

• Prone Sitting – when your child is engaging in schoolwork or just simply coloring a picture of a fire truck, have them lie on their stomach. This position will improve focus (refer to my blog for more ways to help your child focus during remote learning), while allowing your child to feel deep pressure throughout his/her body.
• Seat Cushion – a seat cushion is great to try first before purchasing a movement chair since it is low cost and portable, meaning you can literally take it anywhere – dining room table, a friend’s house, etc. The seat cushion provides movement in addition to tactile input due to its varying textured surface.
• Wobble stool – many kids prefer to sit on a wobble stool during tabletop activities, helping them receive movement as they work. The stool can also facilitate an upright posture. Supervision may be required for safety.
• Rocking chair – rocking chairs are great during story time and/or reading
• Scoop seat – this is great for floor seating
• Bean Bag – this is great for when your child needs a sensory break or even while they’re reading or listening to a story.

Oral-Sensory Input: Some sensory seeking children seek sensory input in and around their mouths which can be evident by them biting, mouthing, and licking items all the time. Not receiving appropriate oral sensory input may distract your child from focusing on their remote lesson. Below are some ways to provide oral sensory input during your child’s lesson or during his/her sensory breaks:

• Crunchy Snacks: Allowing your child to snack on some crunchy treats such as crackers or pretzels can provide the deep and calming sensory input in their mouths that they seek. But there are a ton of healthy alternatives as well – apples, carrots and celery are all great crunchy snacks for your child to bite into.
• Chewy Snacks: Some kids may even prefer a chewy snack as a means to receive oral sensory input. Gummy worms, sour patches and even dried fruits are all great options.
• Gum: If age appropriate, chewing gum may provide consistent sensory input in your child’s mouth as they work.
• Sipping through straw: When pausing from his/her schoolwork to take a sip of water or juice, have your child use a straw instead to promote more sensory feedback. Resistive sucking can provide a calming oral sensory experience.
• Chew Toys: You can keep chew toys or chew items at hand as your child engages in their remote lesson, allowing them to chew on his/her item when need be. This chew toy can be worn as a necklace or used as a pencil topper, depending on your child’s preferences. Similar to how many of us bite our pencils while thinking or while completing a crossword puzzle, a chew item may help your child focus and even calm down if they become anxious during their lesson.  

If you have any questions on specific sensory strategies to implement with your child at home or suggestions on what works with your child, leave it in the comment box below. I will be sure to respond!

See you in my next post!