Occupational therapy helps people and children of all ages participate in meaningful, daily living activities and reach their goals. In pediatric occupational therapy, therapists are skilled in the therapeutic use of every day life activities and developmentally appropriate play to help children build skills, improve function, and enhance their ability to engage in meaningful and fulfilling activities and relationships.

Sensory processing is the brain-body process of taking in information from our 8 senses, organizing and making sense of that information, and then responding. Our ability to process and integrate sensation is the foundation for developing relationships, motor skills, social thinking and social participation skills, problem solving skills, communication skills, and regulation skills.

All of the sensory experiences we accumulate and build allow us to develop a sense of self and an understanding of our world and how we can impact the world around us. And what better way to explore sensation and enhance our understanding of our bodies and the world around us than through play!

Our 8 senses include the following familiar and well-known sensory systems:

• Tactile: responsible for touch

• Auditory: responsible for sound

• Gustatory: responsible for taste

• Olfactory: responsible for smell

• Visual: responsible for seeing

And the less well-known sensory systems:

• Proprioception: responsible for providing information about body position through muscle and joint sensation

• Vestibular: responsible for balance and motion and provides information related to movement and orientation in space

• Interoception: responsible for sensation inside the body about the physiological state of the body (e.g. hunger, the need to use the bathroom, body temperature, pain, etc.).

Some children who may benefit from occupational therapy include those with:

• Autism Spectrum Disorder

• ADHD

• Learning Disabilities

• Sensory Processing Disorder

• Down Syndrome

• Other neurodevelopmental and behavioral differences

• Challenges with self-regulation and coping

• Challenges with social interactions and participating in a group

• Difficulties engaging in play

• Decreased independence in self-care/self-help skills

• Delayed fine motor skills

• Poor handwriting and difficulties with pencil grasp

• Delayed developmental milestones

• Feeding difficulties

• Challenges with body awareness and poor motor coordination/difficulties with learning new skills

• Poor executive functioning skills (e.g. sustained concentration/focus, problem-solving, self-monitoring, impulse control, working memory, etc.)

• Delayed motor and social thinking skills related to school readiness

Play is how we learn! Play isn't just for fun - it's necessary for child development as it's the key way of learning and the primary language of children. Through play-based methods, children are challenged in their motor skills and social interactions, they are provided with opportunities for safe and fun sensory exploration, and they get to experiment with how to engage with the world around them and how they can impact the world.

• Play enhances motor skills

• Play improves sensory processing

• Play develops social skills and provides a safe space for emotional expression

• Play builds problem-solving skills and creative thinking skills

• Play keeps things fun and motivating which is essential to a positive therapy experience

• Play cultivates a willingness to try