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Occupational therapy for children

Clever Bees delivers occupational therapy for children to assist in the development of functional skills. 

A child’s occupation is to play and learn but it doesn’t happen organically for everyone. Developmental difficulties can be the result of many scenarios including injury or illness, psychological or emotional problems, physical disability, intellectual disability, or developmental delay. 

The aim of occupational therapy for children is help improve their ability to do the everyday things they want to do to live as independently as possible.

The Clever Bees team of occupational therapists help children develop their functional skills including their gross and fine motor skills, self-care and independence skills, sensory processing, and their social skills and social and emotional learning.

How occupational therapy can assist your child

Babies, children, and adolescents can be assisted to develop independent skills to undertake many everyday tasks.

Play skills

Involves the physical attributes applicable to play, such as throwing, catching and kicking a ball and using puzzles, as well as the imaginative, social and communication requirements.

Gross motor skills

Manipulating and controlling the large muscles of the body that are important for body movement such as sitting, walking, jumping, and throwing a ball.

Self-care skills

This area focuses upon actions such as independent dressing and toileting, tying shoelaces, fastening buttons, and using a knife and fork to eat.

School readiness

Drawing, cutting, on-task classroom behaviour, task completion, following instructions and craft skills are all generally expected skills ahead of starting school.

Visual perception

Visual perception, or understanding what you can see, is important in completing many activities, such as reading a story, completing a puzzle, identifying letters and numbers, copying and writing.

Handwriting

A child must have sufficient manual dexterity, fine motor coordination and visual motor skills for handwriting. Areas such as letter formation, reversals, speed, legibility, pencil grip, reducing pain and/or fatigue may be addressed.

Sensory processing

The body processes and reacts to the information it receives from the surrounding environment. Children may demonstrate over or under sensitivity to loud noises or certain items of clothing, sensation-seeking behaviour, or difficulty maintaining a calm state.

Fine motor skills

Coordinating small muscles such as in the hand to hold and manipulate toys and tools such as a pencil or spoon. Fine motor skills are important for activities such as handwriting, dressing, feeding, and using scissors, and usually develop in cooperation with visual and spatial awareness.

Social & Emotional Development

Children need to develop their emotional intelligence in order to make meaningful friendships and cope with day to day life. Therapy includes identifying and managing feelings, building resilience, developing self-regulation skills, and social understanding/social interaction skills.

Find out more

If you have concerns about any aspect of your child’s development, we can help to assess their needs and work together with you to help achieve their goals. Contact the team at Clever Bees Paediatric Occupational Therapy today.

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