All posts by Therapro

Setting up Your Seat for Virtual Learning Success

Alternative & Active Seating, ,

Having just the right seating arrangement can make the difference between a successful learning experience and one that is full of distractions, position changes, and learning sessions that don’t last as long as they should.  When thinking about setting up your seat for virtual learning success, there are two big factors to consider: the physical setup and the sensory needs. 

Physical Set Up

One of the most important considerations in addressing physical needs is the 90/90/90 rule.   When seated in a chair, feet should be resting comfortably on the floor with a 90 degree angle at the hips, knees and ankles. The work surface should be at a height  that allows the forearms to rest with the shoulders in a neutral position.  

Sensory Needs

When addressing sensory needs related to positioning it is important to consider getting enough of the right kind of sensory stimulation.  Virtual learning has provided long hours sitting at the computer or workspace for both those providing the virtual services and those receiving them.  Virtual learning spaces are often devoid of the naturally occurring sensory stimuli sensory systems need to stay alert and focused.  Classrooms, therapy rooms, and other work spaces are full of naturally occurring stimuli like  enriching conversation with our fellow therapist, the chitter chatter of classmates, naturally occurring movement breaks as we move from one part of the building to another.  Our sensory systems need stimuli to keep alert and focussed. 

Try This: 

  1. Support the feet.  When a chair is too big, legs and feet are left dangling and unsupported, decreasing postural stability needed for hand use.  Adding a foot stool or foam mat under the feet provides the needed support.  Using a  foam mat has the added bonus of additional sensory input! 
  1. Support the back: An oversized chair results in the body being in an awkward extended position with the hips and knees not being able to  flex at the desired 90 degree angles.  Placing a seat wedge or towel roll between the child’s back and the chair back will help bring the child forward enough on the chair to allow the hips to flex to 90 degrees and the knees to bend appropriately over the edge of the chair. This position will  increase overall comfort  resulting  in increased stamina for the work task.  
  1. Bring Work to Eye Level.  When the work surface is too low the natural tendency is to lean forward resulting in losing the 90 degree angle at the hips. A quick fix is to  use a slant board which brings the work higher and reduces the lean forward.  
  1. Use a Seat Cushion.  When the work surface is too high, the forearms are positioned in a way that brings the shoulders up closer to the ears decreasing over stability and comfort.  If changing the table or chair height is not an option, sitting on a folded towel, a book, or a cushion  can help but make sure the child’s feet are still securely on a firm surface like a step stool! Additionally, cushions provide needed sensory input!   Tip; use dycem to keep these positioning aids in place! 
  1. Use  Alternative Seating.
    • Do you want to increase a student’s alertness and ability to focus during extended seating activities? Add movement such as the  Alert Seat or the Kore Wobble Chair!
    • Alternatively, long hours in front of a computer screen trying to filter out extraneous background sensory stimuli can lead to overstimulation.  When calming or organizing input is needed try adding a foot fidget to the chair legs, or placing a portable foot fidget under the workspace.  Other options included weighted lap pads or shoulder wraps.  
  1. Position Changes.   Incorporating position changes through the work or school day is a great way to maintain attention and focus,
    • Standing at a counter height work space or taping work to a wall are options to allow for standing positions while working. 
    • Lay down.  Working while laying on the stomach is a great way to provide proprioceptive input through the shoulders joints (great for those needing calming and organizing input).  This position also gives students who are struggling with postural instability more support so they can focus on their work and not on staying stable!  Use yoga mats or cushions to provide comfort and a clipboard or slant board as a work surface. 
    • Get Cozy.  Another option for a position change  is a bean bag.  While not the best option for all types of tasks this is a great spot when reading or listening to an activity. The deep pressure input provides a great calming and organizing input.  
Bean Bag Chair- a great alternative seat for virtual learning success
Bean Bag Chair
Blue Dycem a Non-slip plastic that solves a variety of stabilizing and grasping problems- very helpful in virtual learning success
Dycem
Slant board
Slant Board

Many of us have made the sudden change from a full day in a classroom or work environment with naturally occurring, enriching sensory experiences to alternative work spaces that may not always provide the type or intensity of sensory stimulation we need to stay alert and  focused. Changing up the seating arrangement can be a great way to increase attention and focus during long days of virtual learning or teletherapy sessions.  

Allyson Locke M.S., OTR/L

S’Cool Moves Webinar Review

Events & Conferences, ,

On Tuesday, September 15, 2020 Therapro was happy to host another very successful and well attended webinar, S’Cool Moves, presented by Dr. Debra Em Willson.  Dr. Wilson is a reading specialist and founder of S’Cool Moves.   Webinar attendees left with some great strategies to use for both in person and virtual learning sessions, as one viewer stated:

S’cool Moves has changed the way I practice OT in school. Incorporating Deb’s movements with academics has allowed my students to be so much more engaged and motivated. Her activities can be adapted to every grade level. DF

During the webinar, Dr. Wilson covered her “Top 10 Superrmoves”; that she uses to help students “flip the learning switch”.  Some highlights included: 

  1. Checking In With Myself Tool.  Dr. Wilson shared a visual to use with students to facilitate the “checking in” process and demonstrated a  great example of how to use this visual to help students get out of a “funk”.  
  2. I Can Calm Myself Routine.  Dr. Wilson shared deep pressure activities  students can use for calming and shared a visual that can be individualized for each student.  
  3. Core Out the Door & Minute Moves for Fine Motor. For these super moves, Dr. Wilson demonstrated how she incorporated the Minute Moves activities to a whole class setting, a great resource for therapists doing ‘push in’ services.  
  4. Smiley Jumps, Arrows, & Quadrant Activities. For these super moves, Dr. Wilson demonstrated how she created a simple DIY magnetic board to facilitate using these movement activities in virtual lessons, making the learning session more interactive!

In addition to these great resources, Dr. Wilson shared some great research to support her approaches. As one viewer stated:

I will be taking all of the activities / resources /website, etc, directly to my Title One teachers tomorrow and know they will be interested and use! I have provided many suggestions, activities etc. and even though well received, are not always implemented. Now I can say this comes from a reading specialist. Teachers listen to teachers and I am thrilled as an OT to use anything that will help kids. Deb was wonderful! Generous heart and knowledgeable lady….thank you so much! BW

If you missed the webinar, be sure to check out the recap.

Get A Grip on Pencil Grips and Adapted Writing Tools!

Handwriting, Therapist Resources, , , ,

Therapro is making it simpler for users to choose the right pencil grips and adapted writing tools.  After reviewing all of the pencil grips and modified writing tools available at Therapro, we concluded that there are basically three groups that these tools fall into: comfort, positioning, and sensory.  

Comfort.  Comfort is an important feature for writers across the lifespan. These types of grips and writing tools are great for writers who fatigue during longer writing tasks or who have underlying conditions that cause pain, like arthritis. The PenAgain was designed to help reduce hand cramping during writing. The Standard Foam Grip and the Bulb Shaped Grip are basic, low profile grips that can be added to a pencil or pen to provide a softer surface for the fingers.  These grips and writing tools may help a writer perform writing tasks longer.

Positioning.  Appropriate pencil grasp is the key for successful, legible handwriting.  Atypical grasp patterns can lead to decreased comfort and endurance for writing tasks. When to use a pencil grip or a modified writing tool often prompts debate.  

Young writers often benefit from developing the foundational skills needed for successful handwriting before a grip is used. These writers benefit from activities that assist in developing foundational postural musculature and hand skills. Working with putty, incorporating yoga, doing activities on the therapy ball,  or incorporating activities like those found in the Fine Motor Olympics or Fingermania are all great ways to target underlying foundational skills needed for functional hand use. During this stage, it is also important to incorporate writing “tools” such as short pencils or crayon rocks that naturally support functional grasp patterns.

Pencil grips for positioning come into play primarily when 1) the student is still working on developing underlying foundational systems, and they need to keep up with peers or  2) when the student benefits from the tactile cues provided by these grips or writing tools to maintain a proper pencil grip.  There is a wide range of grips and writing instruments available, allowing for grading of the support provided. 

Writers who are just learning to get their fingers into a tripod grasp benefit from a grip that provides more support.  Therapro suggests the following:

  • The Grotto Grip has contours that place the fingers in a tripod grasp and promote an open webspace, this type of grip is also great for writers with hypermobility in their finger joints.  
  • Grips like the Writing Claw, the Pointer Grip, the Crossover Grip or StartWrite Pencil Grip have features that block fingers from “crossing over” or reverting to immature grasp patterns.   

Writers who need less support may benefit from grips that are “low profile”.   Grips like the Solo Grip, and the Stetro Grip are smaller in size than some of the other grips in this category. They  provide light tactile cues to remind the writer where to place their fingers but do not actively block the fingers from moving out of a tripod pattern. 

As the writer’s abilities progress, they may be ready to move away from using a grip but may not be quite ready for a standard pencil. This is where triangular-shaped pencils like the Try Rex Pencil come in. The triangular shape offers a subtle tactile reminder for proper placement of the fingers.   

Sensory. The final category of pencil grips and writing instruments is sensory.   To simplify this, the sensory category can be viewed as two ends of the sensory spectrum: alerting or calming/organizing.  

Light touch sensations are interpreted by our sensory systems as alerting, think about a spider crawling over your arm!  The grips and writing tools in the alerting category provide light touch sensations to  help writers “wake up” their sensory systems.  This type of input can improve the ability to attend and focus.  Great options for this are:

  • The Spike Tactile Grip.  The Spike Tactile Grip is covered in spiky protrusions that provide opportunities for light touch sensations. As a bonus, these protrusions can be used as a “fidget” to help with attention and focus during writing tasks. 
  • Grips like the Bumpy Grip and The Extreme Grip offer slightly more subtle raised tactile features but still provide great sensory input to help maintain attention and focus during writing.  
Extreme Grip
SPIKE Tactile Pencil Grip

Some writers have poorly organized sensory systems; these writers benefit from organizing input and input that provides clues about where the writer’s body parts are. Sometimes these writers use too much force when they are writing or they have a hard time writing on the given baseline.  Adding weight to writing tools is a great way to help these systems become more organized, try the following:

A bonus tip, adding weight to writing tools may help those with hand tremors! 

In summary, understanding both the needs of the user and the type of support and the level of support grips and writing tools offer is a great starting point for determining the most appropriate grip or writing tool to choose.  Starting with the least restrictive option is a great way to ensure the writer is getting the support they need without overdoing it.  Conversely, using a grip or writing tool that provides a lot of support may be appropriate for the student who is working on developing foundational skills to ensure a positive writing experience.  For therapists, this grading system is a great way to show progress as students move from a more restrictive tool to one that offers less support.   The information contained in this post is condensed in the Get A Grip on Pencil Grips and Which Writing Tools or Accessories Handy Guides.  We hope these handy reference guides help you quickly identify the tool that will best fit your needs!