Category Archives: Fine Motor

Discover Therapro’s Handy Guides

April 16, 2024Assessments, Fine Motor, Handwriting, Handy Guides, Occupational Therapy, Sensoryassistive technology, educational games, executive functioning, fine motor, hand skills, Handwriting, Occupational Therapy, OT, Therapy tools, Tools for TherapistsGuest Blogger

Searching for the perfect tools, games, or evaluations for your clients can be time-consuming and overwhelming, Therapro’s Handy Guides can help streamline the selection process. The Guides help with making informed decisions. At a glance, you can see color representations of products. These guides are user-friendly, concise, and best of all, they’re absolutely FREE! The Handy Guides cover 5 key categories:

Handy Guides for Fine Motor:

Therapro's Which Writing Tool or Accessory Handy Guide

Which Writing Tool or Accessory: This Guide helps you choose the right tool for your client’s needs, whether it’s for comfort, positioning, or sensory input. For example, a Squiggle Writer Pen may be the right choice if your client would benefit from added sensory input with vibration when writing to alert and focus on the task.

Get a Grip on Grips: Explore a variety of writing utensil grips designed for comfort, finger positioning, and sensory needs. To facilitate a tripod grasp, the Start Right Pencil Grip may fit the needs of your client.

Handy Guides for Sensory:

Find Your Fidget: Discover fidgets for calming & organizing or alerting, including popular choices like Squeezies and Theraputty that offer resistance to help with focus and attention.

Choose Your Chew: Select the perfect chew for your client’s needs, categorized by age and chew strength. Chews are organized into Chews for Babies and Toddlers; and Chews in 3 chew levels (Light for mild sensory seekers, Medium for chewers who need more sensory input, and Firm for those who are strong chewers who need maximal sensory input). The benefits of selecting the appropriate chew is essential. Selecting a Firm Chew that a client can bite and chew safely is easy with choices such as the Krypto-Bite pencil topper or a Tube Zillas on a Tether.

Therapro's Free Choose Your Chew Handy Guide

Tools for the Body Handy Guide with link to download

Tap into Tools for the Body: Explore tools designed to provide calming and organizing sensory input that have resistive features to increase proprioception and sensory input. Bouncy Bands for Chairs provide foot resistance when a student is seated in a classroom chair. Selecting tools to enhance attention and focus include materials with a vibratory component such as Senseez Touchable Vibrating Pillows or tools that challenge balance such as the CanDo Wobble Ball.

Handy Guides for Adaptations:

What Can You Adapt: Learn how to enhance upper extremity activities with the versatile EazyHold universal cuff. This Guide demonstrates its versatility for use in many home, school, and community scenarios. It can be used in a variety of activities including brushing teeth, holding utensils, and using art materials.

Assistive Technology: Find the best assistive technology solutions to support classroom participation and daily living activities. Take a look at positioning materials such as Slant Boards, tools for increasing active participation in games and crafts, and tools for enhancing learning in academic areas. Self-help and activities of daily living aides are addressed as well. Switches and switch-activated toys are also included. A myriad of tools are explored to help make a student’s school day and daily life skills at home and in the community successful.

A Handy Guide for Games:

Gear Up for Games: Select from a variety of games to build executive function, visual perception, academic, and language skills. Along with each game, the guide identifies the target audience, age range, and adaptations and modifications to enhance participation and learning. Favorite games: Novenops; Lion in My Way; and Letter Treasure Hunt are included.

A Handy Guide for Evaluations:

Handy Evaluation Chart: A helpful reference for deciding how best to assess your client’s needs. This Guide organizes evaluations offered by Therapro into comprehensive subcategories with age-appropriate designations.

These Handy Guides are designed to simplify your decision-making process and enhance the quality of care you provide. Each Handy Guide is packed with valuable information and practical recommendations to support your work as a therapist.

Explore them today and discover how Therapro can support you in your journey!

Guest Blogger: Filomena Connor, MSOT-Retired

Is Handwriting an Endangered Skill?

January 10, 2024Fine Motor, Handwriting, Occupational Therapyfine motor, Handwriting, Occupational Therapy, OTGuest Blogger

There are numerous arguments surrounding the viewpoint that handwriting may become an endangered skill. Some common reasons include:

Digital Advancements: Some argue that typing skills are more relevant in today’s world than traditional handwriting.
Efficiency: The speed and efficiency of typing may outpace the time-consuming nature of handwriting.
Access to Information: Information readily available online may diminish the perceived importance of memorizing and manually transcribing information.
Emergence of Voice Recognition: As voice recognition technology advances, speaking into devices may replace the need for written communication.

It’s crucial to counterbalance these points by discussing the benefits of handwriting, including its role in fine motor skill development, cognitive processes, and potential impact on memory retention. Occupational therapists practitioners (OTPs) at Therapro advocate for a holistic approach that incorporates both traditional and digital skills.

The Significance of National Handwriting Day

On January 23rd, Therapro celebrates National Handwriting Day, coinciding with the birthday of John Hancock, one of America’s founding fathers known for his large, dramatic signature on the Declaration of Independence. Before the advent of computers, handwriting was essential for the communication of ideas. Teaching handwriting is a cornerstone of literacy, fostering letter recognition, and supporting the development of motor and visual memory skills. The act of handwriting has been thought to be important for memory retention and activating neural pathways associated with strong reading skills.

Evidence-Based Practices for Handwriting Development

The reasons OTPs, teachers, and parents value handwriting skills are grounded in evidence-based practices. Research suggests that interventions focusing on specific prerequisites, including core strength, postural stability, attention, fine motor coordination, visual perception, and visual-motor integration contribute to improved handwriting skills in children.

Activity-Based Practice:

Incorporating activities that target fine motor skills, such as drawing, coloring, and using manipulatives, has been shown to enhance hand-eye coordination and letter formation.
Engaging children in sensory-rich activities, like tracing textured surfaces or using tactile materials, can stimulate the sensory pathways involved in handwriting.

Use Handwriting Curricula that Include Sensorimotor Activities:

Handwriting curricula can be designed to include exercises that address sensory processing, fine motor skills, and perceptual-motor integration to support comprehensive handwriting development.

Self-Assessment Practice:

Engaging students in the assessment process can improve learning and motivation. Using a tool like Therapro’s Here’s How I Write (HHIW) assessment, students can be active participants in the process. With HHIW student’s self assess aspects of handwriting like letter formation, spacing, and overall legibility.
This process promotes self-reflection and empowers students to take an active role in improving their handwriting skills.

Co-Teaching and Collaboration with Teachers:

OPTs and teachers can collaborate to implement strategies that address handwriting challenges in the classroom.
This may involve modifying assignments, providing accommodations/adaptations, or offering specialized support to individual students.

Understanding the interactive relationship among motor, sensory processing, perceptual-motor, and language skills is crucial for effective handwriting development.

Recognizing the Enduring Value of Handwriting

In a world dominated by digital devices, handwriting is perceived by some as an endangered skill. The decline in traditional activities like handwriting due to smartphones and computers should not overshadow its enduring value. Handwriting is not just a functional skill; it is an integral part of a child’s holistic development, influencing cognitive, motor, and emotional aspects. Recognizing the importance of handwriting allows for more targeted and effective interventions based on evidence. Balancing technology with the preservation of traditional skills is key. National Handwriting Day on January 23rd serves as a reminder of its historical and cultural significance. As we embrace technology, let’s not overlook the unique benefits that handwriting brings to cognitive development and personal expression.

Tools For A Successful Handwriting Journey

The list below is just a few of the many tools and resources available from Therapro that provide handwriting support.

Cover of the book: Making It Legible: A Practical Guide to Making Handwriting Legible — Making It Legible: A Practical Guide to Making Handwriting Legible

Wikki Stix Alphabet and Number Cards — Making It Legible: A Practical Guide to Making Handwriting Legible

For all of your handwriting needs be sure to visit Therapro.com!

Guest Blogger: Filomena Connor, MSOT – Retired

Boosting Skills with Games!

December 19, 2023Activities, Education, Fine Motor, Gross Motor, Handwriting, Occupational Therapyeducational games, executive functioning, fine motor, Handwriting, language, Occupational Therapy, OT, physical therapyGuest Blogger

In the world of education and therapy, finding engaging and effective tools to boost skills can be a game-changer. Fortunately, Therapro has developed a trio of unique games designed to not only boost skills but to also make learning an exciting adventure. In this blog we are exploring how the games Trunks, Letter Treasure Hunt, and Novenops are helpful tools for boosting skill development.

Trunks: The Game of Motor Memory

“Remember, perform, and succeed!”

Trunks®: A Game: boosting Motor-Memory skills

Trunks is the brainchild of an occupational therapist, carefully crafted to promote memory, motor sequencing, and cognitive skills. The concept is simple yet brilliant: players draw a card, study the given action, and then perform it from memory. But here’s the twist – on their next turn, they draw an additional card and must execute both actions in the correct order without peeking.

The real magic lies in the creation of a “trunk,” a series of four cards that, when combined, forms an elephant’s trunk. Through this engaging game, players not only sharpen their memory and sequencing abilities but also enhance their attention to detail and focus. Trunks is an excellent therapeutic tool for those seeking to strengthen cognitive and motor skills in a fun and interactive way.

Watch the short video below for a review of Trunks by physical therapist, Laurie Gombash!

Letter Treasure Hunt: A Multisensory Learning Adventure

“Learning to write, one treasure at a time.”

Letter Treasure Hunt game: boosting handwriting skills

Letter Treasure Hunt is a game that seamlessly blends handwriting skills, gross motor challenges, and language development. It’s an exciting adventure where children explore the world of letters while engaging in activities that improve their handwriting and motor coordination.

In this game, kids embark on a quest to discover hidden treasures, all while completing ‘captain’s orders’, fun gross motor tasks that challenge balance, coordination and strength. This dynamic blend of gross motor challenges not only keeps children active but also enhances their physical development. Moreover, the game fosters language skills by encouraging communication among players.

Letter Treasure Hunt is the perfect example of how education can be both fun and effective, making it an excellent choice for parents, teachers, and therapists looking to boost various skills in an engaging manner.

Watch the short video below for a review of Letter Treasure Hunt by physical therapist, Laurie Gombash!

Novenops: Mastering Grammar through Play

“Grammar made fun, one card at a time.”

NOVENOP is an acronym created from the words NOun, VErb, NOun, and Phrase and is a board game for children of ages 6 and up

Novenops is a game that focuses on enhancing the player’s understanding of the basic elements of grammar. With 60 carefully designed cards, this game creates a captivating learning experience that continuously reinforces sentence structure concepts. As players progress, their word familiarity improves, subsequently boosting their reading and writing skills.

The beauty of Novenops lies in its ability to turn grammar lessons into an enjoyable activity. By gamifying language learning, it removes the traditional barriers associated with grammar education and replaces them with excitement and engagement. It’s an ideal tool for educators and parents who want to transform grammar from a chore into a rewarding adventure.

Watch the short video below for a review of Novenops by physical therapist, Laurie Gombash!

Therapro’s games— Trunks, Letter Treasure Hunt, and Novenops —are shining examples of how education and therapy can be both effective and enjoyable. These games are not only designed to boost skills but also make the learning process a memorable and fun experience. Whether you’re a therapist, educator, or parent, consider incorporating these games into your toolkit to unlock the full potential of skill development. With Therapro, learning is an adventure waiting to be discovered!