Category Archives: Occupational Therapy

Assistive Technology for Time Management

March 1, 2023Accessibility, Assistive Technology, Autism, Daily Living, Executive Functioning, Occupational Therapyactivities of daily living, autism, executive functioning, Occupational Therapy, time managementAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

The ability to manage time is an essential life skill that is critical to independence. When the ability to manage time is impeded by factors like decreased executive functioning abilities or cognitive limitations, independence can also be impacted. In this post we are covering a few mid to low tech assistive technology solutions that can support time management abilities.

Schedule Reminders

Remembering to do a task at a scheduled time is one time management skill area. While smart devices are often loaded with ‘reminder’ features, there are times when a non screen option is preferred. The Time Cue and Voice Cue are great options! Simply record any message and set the time for the message to be played.

The Time Cue allows for a single message, up to 10 seconds long to be recorded and played back at a set time. For example, record “go to gym class” and set it to play 1:25 (or whenever gym class is happening!). There is even a space to include a picture of the activity for additional support!

Time Cue an Assistive Technology Tool for Time Management

Voice Cue an Assistive Technology Tool for Time Management

The Voice Cue can record up to five messages, with 60 seconds of total recording time. This is a great tool for tasks like remembering to take morning and evening medications.

Sequencing Helpers

Multi step tasks are another area of time management that present their own set of challenges including remembering the order of the sequence, remembering to do all of the steps in the sequence, and doing the steps for the correct amount of time. There are a variety of assistive technology options available that can help.

The Two Minute Turtle Toothbrush Timer helps cue the user through the steps of toothbrushing, ensuring all quadrants of the mouth are brushed for the recommended amount of time. It works by pushing a button on the top of the turtle which causes one of the turtle’s fins to light up. Each of the turtle’s four fins represents a quadrant of the mouth. Each fin will stay lit for the recommended 30 seconds of brushing time. When time is up, the light in one fin will turn off and the next fin will light up indicating it is time to move to the next area of the mouth! Pro tip, this is also a great tool for handwashing!

Visual schedules, whether written out or picture supported, can be a game changer for individuals who have impaired executive function skills and who need support managing multi step tasks. Schedules can be created for specific routines (like a morning self care routine), for parts of the day (like a morning classroom schedule), or the whole day. SchKIDules offers a quick and easy solution for creating picture supported schedules. The Home Bundle includes 72, 2”x2” magnets that depict common routines, chores, outings and extracurricular activities. The Education Bundle includes 66, 2”x2”, magnets that depict common school and special education activities.

Time Visualization Helpers

Conceptualizing the passage of time is a third area of time management and this can be tricky! Offering a visual repression of time and time passage can not only help with this concept but it can also decrease stress and anxiety. Visual timers are the perfect solution for this challenge area.

Time Timer an Assistive Technology Tool for Time Management

Time Timers offer a simple solution for time management. With the patented red disk, Time Timer makes elapsing time concrete by reaffirming the analog clock in its clockwise movement and provides the ability to judge how much time is left without having to know how to tell time. Simply move the colored disk to the desired amount of time, as time elapses, the colored disk disappears.

Resetea is a time management tool that offers the ability to sequence up to 12 related tasks. It is different from a typical schedule because of the unique light cue that marks the passage of time. To set it up, first use the included template builder to create a sequence of tasks (for example homework and then free time or math class, English class, lunch) and then place the visual in front of the light screen. Next set the desired time for each activity (up to 60 minutes) and press start. The activity schedule is back lit with progress colors; no light indicates future task(s), white light indicates the task in progress, and red light indicates task(s) completed.

There are a variety of tools available to support users ability to manage time. Helping users access and utilize these tools will support overall independence!

NOVENOPS! A Multitasking, Therapy Tool All-Star

January 30, 2023Activities, Gross Motor, Handwriting, Occupational Therapy, Speechexpressive language games, games, Handwriting, handwriting games, learning games, motor games, movement breaks, movement games, OT, receptive language gamesAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

When budgets are tight and space is limited it is essential that the tools in your therapy toolbelt are multitaskers! Games are a fun and engaging therapy tool that can be quickly set up to address many therapeutic AND educational goals. In this post we are going to take a look at all the ways the game NOVENOPS can be adapted to meet a variety of therapeutic goals.

What is NOVENOPS ?

NOVENOPS is a popular game that is easily adaptable to all ages and levels. Best of all Kids LOVE it! NOVENOPS is a card game designed to develop an understanding of the basic elements of grammar and sentence structure. NOVENOPS is an acronym created from the words NOun, VErb, NOun, and Phrase. It includes 52 cards, a heavy duty foldable game board and directions all in a portable tin box.

Basic Rules for Playing NOVENOPS!

Goal – be the first player to discard all of the cards from their hand
Time- about 15 minutes
To Play: Unfold the enclosed “game board” and place it within reach of all players.
After shuffling the game cards, deal 5 cards to each player and place the rest of the cards in the center of the board
The first player plays a noun card from their hand onto the Noun space on game board; if they do not have a Noun card, then they draw from the deck.
The next play is a Verb card, followed by a Noun card and finally a Phrase card.
Repeat until one player has played all the cards in their hand. They are the “winner.”

For more information, check out the video below.

Modifying Game Play to Target Different Goals!

The Reluctant Writer With Handwriting Goals

Modifying NOVENOPS to meet handwriting goals can be done simply by adding a scoring element. Game play follows the basic rules of NOVENOPS with the following modifications:

Players all receive a ‘scoreboard’ at the start of game play. This scoreboard can be any writing paper that is appropriate for the player.
Playing a ‘Phrase’ card ends the round and whoever played that card is the winner of the round.
The winner of the round writes the sentence they created on their scoreboard as a means to keep score and then play moves to the next round.
Whoever has the most silly sentences written on their scoreboard at the end of game play, wins!

The Reluctant Conversationalist With Expressive And/ Or Receptive Language Goals

Targeting expressive and/ or receptive language goals while playing NOVNOPS typically doesn’t involve changing game play rather changing the pace of the game. Try this:

Set up NOVENOPS as described above and follow the basic instructions for game play.
After each round (when a phrase card has been played) take a moment to pause and reflect on what is happening in the sentence. For example, players have created the silly sentence “The mother hid the dinosaur in the refrigerator”.
Target those language goals! These targets can be simple and concrete ‘wh’ questions like; “Who hid the dinosaur?”, “Where is the dinosaur”, “What happened?”, “How did the dinosaur get in the refrigerator”. Or they can involve more creative thinking; “Why do you think the mother hid the dinosaur in the refrigerator?”, “What do you think the dinosaur will eat while he is in the refrigerator?”.

The Squirmer With Academic Based Goals

Adding a movement component to seated tasks can do wonders for focus and attention. One of the easiest ways to make NOVENOPS a movement game is to turn it into a type of obstacle course. Here’s how to do it:

Set up a course with three pathways
At the end of each pathway stack three piles of NOVENOPS cards (a stack of noun cards, a stack of verb cards, and a stack of phrase cards).
Depending on the student’s abilities, create obstacles or motor challenges along the paths. For example a chair they have to wiggle under, a stack of books they may have to step over, or a winding path they may have to zig zag through.
Whoever creates the most sentences before time is up wins!
Pro Tip: This is a great activity idea for therapists doing push in sessions!

A little creativity can go a long way in making the tools in your therapy toolbelt, multitasking superstars!

Good Handwriting Starts At The Core!

January 17, 2023Handwriting, Occupational Therapy, Sensorimotorbalance, core strength, hand skills, Handwriting, Occupational Therapy, occupational therapy activities, OTAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

What do the muscles of the core have to do with good handwriting? The simple answer is, a lot! The five main muscles of the core are the pyramidalis, rectus abdominus, external obliques, internal obliques, and transversus abdominis. These muscles are important for many day to day activities; for a deeper dive into this topic check out the free, recorded webinar Postural Control as a Base of Support for Upper Extremity Participation presented by Celine Rosati Skertich and Linda Merry. When it comes to handwriting, the core muscles are key to providing the stability from which our hands can work from. Without the stability provided by the core muscles, the arms would have difficulty positioning the hands and the hands would have difficulty holding writing utensils steadily. In order to make handwriting successful, it is important build a strong foundation from which students can work from! In this blog we will explore fun ways to develop and strengthen core musculature.

Alternative Seating

Adding dynamic movement to seated tasks, is a great way to build core muscle strength. There are a multitude of alternative seating options that allow for dynamic movement while sitting. Examples include, The AlertSeat, Kore Wobble Chairs, and therapy balls. For more information on this check out the blog post, Flexible Seating Options in The Classroom & Home Learning Environments. It is important to remember that using alternative seating to strengthening core muscles should be done during fun, non demanding activities such as watching a movie or playing an easy table game.

Scooter Board Fun

Scooter board activities are fun and engaging; depending on positioning, scooter board games can be a great way to strengthen either the front or the back core muscles.

Scooter board activities done while positioned on the stomach (‘superman position’; think belly down, arms and legs lifted and extended) are great for strengthening the extensor muscles. For a fun game try scooter board- bean bag tag. To play, players lay belly down on the scooter board with a set of beanbags on the scooter board directly under their chest (this encourages the extensor positioning). The goal of the game is to drop beanbags on opposing players’ backs. To do this they would use their arms to push their scooter to their opponent and then drop the beanbag on their opponent’s back.

Scooter board activities done while positioned on the back in the ‘tucked position’ (think knees in toward the chest, arms flexed, and head lifted) are a great way to target the flexor muscles. Scooter board monster stomp is a great example. To play, tape pictures of monsters (or anything of interest) to the wall, at a low level, 1-2 feet from the floor. The player lays on their back on the scooter board and assumes the ‘tucked’ position. The player’s teammate (or therapist) gently pushes the player to the first monster (a small push on the shoulders will usually do the trick!). The player’s job is to stomp the monster with his feet with enough force to propel him back to his teammate who will direct him to the next monster. Use caution here, this game takes a lot of strength! As soon as the player shows signs of fatigue (i.e. difficulty holding his head up) players should switch turns.

For more fun scooter board game ideas check out the Scooter Board Activities Fun Deck.

Balance Games

Balancing requires core stabilization, a great way to strengthen those muscles! A simple game of catch becomes a core strengthening challenge just by standing on a wobble board or air filled cushion. A core workout can be done while completing an obstacle course simply by adding a balance beam component or stepping stones. Another great option is to explore the many different yoga balance poses!

Handwriting is an intricate process that requires more than just putting pen to paper; the core muscles provide the essential stability from which our hands work off of. Building a strong foundation, before we put pen to paper, will increase handwriting success and lessen frustration.