Category Archives: Occupational Therapy

Therapy Activities On A Budget: Rapper Snappers

October 6, 2022Activities, Autism, Body Awareness, Early Intervention, Fine Motor, Gross Motor, Occupational Therapy, Oral Motor, Sensorimotor, Strength & Rehabactivity ideas, fine motor, hand skills, Occupational Therapy, OT, physical therapy, pop tubes, rapper snapper, sensoryAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

Rapper Snappers are a multi functional therapy tool perfect for creating fun, budget friendly therapy activities! In this post, Physical Therapist and creator of the ABCs of Movement, Laurie Gombash, PT, M.Ed, shared five different ways to use Rapper Snappers (also known as Pop Tubes) as a therapeutic tool. Be sure to check out her video below!

Demonstration of rapper snapper activity: pulling a pink rapper snapper open

Arm Strengthening

Place hands on either end of the Rapper Snapper and pull! Work with the arms overhead to target shoulder strength or work with arms away from the body to target core strength. Target different muscles of the upper body by pulling in different directions. Try holding the rapper snapper in one hand, at hip level, and using the other hand to pull up and across the body. Alternatively, hold the rapper snapper at shoulder level and uses the other hand to pull down and across the body.

Pro Tip, using the fingers to scrunch the Rapper Snapper back to size is great for finger strengthening!

Self Regulation

Rapper Snappers are a fun way to learn about self regulation. Help kids visualize concepts like fast breathing or rapid heart beat by opening and closing the Rapper Snapper rapidly. Alternatively, demonstrate slow or rhythmic breathing by slowly pulling apart or closing the rapper snapper.

Pro Tip, the sound made by the Rapper Snappers as it is opening and closing provides great auditory feedback!

Demonstration of rapper snapper activity: squeezing a pink rapper snapper closed

Fine Motor & Motor Planning

Looking for a fun and engaging activity? Use Rapper Snappers to make a marble run! Bend and twist the Rapper Snapper to make a maze, drop the marble in, and let it run through. Using two or three fingers to grasp the marble and inserting it into the Rapper Snapper’s narrow opening is a great way to get the small muscles in the hand working. Planning a successful maze for the marble to run through takes planning abilities!

Pro Tip: This activity can be done holding the Rapper Snapper and moving the marble through or you can use Velcro or other adhesives to adhere Rapper Snappers to a wall or other vertical surface.

Demonstration of rapper snapper activity: blowing into a pink rapper snapper

Oral Motor

Shape the Rapper Snapper like a smile and try to imitate it with your lips, now flip it upside down to make a frown! Purse your lips, give a big blow, stick out your tongue! There are so many ways to use a Rapper Snapper to help build and strengthen oral musculature!

Academic Skills

Use the Rapper Snappers to build shapes, letters, and numbers. Connect multiple Rapper Snappers for bigger numbers or shapes. Work as a team to build a giant letter on the floor!

Rapper Snappers are a small, easy to transport, budget friendly tool that can be used across multiple settings and to target a variety of treatment goals making them the perfect tool when creating therapy activities on a budget!

Watch the Video!

Making Time for Movement Breaks

September 27, 2022Activities, Autism, Education, Gross Motor, Occupational Therapy, Sensorimotorautism, classroom activities, movement breaks, movement path, Occupational Therapy, OT, physical therapy, sensory, sensory pathAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

There is no doubt that movement is an essential part of the learning process but finding the time for movement breaks in an already packed school day can be hard. However, with the ever growing body of research linking movement to academic performance (Petrigna et al, 2022) finding the time for movement breaks becomes essential. So, how do you move? Here are some quick ways to add a little extra movement to the day:

Add Extra Movement Opportunities Into Transitions

Movement paths (sometimes called sensory paths or motor paths) offer great opportunities to build in movement breaks during naturally occurring transitions, like changing classes. The simple addition of movements like hopping, balancing on one foot, or turning in a circle offers an enriched movement opportunity that activates different sensory channels helping the brain get ready and be more receptive to upcoming learning activities.

My Motor Mats movement path, boy completing a crab walk on a black motor mat — My Motor Mats Movement Path

Rainbow River Stones set up in a line with three children walking over them — My Motor Mats Movement Path

Add Movement To Academic Lessons

Reach those kinesthetic learners by incorporating movement into academic lessons. Readily available activities, like the ABC’s of Movement cards or the Drive Thru-Menus makes this easy to do! Teaching literacy skills? Use visuals from the ABC’s of Movement to add an ‘Alligator March’ to letter A concepts or the ‘Penguin Waddle’ to letter P concepts. Practicing spelling words? Try spelling each word while performing Angels in the Snow from the Drive-Thru Menus Body Challenge Exercises.

The ABCs of Movement Card Deck — The ABC’s of Movement

Drive-Thru Menus Body Challenge Exercise Cards showing Angels in the snow, go jump in a lake, and money crunches — The ABC’s of Movement

Don’t Just Take A Break, Take A Movement Break

During the school day there are naturally occurring breaks, such as transitions or when students finish up at different times. Fill these moments with meaningful movement opportunities. Use cards from the Move Your Body Fun Deck to add motor movements to transitions. The fun deck offers easy to grab, quick visuals with a variety of different movement activities; pick three for the day, display them on the board, and do each one a few times between activities for a quick brain reset! Use the Minute Moves or Focus Moves Bundles to establish Movement Routines. The Bundles are designed to provide easy-to-do, evidence-based routines to enhance academic skills. Another option is the Year of Mini-Moves for the In-Sync Child, which offers a weekly schedule of different movements that can be easily incorporated into the day.

Move Your Body Fun Deck Yellow Tin Can — Move Your Body Fun Deck

Focus Moves Bundle: All-in-One Bundle from S'Cool Moves — Move Your Body Fun Deck

Create Accessible Movement Spaces

Getting outside often offers a plethora of opportunities for movement breaks but for the student who has gross motor challenges the opportunities can be limited. Having a variety of activities available will help ensure students of all abilities are able to access movement opportunities. For students who have difficulty with standard catch and throw ball games, offering alternatives like Magicatch, Beanbags, or Pezzi Activa Balls offers inclusive approaches. For students who have difficulty accessing standard playground equipment, the availability of parachutes, bubbles, or movement based games like Trunks can provide alternative movement activities at recess.

Magicatch set; velcro covered circle and tennis ball — Magicatch Set

Pezzi Activa Ball. two blue and green balls with rounded knobs — Magicatch Set

Movement is a critical component of the learning process that can get overlooked during a busy, academic filled, school day. Building movement breaks into already existing routines and schedules can help students move and succeed!

Petrigna L, Thomas E, Brusa J, Rizzo F, Scardina A, Galassi C, Lo Verde D, Caramazza G and Bellafiore M (2022) Does Learning Through Movement Improve Academic Performance in Primary Schoolchildren? A Systematic Review. Front. Pediatr. 10:841582. doi: 10.3389/fped.2022.841582.

Reflecting Back to the Beginnings of Therapro

September 13, 2022Occupational TherapyGuest Blogger

It has been 43 years since Therapro’s President, Karen Weihrauch left her teaching position at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) for her new home in Boston. In those 43 years a lot has changed, including the founding of Therapro! She reflected on those changes in her recent reunion message to her former occupational therapy students at their class of 1979 reunion in Milwaukee, WI. Read on for her full remarks!

Dear UWM OT Class of 1979,

It is hard to believe that it has been 43 years since we were all together in the OT pediatric class! I remember your class very well for many reasons but here are the two prominent reasons that come to mind. First, I remember your enthusiasm for learning which in turn made teaching all of you a joy. In addition, it was my last year teaching at UWM and my last year of living in Wisconsin. For all of us, it was the ending of something familiar and the embarking on exciting careers ahead.

I cannot help but think how much pediatric OT has changed since I taught you 43 years ago. What I taught was based on a medical model, not a school-based model which is what we now know of pediatric OT. School based OT was just emerging and we all have had to make many adjustments to our therapeutic approach.

When I came to Boston to get my doctorate in OT at Boston University, I also began to work part-time in the Brookline Public Schools. The caseload and the number of evaluations quickly escalated. I could foresee that OT services would become an important part of the academic program for struggling students. We, as OTs, had much to offer.

However, I noticed that there were some missing parts that we needed to become part of this practice area. I could not find any resources to help me nor were there any relevant supplies or equipment related to working in the schools. When I complained about this to my husband, Paul, he began to think of it as a possible business idea and we created Therapro, Inc. to fill this void.

35 years later, and 76 years old, I am still an OT utilizing my OT skills to preside over a company that is considered “The Therapy Resource for Families and Professionals.”

OT is a great profession, and I am so glad that you are part of it!!

My Very Best to each of you,

Karen Conrad Weihrauch, PhD, OTR/L