Tag Archives: classroom strategies

Classroom strategies encompass OT-informed approaches that support attention, posture, sensory needs, and motor skills to help students succeed academically and socially.

Regulation in the Classroom from an Educator’s Perspective

Events & Conferences,

Victoria Munroe, MA Victoria Munroe, MA arrived at Therapro on Saturday morning, January 16th as a breath of fresh air from Amherst, Massachusetts where she is an innovative 1st grade teacher within an inclusion model.  Her Saturday seminar on January 16th entitled: Regulation in the Classroom from an Educator’s Perspective, was presented to a rapt audience of educators, occupational therapists, and parents.    In addition to being a dedicated teacher, Victoria is a certified Positive Discipline Trainer and Parent Educator, which is an approach to discipline that teaches children positive skills such as “problem solving, relationship building, communication, cooperation, respect, and responsibility.”

The attendees were treated to a virtual tour of Victoria’s classroom where we experienced close-ups of a typical day. Specialized activity areas included classroom sensorimotor stations, areas for regulation driven by Alert Program, Drive Thru Menus, and Zones of Regulation, and spaces for class meetings and lessons. Victoria’s classroom “Peace Corner” holds many sensory materials including a variety of fidgets to help children return to the “Green Zone” of calm and readiness for learning. This classroom provides a nurturing, positive learning environment with built-in supports when a child becomes dysregulated and needs a place to regain control with the goal of remaining in control.

The expectation is for children to transition through activities in Victoria’s classroom, learning successful strategies along the way. Multisensory techniques are utilized to achieve structure throughout the day. These techniques are based on Core values of Victoria’s school, identified by the acronym STAR; Safety, Try My Best, Act Responsibly, and Respect. She demonstrated strategies she uses to help her students with developing executive function skills to help them be better organized and ready for an activity. She suggested something as easy as using photographs as a visual reminder to check if a task has been completed as expected.

A highlight of the morning was getting a roomful of adults standing up and moving to energizing music from GoNoodle.com that encouraged us to “Get Your Body Movin’ and “pull it, push it, dip it” with a catchy beat that you couldn’t ignore.  Victoria uses activities like this for helping her class move, focus, and become alert in order to channel their energy productively.  As a result, her students are engaged and ready to learn!

Here are some of the comments made by attendees who were inspired by Victoria’s presentation:

“Amazing techniques for regulating behavior for all children.  I would love to be a student in Victoria’s class!  Laura E., Teacher

 “It is about a dedicated, experienced 1st grade teacher that is sharing her tools used & implemented with caring and love.”  Anonymous, Occupational Therapist

 “Interactive, inspiring, and pragmatic strategies for student success.”  Sarah S., Occupational Therapist

 “Helpful strategies to help OTs work with teachers.  Good to get teacher’s perspective and how they can use self-regulation strategies in the classroom.”  Stacey F., Occupational Therapist

 “Great job explaining what she does and why.  Very rich detail so it comes alive.”  Anonymous, Teacher

Thank you, Victoria!

Filomena Connor, MS, OTR/L

Back-to-School Readiness for Classrooms

School-Based Practice, Sensory, Therapist Resources, , ,

Throughout the summer, we ensure that our children have all the supplies they need. We worry about their transitions from one grade to another, but as therapists and educators, are we back to school ready? I have created a small list of products that every special educator and therapist should have in their arsenal of education. Most of these items are small and easy to transport from classroom to classroom or school to school.

Here is a list of 15 items you need to start the year off right.

Educational Needs – The products below are perfect for the learning needs of all!

  1. Highlighter Strips are great for visual learners. An ideal tool for those with reading and visual processing difficulties. Brightens any written word. The plastic strips can be placed over any written material and used over and over again.
  2. NOVENOPs! is a hilarious game that teaches sentence structure! A card game for children of ages 6 and up. This game helps develop the player’s ability to understand the basic elements of grammar.
  3. Letter Treasure Hunt is a Pirate adventure with a handwriting twist! A board game with a handwriting component and the pirate theme makes it tons of fun.
  4. Trunks is a game where players move their bodies, make sounds and perform actions from memory!

Handwriting – Slant Boards, Paper & Grips, Oh My! Everything you need for working on handwriting skills, you will find here!

  1. Better Board Slant Boards are made for traveling (from home to school, class to class, etc.) and can easily be stacked and stored in a classroom.
  2. Raised Line Writing Paper is perfect for teaching line orientation, and cueing correct letter and word spacing. Graph spacing is also used for teaching numeracy and basic addition and subtraction.
  3. Pencil Grip Samplers let your students experiment and find their most comfortable writing tools.
  4. Highlighter Paper features a highlighted lower writing area and solid lines. Because the paper is visually simplified letters can be formed and spaced correctly.

Organization – An organized classroom helps with transitioning from class to class or task to task.

  1. Time Timers allow students to understand the passage of time so they can monitor their own activities. Better time awareness also relieves stress and anxiety.
  2. Seat Sacks are a great way for students to quickly gather supplies on a moment’s notice.
  3. Talk Bar is a customizable, versatile communicator that helps students visually display and describe a sequence of events.

Sensory Needs – Don’t forget about your students’ sensory needs; make sure you have all these sensational supplies in your classroom.

  1. Sensory Stories Cards are visual reminders of the various strategies that children can employ to cope with unpleasant sensations in daily life.
  2. Fidget Kit includes a group of the most popular fidgets.
  3. Seating Cushions help promote “active sitting”. Perfect for strengthening the muscles that support the spine and to use when sensory input is needed.
  4. Sensational Fun Cards have over 100 activities for parents and teachers who are looking for some great sensory games using common objects found in the home and school.
Sensational Fun a must have tool for back to school readiness
Sensational Fun
Therapro's Sensory Story Cards a must have tool for back to school readiness
Sensory Stories
Gymnic Disc 'O' Sit: Blue
Gymnic Disc ‘O’ Sit

Guest Blogger: Diana V. Mendez-Hohmann BA, COTA

Praxis Disorders and Intervention Strategies: Seminar Recap

Events & Conferences, Motor & Movement, Sensory, , , ,

A new season of Therapro’s Saturday Seminar Series is off and running—and it started strong! On Saturday, August 23rd, Teresa May-Benson, ScD, OTR/L, an esteemed occupational therapist, educator, author, and researcher, presented an in-depth session titled “Praxis Disorders and Intervention.”

Dr. May-Benson currently serves as the Executive Director of the SPIRAL Foundation (Sensory Processing Institute for Research and Learning), a nonprofit dedicated to advancing knowledge in the field of sensory integration and praxis. Her presentation offered attendees a compelling and informative overview of this complex area of practice. The seminar felt like a “fall tune-up,” preparing therapists and educators to reengage with the foundational concepts of praxis just as the academic year gets underway.

During the seminar, Dr. May-Benson clearly and succinctly reviewed the primary components of praxis, describing it as a multifaceted process involving a sequence of sub-processes—each engaging various parts of the brain. She explained how praxis dysfunction impacts ideation, motor planning, sequencing, and execution, and emphasized the importance of identifying these breakdowns in order to provide effective intervention.

In addition to outlining clinical signs and observable behaviors associated with praxis challenges, she presented a toolbox of intervention strategies designed to be immediately applicable across home, school, and clinical environments. A major emphasis was placed on child-directed activity, which she identified as a critical component of successful intervention. According to Dr. May-Benson, when children are not invested in the therapeutic activity, the session loses meaning—and with it, motivation and therapeutic effectiveness. Her approach reinforced the importance of aligning goals and activities with a child’s interests to promote engagement and motor planning success.

The seminar drew a diverse group of attendees, including occupational therapists, educators, parents, and even a grandparent. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive. Participants appreciated the balance of theory and practical strategies, as well as Dr. May-Benson’s ability to make such a nuanced topic accessible and actionable.

Therapro was proud to host this outstanding presentation and extends its sincere thanks to Dr. May-Benson for sharing her time and expertise. Her passion for the field of occupational therapy and deep understanding of praxis intervention left a lasting impression on all in attendance.

Check out  these reviews:

“Very informative. A lot of information presented in thoughtful manner.”

“Good information and gave me a better understanding of praxis disorders”

“Information was broken down in a very clear & helpful way.”

“Great information – helpful to get fuller picture of components of praxis & great ideas for interventions.”

Thank you, Teresa!

Filomena Connor, MS, OTR/L

August 23, 2014