Tag Archives: executive functioning

Meet Therapro’s Occupational Therapy Authors & Creators

April 11, 2023Occupational Therapy, Uncategorizedexecutive functioning, fine motor, hand skills, Handwriting, Occupational TherapyAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

Therapro is celebrating its occupational therapy authors and creators during Occupational Therapy Month. Read on to learn more about these great occupational therapists and their creations!

Jenny L. Clark, OTR/L, BCP is the creator of the “Learn to Move” curriculum and Therapro’s Letter Treasure Hunt. Jenny has helped children over the past 25 years as a licensed pediatric occupational therapist working as a speaker, consultant, private practitioner at her own clinic (Jenny’s Kids, Inc.), school-based occupational therapist, independent contractor for early intervention services, author, and inventor. Jenny’s creation, Letter Treasure Hunt, is a fun and engaging game that targets handwriting skills while weaving in fun gross motor activities.

Linda Merry, OTR is the co-creator of the functionalhand. She has many years’ experience and extensive knowledge working with children and adults who have disabilities and teaching on a variety of topics. She is a senior therapists at Easter Seals DuPage & the Fox Valley Region in Villa Park, IL and co-owner of Thera-Solutions which designs programs, coaches’ professionals and develops products for therapists, educators and caregivers. Her creation, the functionalhand is an innovative tool to assist with grasping objects for everyday fun and function!

Polly Benson OTR/L is the creator of LegiLiners, “the patent pending, cool little tool to quickly draw handwriting lines”. Polly is a school based occupational therapists with many years experience working with students of all ages. The idea for LegiLiners grew from her love for helping students with functional handwriting. LegiLiners are available in in a variety of styles to help learners of all ages.

Barbara Smith, MS, OTR/L is the author of From Rattles to Writing: A Parent’s Guide to Hand Skills. Barbara has been an occupational therapist for over 40 years working primarily with children and adults with developmental disabilities. Barbara’s book From Rattles to Writing: A Parent’s Guide to Hand Skills is a groundbreaking guide that describes the songs, games, toys, activities, and adaptations that help children develop the visual-perceptual skills needed to read and the eye-hand coordination to write.

Jayne Berry, OTR/L is the author of Fine Motor Skills in the Classroom and creator of the Therapro Hand Tool Kit. Jane was a pediatric therapist who worked extensively with preschoolers and school aged children. The Therapro Hand Tool Kit contains all your “hand tools” in a convenient kit! Fine Motor Skills in the Classroom is a hand skills program developed as a tool to facilitate consultation in the classroom.

Diane Long, EdD, MOTR/L is the creator of the game Trunks. Dr. Diane Long is an associate professor and serves as the Chair of Occupational Therapy at Ithaca College. Trunks is an innovative game that targets working memory; players move their bodies, make sounds and perform actions from memory!

Carolyn Murray-Slutsky, MS OTR, C/NDT, FAOTA has co-authored many publications including: Is it Sensory or is it Behavior? 2nd Edition (2022), Autism Interventions: Exploring the Spectrum of Autism, Developing Visual Motor Integration, and the Sensory Modulation Laminated Card Series. Carolyn is certified in sensory integration (SI) and neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT) for pediatrics, infants, and adults and director of Rehabilitation for Children, Inc, a pediatric private practice. Her latest publication, Is it Sensory or is it Behavior? 2nd Edition (2022) answers many questions about the relationship between sensory and behavior.

Marcia Bridgeman, MHA, OTR/L is the author of Fine Motor Olympics. Marcia has been a pediatric occupational therapist since 1977, specializing in school based services for students from preschool through 22. Fine Motor Olympics is a program designed for an occupational therapist to provide inclusive and consultative services to teachers, volunteers, parents, and staff.

Promoting Independence In Teens With Diverse Learning Profiles

March 8, 2023Accessibility, Assistive Technology, Autism, Daily Living, Executive Functioning, Occupational Therapyactivities of daily living, assistive technology, autism, executive functioning, independence, Occupational Therapy, OTAllyson Locke, M.S., OTR/L

The ability to independently complete essential daily living tasks becomes increasingly more important as individuals near the pre-teen and teen years. For teens with diverse learning profiles the ability to master these critical skills can be challenging. However, there are readily available tools that can help promote independence! In this post we are covering a few low to mid tech solutions that can be a game changer for teens struggling with the ability to independently complete critical self care tasks.

Elastic Shoe Laces. There is nothing more frustrating than a loose shoe or tripping over untied laces but asking for help can be even harder. The good news is there is a simple solution, elastic shoe laces! Simply replace standard shoe laces with elastic shoe laces. Once in place, secure with a double knot and standard bow. The elastic shoe laces provide enough stretch to simply slip on and slip out of shoes, eliminating the need for tying.
Schedules & Time Cues. Remembering when to do something or remembering the correct sequence of a task can be difficult for teens who struggling with executive function deficits. These teens often rely on a support person to provide prompts for task initiation and sequencing which decreases their overall independence. The good news is there is a variety of readily available assistive technology tools that can support a teen’s ability to manage time with greater independence. Check out our previous post, Assistive Technology for Time Management, for ideas!
Picture Adapted Cookbooks: Preparing a simple meal or snack is one of the greatest acts of independence for pre teens and teens. This simple right of passage can be missed for teens who struggle with reading or have difficulty with multi step tasks. Picture supported cookbooks can help users with limited reading abilities prepare simple meals and snacks. The Stepwise Cookbook series takes this concept a step further and truly simplifies the process. Each cookbook has a set of picture supported recipes that are presented in a simplified, easy to follow format.

Schkidules visual schedule display — SchKIDules

White shoe with white elastic shoelace a low tech solution for independence with self care — SchKIDules

Small modifications and the use of mid to low tech assistive technology can be a powerful tool for independence. Be sure to visit to assistive technology section of Therapro’s website to see all of the available tools!

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!