How Can An Occupational Therapist Help A Child With Special Need

Have you been wandering around in doubt “about will occupational therapy help my child” and feel lost? Not anymore. Today we are going to discuss the benefits that your child can get from occupational therapy. The children with special needs this therapy can play an important role in helping children in developing life and motor […]

July 15, 2021

Abhishek Pathak

Have you been wandering around in doubt “about will occupational therapy help my child” and feel lost? Not anymore.

Today we are going to discuss the benefits that your child can get from occupational therapy. The children with special needs this therapy can play an important role in helping children in developing life and motor skills.

Occupational therapy will help your children learn new skills, or regain any old skills that are needed for performing daily activities. These are the first professionals that will work with the child for their betterment.

There is a wide range of issues for which you can seek help from an occupational therapist.

  •  Arousal level and attention span.
  • Processing skills
  • Sensory skills
  • Everyday activity skills such as brushing my teeth.

The children with special needs who have learning disabilities, the OTs can identify the motor issues which might be the main contributing factor to their academic difficulties.

Let us put some more light on how an Occupational Therapist Helps A Child With Special needs.

The OTs are kind of advocates for the children they are working with. They are going to educate the teachers, and parents, and make your child more comfortable in society. When you see that the child has any difficulty with coordination or motor skills, it is necessary to have them assessed by the occupational therapist.

The occupational therapist will recommend a plan of action for promoting the child’s independence.

Developing motor and coordination skills.

In an OT plan, it includes some activities that will help children to improve and develop the best motor skills and coordination. With the help of these activities, the children are going to learn how to hold pencils, scissors, crayons and markers. They will learn

  • Playing with toys
  • Playing sports
  • Improving the handwriting
  • Using computers and other electronic devices.
  • Carrying out the tasks at the school
  • Eating, drinking and getting dressed.
  • Playing with friends.

Children with more developmental delays might be able to learn how to carry out basic tasks of eating, bathing, tying shoelaces, etc.

Developing crucial skills.

The child with special needs who undergoes OT before the age of six is often going to see an improvement in their physical and mental development. These improvements are because of the occupational therapists who are helping the children to develop and enhance their communication, motor skills, and cognitive skills.

With a definitive OT plan, the therapist can help the children achieve their individual educational goals.

Improvement in the behaviour

With the help of the Occupational therapist, the children will be able to learn to manage difficult emotions such as anger and frustration. They are also going to learn how to maintain positive behaviour in various ranges of environments such as in-home or school.

The OTs can also help the children to express their emotions by writing them down or by engaging in physical activity.

As the OTs today are using the Best Occupational Therapy Software,  they can help children with special needs to develop the skills which they need to succeed in education and in life.

How will the parents get involved in the process?

When you see that your child is entering the OT program, then as a parent it is your responsibility to have an understanding of the whole process.

This information is going to empower you to help them in the best way possible and receive the therapy that is beneficial for your child.

You can also make an arrangement where you can also observe the OT sessions of the child. You can ask queries if there are any and then make sure if the goals are being addressed and if the session is progressing and whether the therapy space is great for achieving the desired results.

Occupational therapists can also assist in dealing with classroom issues. They can help your children with the seating solutions, and help them remain calm and focused throughout. You need to maintain effective communication with the child’s occupational therapist to know if your child is making progress or not and have an answer to “does my child need an occupational therapist”.

You can also know if you can help in some way to help your child in achieving the OT goals. The exercises are going to be like games and are also a great way to spend them with the child.

In conclusion

The parents need to be very proactive about evaluating the whole process. Thus, occupational therapy is going to help your child and will provide them with many benefits to cope with life.

Let your child discover themselves!

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