Executive functioning includes higher-level cognitive skills including: Attention Problem-solving Emotional regulation Following directions Stress tolerance Time Management Organizational skills Planning Flexibility Impulse control And more! Many of the children we work with demonstrate difficulty with executive functioning skills. Below are some at-home activities and ideas that may support increased executive functioning skills. Support varies on the child/family and the ac

Check these out! I bought these and have used them in the clinic - the kids love them! https://www.dianealber.com/products/feelings-emotions-educator-kit

https://www.mightier.com/ Mightier is an application that you can download onto a phone or tablet that monitors heart rates and leads the player through regulation techniques while they play games. I have used it at the clinic and it can be a really helpful tool in your toolbox! There are also free online resources and activities on their website. Check it out at the link above.

This website has an amazing and large assortment of activities regarding common areas of need (e.g., attention, motor skills, sensory processing) for the families we work with! Check it out! https://www.theottoolbox.com/

Here are some ideas of positive coping skills that may help your child calm down when experiencing difficulty with emotional regulation or behavior management (e.g., "red zone moments"). You can create a visual chart with pictures and/or words of these activities to use when needed (e.g., during difficulty with emotional regulation and/or behavior management). Keep it handy and/or make multiple copies. Use sleeve protectors help to keep it the paper in use for longer! Parent

I have been working with many children and families regarding emotional regulation and behavior management over the past few years. Below are some ideas that you might find useful, however, not all ideas may be useful or affective. Use your best judgement as a parent/role model/caregiver. Supervision required for safety. You can “coach” your child when they are experiencing difficulty with emotional regulation and/or behavior management. This is also called co-regulation, whe

Below are guidelines as posted by the Mayo Clinic. You can find the link to the website here: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/in-depth/screen-time/art-20047952#:~:text=Setting%20limits%20for%20older%20children,Eliminate%20background%20TV . Screen time is highly discouraged for children less than 18 months apart from video chatting. Screen time for children 18 months to 24 months should be high quality and they should not use it alone. Screen time

Here are some activities to promote pre-scissors and scissor skills at home (adult supervision required for safety): Introduce how to use scissors safely Which end is dangerous/sharp and point away from the body How to hold them properly Where to put thumb and fingers No running with scissors If using scissors is too challenging, try to promote increased hand strength and coordination and visual-motor skills by: Tearing paper and making small balls Playing with playdough Play

Adult supervision is required for safety. Demonstration, a mirror, and/or positive encouragement may be helpful for increased participation and tolerance. Choose 3-5 exercises and complete 10 repetitions of each exercise per day (unless it is shoe-tying or writing the alphabet/letters - less repetitions may increase participation). XC ski jumps Opposite arm and leg move together while jumping Think the same movement as cross country skiing or "skipping" but jump to change arm

See video below for an alternative shoe-tying method that decreases the coordination required for shoe-tying. Practice at home with shoes and/or large ropes. Take breaks as needed. Adult supervision required for safety.

See the 3 videos below for 3 various options (the last is the most challenging). Demonstration, copying another person, or a large mirror may be helpful for increased accuracy. Positive encouragement and breaks may also be helpful for increased participation. Try with the first or second videos before moving to the last one. It is recommended to go down a hallway and back or a smaller distance as tolerated. Adult supervision is required for safety.

It is important to master drawing shapes before moving to letters and numbers. You can create tracing and dot-to-dot shape drawing activities with a piece of paper, a sheet protector, and a dry erase marker; this way you do not have to continuously use paper. See examples below, but you can also make these with a variety of shapes, designs, letters, numbers, words, et cetera.... Adult supervision is required for safety.

Parent Instructions: If your child has difficulty sitting still at times or all of the time, try completing a handful or all of these activities whenever you notice they are antsy, wiggly, moving around a lot, etc. These would be good to complete before needing to sit down for a period of time and/or focus (e.g., eating meals, completing homework or school work, etc.). It is important to notice your child’s state before and after completing these tasks because completing some

Here are some activities to do at home promote problem-solving skills. Adult supervision required for safety. Ask questions! How do you think it will work? What can we do to fix that? What should we do today? How can we make that? Etc. Play boardgames Legos Cooking and baking together Provide creative play opportunities Building train tracks Building lego worlds or related Provide free play opportunities Unstructured play time to create their own play Opportunities to play at

Here are some activities you can complete at home to promote attention. Ask Questions to promote awareness and attention! What is your plan? What are you doing with that toy? How can we play with these toys differently? Make a schedule of activities. Make multistep play activities Complete cooking or baking tasks by following a recipe. Complete arts and crafts or science projects with multiple steps. Play boardgames Read books Dot-to-dot Legos and follow along to the instruc

I have noticed that a lot of families buy fidgets for their kiddos, but then mention to me that the kiddos do not use them. This post discusses what is a fidget and how to teach your kiddos to use fidgets effectively. What is a fidget? Fidgets are tools and not toys. A fidget should be appropriate and safe and easily manipulated (e.g., moveable). Safe includes no choking hazards or any other hazards (e.g., sharp, shock) (recommended to use all fidgets with supervision). Appro

When kiddos have low tone or limited core strength, this can impact their attention, fine motor skills, sensory regulation, gross motor skills, handwriting, play, and overall motor coordination. Here are a list of activities to complete at home to help with core strength. Complete a variety of activities for at least 30 minutes per day with supervision for safety: Bear crawls Crab walks Rolling "Rolling like an egg" Crawling "Army" crawls Balance activities Rolling back and f

What are they? Visual motor skills, in short, are the skills we use to be able to look at something and respond to it appropriately. Examples include copying shapes, coloring within the lines, tying shoes, and catching/throwing a ball. These are fundamental skills needed for handwriting, reading, and doing a variety of bilateral motor coordination activities. Examples of Supplemental Activities: Copying/writing/drawing shapes, letters, numbers, etc. Catching/throwing/dribblin

Here is an activity that supports bilateral motor coordination skills, visual motor skills, balance, and more! Steps: Set out pillows or couch cushions with a small distance between them in a zig zag pattern. Put toys or related play activities (e.g., puzzles pieces) at one end of the "squares" (e.g., cushions or pillows). Put a bucket or related play toys at the other end of the "squares." Have a child jump from square to square and back again either putting toys in a bucket

What is it? Visual perceptual skills help you to understand what you see. It is part of the foundational skills for handwriting, shoe tying, bike riding, ball skills, etc. Learn more about visual perception with the link below from the OT Toolbox . This website is also a great resource for learning more about areas that OT can help with and provides ideas for activities to complete at home. https://www.theottoolbox.com/visual-perceptual-skills/ Here are some ideas: Dot to dot