The Developmental Progression of Self-Dressing Skills:

The ability to dress oneself is an important fundamental component for participation in an individual’s daily routine. Teaching a child how to dress themselves not only promotes functional independence, but also relieves family stress by decreasing the amount of one-on-one assistance require in the home or out in the community.


The chart below is from The Inspired Treehouse.com and is a great quick reference for the developmental progression of self-dressing skills.

References:

http://mamaot.com/when-do-kids-learn-to-dress-themselves-developmental-progression-of-self-dressing-skills/

https://theinspiredtreehouse.com/child-development-teaching-kids-dress/

Reflex Integration and Development

 There are two forms of reflexes that exist in the human body. “Primitive Reflexes” begin to develop in utero and should only be displayed during the child’s first year of life. During normal development, these primitive reflexes integrate or “disappear” so that our lifelong reflexes can begin to emerge. Our lifelong reflexes are called “Postural Reflexes” and are normal through all years of life because they help us to control our balance, movement, and sensory motor development.

However, when a child’s primitive reflexes are retained and can be seen beyond early stages of life, it can result in developmental delays, sensory processing issues, learning difficulties, and poor gross and fine motor skills. Sustained primitive reflexes can also be the cause of poor coordination, clumsiness, decreased energy levels, depression, poor impulse control, and many social and emotional difficulties.

What causes these primitive reflexes to retain? There are many reasons why your child may still have these reflexes after the first year of life. One key factor that leads to persistent primitive reflexes is a traumatic birthing process such as an emergency C-section, pre-eclampsia, or pre-mature birth. Skipping tummy-time as a baby, a traumatic injury or insult to the body, no creeping or crawling, head trauma, or infections are also reasons that can delay the integration of the early reflexes.

Below is a chart containing all of the primitive reflexes within our body and problems that may be seen if they are not fully integrated (source: Brain Balance Achievement Center)

You can learn more about reflexes within the following resources:

ü  http://www.team4kids.com/primitive-reflex-integration-for-successful-learning-and-development/

ü  https://masgutovamethod.com/learn-more/articles

If you feel your child has persistent primitive reflexes that may be causing developmental delays and functional difficulties in their daily lives, occupational therapists and physical therapists are a great resource for more information! They can also perform tests to take a closer look on what reflexes your child may still have and ideas on fun and playful ways you can help with successful reflex integration at home!

Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)

Speech Pathologists at Therapyland are trained in the Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS). PECS is a teaching protocol based on behavior analysis that focuses on functional communication. It was developed by Lori Frost, MS, CCC-SLP and Andy Bondy, PhD. PECS is taught in phases. In the first phase, children are taught to request by exchanging a picture with a communication partner. Children are taught to initiate the interaction independently, not wait for their communication partner to start the interaction. In later phases, they request using more complex phrases, pair vocalizations with the requests, ask questions, and make comments. PECS can be used with children with a variety of disabilities. Current evidence indicates that PECS does not inhibit speech, but may increase speech production in some children. Some children who use this system later transition to a speech generating device.

For more information on PECS

Occupational Therapy Home Activities

The Inspired Treehouse is a great resource for parents and families that was developed by two pediatric occupational and physical therapists.  It serves as an outlet for professionals to share information, tips, and strategies to help address developmental roadblocks that may come up for kids.  Here you can find information on topics such as sensory processing and developmental milestones. Also, don’t forget to check out their fun and creative home activities that help address fine motor, visual motor, and gross motor skills!

Click Here to Find More Info

An ABA Therapist's Perspective

What does a day in the life of an ABA therapist look like? Follow the link to find out!

"What does that look like?"

I play: I play with your child, on their level. I make sure I am the most fun person they have ever met. I am the giver of all things: iPads, m&ms, bubbles, trains, tickles, hugs; you name it, I probably have it in my fanny pack. I play with your child to foster social interactions that can lead to communication, play, and imitative progress. I play with your child because they are amazing, fun and I want them to share their interests with me.

I push: I push your child. I do not let them give up. I may make your child angry, I may make them frustrated, I may make them hit me, or bite me, or scream at me. I encourage them and I support them. I continue to work on one skill until I am confident that it can be repeated with anyone, anywhere. I am aware of the limited time frame for language development and social skills acquisition. I acknowledge the incredibly valuable time and money that you spend for your child and do not allow it to go to waste. I push myself, to be a better therapist for your child, to always try something new in a session and to always be transparent with you.

I praise: I praise your child. I give parties like you haven't seen since 1999, and I can say that as I am one of the older therapists that was actually, cognitively aware during that time. I praise all things, big or small, I am indiscriminate. I give random dance parties because I have found that your child loves jazz music or Frozen, techno-remixes. I act ridiculous, I have come up with faces, silly noises, and words with no meaning; just because it motivates your child and I can make them smile.

I worry: I worry for your child. I worry for you. I worry that I will not be effective, that I will not teach your child a skill in such a way, that they can achieve their highest level of awesomeness. I worry that the behaviors they engage in will isolate them, or hurt them, or hurt you. I worry that my being honest about the difficulties we faced in our session today will come across as rude or insensitive; uncaring to you. When in actuality, it was a sharing of truth, and a respect for your position as a caregiver to continue to keep you updated on the reality of your child's progress.

I respect: I respect your child. I always treat them with the dignity they deserve and hold them in the highest regard. I respect you, you are so incredibly important. You are your child's protector, cheerleader, advocate, mother, father, grandparent, sibling, friend, and teacher. You are their safety net. I respect your right to say no. I respect your ability to be the best source of information in regards to your child.

I love: I love your child. I love their hugs, their laughs, their smiles, their sounds, and their happiness. I love making them happy. I look forward to seeing them each morning or afternoon. I cannot wait to experience their next accomplishment in therapy and to share that progress with you.

Applied Behavioral Analysis can often attract negative statements of: clinical, robotic, or cold. That is not the way I experience or implement ABA therapy. It is instead, liberally laced with joy, hope, and lots upon lots of coffee. 

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Written by Kate Butler

PROMPT: Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets

Here at Therapyland our Speech Language Pathologists are trained in PROMPT. They frequently utilize this technique with the varying children they treat.  

PROMPT was developed by Deborah Hayden. She began manipulating the oro-motor structures to help adults and children with varying speech disorders to produce sounds that could be shaped for verbal interaction with others. PROMPT therapy is a physical-sensory approach that integrates all domains and systems toward effective communication outcome. Children with various disabilities such as: developmental delays, phonological impairments, apraxia of speech, speech disorders, Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD), hearing impairment, dysfluencies, etc., can benefit from PROMPT therapy. PROMPT may be used on all speech production disorders from approximately 6 months of age and up. By using this program it assists in developing motor skills in development of language for interaction - it has an emphasis on vowels, consonants and diphthongs through tactile cueing. 

For more information on PROMPT check out their website: PROMPT website

Why You Should Avoid Teaching “More,” “Please,” and “Thank You” to Children with Autism.

Check out why you should avoid teaching children with autism how to communicate "more", "please" and "thank you". In summary, teaching vocabulary for nouns and verbs first are more beneficial for children with autism in order for them to communicate their specific wants and needs.

Click here for link to article