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About Occupational Therapy

What is Occupational Therapy ?

Occupational Therapy (OT) is a regulated health care profession that enables individuals to achieve their optimum ability to engage in everyday activities.  Occupational therapy helps children develop the skills they need to be successful during play, socialization, activities of daily living and learning experiences.  By using purposeful and motivating activities, occupational therapists help children develop enhanced sensory processing skills, fine and gross motor skills, organizational skills, motor planning, visual motor skills and adaptive play skills.  Occupational therapy promotes the skills needed to perform important day to day activities at home, in school and in other social environments.

How do I know if my child needs occupational therapy intervention ?

 

If your child is regularly unsuccessful in completing a task, mastering a skill appropriate for her age or is having problems at school learning new concepts and retaining information, OT may be helpful.  A child would benefit from seeing an occupational therapist if they experience difficulties in any of the following areas:

 

  • Fine motor tasks ( colouring, cutting, holding a pencil , fastening buttons)
     

  • Handwriting (messy, dislikes it, tires quickly, unable to keep up with peers)
     

  • Visual perception/visual motor tasks (matching, copying, puzzles, reversed letters)
     

  • Low muscle tone (slumps at desk, poor endurance)
     

  • Gross motor tasks requiring balance and coordination ( ball skills, playground skills, running , bike riding)
     

  • Self care tasks ( buttons, zippers, laces, feeding, toileting)
     

  • Sensory processing (over reacts to touch, taste, sounds or movement)
     

  • Attention and self regulation ( unable to focus, remain seated, fidgets alot, overactive)

Children seen by occupational therapists may have:

 

  • Poor handwriting / Dysgraphia

  • Learning Disability

  • Sensory Processing Disorder

  • Developmental Coordination Disorder

  • Gross and Fine motor Delays

  • Autism Spectrum Disorder

  • Global Developmental Delay

  • Attention Deficit Disorder

  • Cerebral Palsy

  • Feeding Disorders

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