New Kiddo at Jen's OT For Kids!

Well, my last posting was on July 18th and just a few days after that, there was some really big news at our household.  I'm proud to announce that my son Liam Matthew was born July 26th!  Let me explain that to call this sweet baby a surprise would be a bit of an understatement....my other son is 15 and my daughter is 16 1/2!  There were no obvious signs of this pregnancy until my pants weren't fitting (thought I was gaining weight now that I'm in my 40's!) and I did not find out I was pregnant until I was 17 weeks along.  CRAZY!  Thankfully I live a healthy lifestyle, don't drink or smoke, I exercise daily and take a multi-vitamin, however I was 42 years old when I found out and a bit nervous.  My other children arrived at 35 and 36 weeks, so wouldn't ya know this little guy ALSO came at 36 weeks and was even born on his big brother's birthday! He is a sweet little soul and we are grateful for his good health.  This has been just a bit of an adjustment at this house but it's all good!  Liam is giving me all kinds of ideas for new postings as I start all over on the child development train~~oh, this poor child of a therapist who is always being observed on a developmental checklist by his dear ol' mom.  None the less, you're bound to see more pics of him as he gets to be the model of fine motor activities, but here is the first glimpse.  Pretty cute, huh? We sure think so!

Jen Dermody, OTR/L (aka, MOM!)

25 Ways to Practice Letters WITHOUT a pencil!

While I am enjoying summer break in a major way and not quite ready to think about school yet, I DO love when kiddos continue to learn, learn, learn whether they are in school or not!  Sitting down with a pencil and paper may not be the most appealing activity in the middle of July however there are plenty of other ways to practice letters and tons of fun doing it!  Here are 25 ideas to get you started ~~

1.  Sidewalk chalk
2.  Finger paints
3.  "Painting" with a paintbrush and bucket of water on the sidewalk
4.  Wikki Stix
5.  A salt tray
6.  "Do-a-Dot"

7.  Shaving cream!
8.  Dry erase board
9.  Scented crayons
10.  Glitter glue
11.  Sticker "dots"

12.  A rice tray (and you can color the rice with food coloring!)
13.  Window markers
14.  "Write" with a stick in the dirt
15.  Bathtub crayons
16.  AquaDoodle or Magna Doodle
17.  Popsicle sticks
18.  Tear pieces of paper and glue on letter models

19. Frootloops or Cheerios

20.  Make some homemade play-doh (loads of recipes online) and roll into letters

21.  Ziploc bag filled with hair gel and sealed with tape

22.  Paint on an easel

23.  A small chalkboard

24.  Yarn

25.  Letter lacing cards

Learning can be so much FUN!  With a little creativity, your kiddo will be all ready when school starts again in a few weeks!

Jen Dermody, OTR/L

National Handwriting Day is January 23rd, 2013

 

To celebrate National Handwriting Day (January 23rd), Handwriting Without Tears is inviting children all over the country to handwrite letters of advice (in their best handwriting!) to the President as he heads into his second term in office. They can share their hopes for the future, words of wisdom, good wishes—the only requirement is that the letters be handwritten!

You can find more information and special free stationary to use for the Mail to the Chief campaign on the Handwriting Without Tears website at Mail to the Chief .    Children love to offer their words of advice to the president so be sure to hop on board and celebrate good handwriting!

Jen Dermody, OTR/L

Monsters Inc. Sensory Friendly Films

It's that time again!  AMC will host another sensory friendly film on Saturday, January 5th at 10:00AM.  Monsters Inc. (in 2-D) will be at AMC Theatres all over the country.  You'll find all the info you need at Autism Society - Sensory Friendly Films

Have a fun time movie goers!

Jen Dermody, OTR/L

Holiday Gift Guide for Kids

                                             

Well, we've reached the "less than 2 weeks 'til Christmas" mark!  Have you finished shopping for your favorite kiddos?  If you're like me and you've still got some gifts to buy, take a few minutes to look over the list of gift ideas I wrote last year this time.  It's a developmental list organized by age groups to help you find that "just right" gift. I thought it might be worth re-posting right about now. You'll find the link to my posting at Holiday Gift Guide!
Now get shopping!            
                           
Jen Dermody, OTR/L

Rudy the Writing Reindeer

It's been a bit of a rough year with one of my first grade friends who simply detests school work and anything associated with it.  His "team" of teachers and therapists have already met several times this year to try to come up with a plan that might encourage this little guy to want to participate at school.  So today he had a writing assignment that he had refused to do in class for his teacher and I was going to give it another try to see if maybe ...just maybe....he could be motivated to try.  SO let me introduce Rudy the Red Nosed Writing Reindeer!  You might have heard about Rudy in your favorite Christmas song, right?  Yeah, well he somehow made his way into my bag this morning so that he could see what my first grade friends were writing at school.  Can you even believe it?!  Let me tell you, my first grade kiddos LOVED Rudy and would have done just about anything to have him sit on the desk to see their "Fantastic First Grade Writing".  My less than motivated buddy couldn't wait for his turn to have Rudy watch him write. In fact, he didn't want to STOP writing because he did not want Rudy to go to another friend.  Oh yes, he most certainly did finish that writing assignment and asked if Rudy would be back tomorrow to see him write.  You can BET that Rudy will be back!  If a cute little stuffed animal can motivate my kiddos to write, then it looks like Ms. Jen has a new assistant!

Jen Dermody, OTR/L