Occupational therapy
According to the American Occupational Therapy Association, occupational therapy is the science whose ultimate purpose is to improve the functioning and promote the development of children through the use of play and purposeful activities (AOTA, 1976).
Occupational therapy intervention aims to address developmental problems and includes improving skills such as correct posture, gross and fine movement, balance, bilateral coordination, left-right discrimination, activity endurance, smooth muscle tone, lateralization, short-term and long-term memory, attention, orientation in space and time, visuomotor coordination, time management, initiative, self-esteem, etc.
Some "indications" that will prompt us to evaluate occupational therapy (depending on the age of the child) are:
If the child up to 2 years old has 3 or more of the following difficulties:
- Easily surprised (normal up to three months)
- Decreased muscle tone
- When she cries she can't stop easily
- He can't bring two hands to clap his hands
- With difficulty turns on its stomach - on its back (rolls)
- Produces sounds with difficulty
- It does not explore the environment
- He can't build a tower with blocks
- He doesn't like lying on his face
- It does not like contact with water
- It stretches when held (it doesn't like it)
- Doesn't like to be changed diapers or clothes
- Difficulty with breastfeeding and eating in general
- Has difficulties with sleep
If the child from 3 to 5 years old, has 3 or more of the following difficulties:
- Refuses to play with toys and children his age
- Decreased muscle tone
- Clumsy, falls easily and often
- Easily breaks toys and crayons
- Doesn't like to swing, jump or climb heights
- Has difficulty colouring in a frame, doing puzzles or cutting with scissors
- Speech development is delayed
- It is hyperactive
- He doesn't like to be on his face
- He doesn't like bathing, cutting his nails, etc.
- It is hypersensitive to smells, tastes, noises or even touch
- Avoids playing on the playground
- Has difficulties with sleep
If the child from 6 to 12 years old, has 3 or more of the following difficulties:
- Cannot concentrate or concentrates too much or cannot move on to the next activity
- Decreased muscle tone (tends to rest his head on his hands when sitting on his desk)
- Needs more practice from peers to learn new things
- Reverses letters and numbers, such as 3 with e, or does not leave the correct spaces between letters or words
- He breaks his pencils easily or writes with too much pressure on the paper
- Doesn't like jumping, swinging or climbing heights
- Does not like reading, gets tired quickly during school study
- It is hyperactive
- Has low self-confidence
- He doesn't like swimming, bathing at home, cutting his nails, etc.
- It is hypersensitive to smells, tastes, noises or even touch
- Has difficulty following verbal instructions
- Has difficulty making friends of the same age, prefers to hang out with adults or younger children
- Avoids gymnastics and intense sports.
The most important task in children's lives is play. This automatically makes it the main tool of therapists working with children.
