Suggested Occupational Therapy Activities for Home

Household Chores: (designed to work on independent living skills, job readiness skills and executive functioning)

Folding Laundry Sorting clothes

Emptying/loading the dishwasher Raking the yard

Simple meal prep/cooking activities

-     For recipes (see below) Cleaning room

Cleaning around the house (i.e. vacuuming, sweeping)

Sorting items (i.e. silverware, laundry, food after a shopping trip) Putting away groceries

 

Activities/Games: (addresses visual motor integration skill, visual perceptual skills, sensorimotor skills, fine motor skills)

Lego kits Board games

Scavenger hunts Sidewalk chalk Finger paints Bracelet making Beading projects Sewing projects Dot-to-dots Mazes

This site has links to other sites for free printable visual motor activities, crafts, etc: https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/free-printable-activities-for-kids-1357482

Executive Functioning Games:

-     ( What is Executive Functioning? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQ5coA0tTJU)

http://brainpages.org/logic-games/ https://www.brainturk.com/ https://www.printable-puzzles.com/

-online logic puzzles, soduku, wordsearches, crosswords https://www.coolmathgames.com/1-strategy-games

Apps:

TimeGlass (helps with sequencing through chores) Reminders App (to write to do lists)

Simple recipes: (to work on following simple directions)

Cheese quesadilla picture directions: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Qdkq9yj8wKTI_1VMmsapK8uZxEU3mGgo/view?usp=sharing

Dirt cup: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1r7jvd8fMzGiLsM-vReFbq9viblligoCE/view?usp=sharing

Mac and cheese: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oRl8ERpOcJphB80m4thykfMGESjEsaZ9/view?usp=sharing

Meatball sliders: https://drive.google.com/file/d/11jQtkyQifu1g9o800uooBx6RRPF5dp5W/view?usp=sharing

Individual pizza picture directions: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-ziZE-EcgJylW1QoB2lN93fUlSHf0tt1/view?usp=sharing

Slime directions: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yrVa8tbbypfXca9zevSviKYNVrVCRGbn/view?usp=sharing

Taco pizza picture directions: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JSerPgR8Ww0ULRANKO3GQe0hOtf0ghpR/view?usp=sharing

Gross Motor, Strengthening, Fitness:

https://darebee.com/ https://www.gonoodle.com/

link to BOKS Bursts: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kc_5oboF61W5AhRJggw2syo3Ev-jhaue/view?usp=sharing

BOKS curriculum : https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-9tuQQaQk4yHhV149KQ3vSzS5wRFxSHX/view?usp=sharing

BOKS stations: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1tS10EIyFwr1tElHpB7Vc9WoP4WrAxD1F/view?usp=sharing

Yoga: https://www.cosmickids.com/

Also: stair climbers, planks, push-ups, wall-sits

Science: (to work on following simple directions)

https://www.raisingdragons.com/category/science/ https://sciencebob.com/

Visual Perceptual Skills:

http://eyecanlearn.com/

Fine Motor:

https://www.theottoolbox.com/

-This website has a lot of activities for different OT skills

Typing sites or games:

www.typingclub.com https://www.speedtypingonline.com/typing-test

Zones of Regulation

https://www.zonesofregulation.com/learn-more-about-the-zones.html

-       There are not too many activities you can print out but you can review the concepts

-       Also if you type in “zones of regulation” different visuals will come up along to use with your student

If interested there are 2 apps/games your student can use (and may be familiar with). Both are at cost, but are a great way to reiterate and teach concepts of the program.

-       Zones of Regulation (at app store)

-       Exploring Emotions (at app store)

Activities and Information to Support Occupational Therapy Needs While Incorporating Social Distancing Guidelines

Sensory Processing and Self-Regulation Strategies Strategies to increase energy and alertness levels:

  • Movement opportunities

    o Walking o Jumping jacks

    o Sit ups/modified sit ups

    o Standing up and stretching

  • Chair push-ups (sitting on a chair and raising self up from seat using hands to push up)

  • Wall push-ups (leaning forward against a wall and pushing self away from and toward wall)

  • Hand manipulatives/fidgets

  • Eating crunchy foods

  • Bright lighting

Strategies to calm self:

  • Slow, deep breathing

  • Minimizing stimulation in the environment (e.g., decrease noise, dim lights, reduce visual input)

  • Rhythmic movement such as using a rocking chair

  • Proprioceptive (“deep pressure”) activities

    o Use of therapy putty or Silly Putty o Chair push-ups (slow), wall push-ups, or standard/modified push-ups

    o Use of weighted items such as weighted blankets with supervision or back packs (<10% of body weight)

    o Sitting on bean bag

    o “Heavy work” activities (e.g., carrying books, back pack, laundry basket; pushing or pulling items such as vacuum cleaners)

    o Eating chewy foods

Fine Motor, Visual Motor, and Visual Perceptual Activities

  • Silly Putty or therapy putty exercises (pinch, pull, squeeze, roll)

  • Word searches (scan from top to bottom, left to right; focus on circling words with proper closure)

  • Dot-to-Dots

  • Mazes (work on staying within the lined boundaries)

  • Hidden picture puzzles

  • Handwriting activities (focus on proper word spacing, writing within the lined boundaries, using proper letter casing, using proper ending punctuation, “closing” letter forms)

  • Typing activities or typing programs

  • Coloring activities (focus on increasing hand endurance and staying within the lines)

  • Picking up and manipulating small objects

    o Picking up coins and placing them in a piggy bank

    o Building creations by using small marshmallows and toothpicks, Legos, or K’Nex

    o Placing paper clips on and off paper packets

    o Playing any games that have small components such as Topple, Trouble, Battleship

Please let me know if you have any questions, concerns, or want additional information specific to your child.

Kim Sullivan, M.S., OTR/L, Occupational Therapist

kimberly.sullivan@phillipsprograms.org

PHILLIPS School ~ Fairfax