Pediatric Occupational Therapy
Summitt Therapy Solutions collaborate with parents/caregivers and other professionals to identify and meet the needs of children experiencing delays or challenges in development; identifying and modifying or compensating for barriers that interfere with, restrict, or inhibit functional performance; teaching and modeling skills and strategies to children, their families, and other adults in their environments to extend therapeutic intervention to all aspects of daily life tasks; and adapting activities, materials, and environmental conditions so children can participate under different conditions and in various settings (e.g., home, school, sports, community programs).
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What does that ACTUALLY mean to you? Well, maybe your child will ONLY wear 1 pair of pants, and getting dressed is a daily challenge? Or maybe your child is a VERY picky eater, and won’t sit at the table with you when you are eating dinner? Or maybe your child runs into the street, and you are concerned for their safety? Or maybe your child experiences anxiety surrounding sleep? Or maybe your child is experiencing meltdowns or tantrums with daily schedule transitions? These are all behaviors that are getting in the way of your child’s ability to fully participate in their occupations (dressing, eating, play, sleep)….Those aren’t the only things we work on in occupational therapy, however, they are aspects of our daily life that impact how we get through our day.
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For more information check out the AOTA's fact sheet on Occupational Therapy's Role with Children and Youth.
Pediatric Occupational Therapy Services
Digital Learning Strategies
Now that students are learning in new ways, we can work together to develop the best plan for your family to help your child succeed.
Fine Motor Skills Training
Fine motor skills involve activities that use the coordination of muscles, bones, and nerves to produce small, precise movements. An example of a fine motor skill is picking up a small item with the index finger and thumb. Children require body awareness, motor planning skills, coordination, muscle strength, and sensation to gain these developmental skills.
Sensory Integration Training
Sensory integration is the way the nervous system receives messages from the senses and turns them into appropriate motor and behavioral responses. Whether you are biting into a hamburger, riding a bicycle, or reading a book, your successful completion of the activity requires processing sensation or "sensory integration."
Emotional Regulation Training
Emotional regulation skills allow a person to self-calm during emotional and stressful situations. In children, emotional regulation issues are often seen as ‘behavior problems’. All children have tantrums from time to time, but children with emotional regulation issues often tantrum more frequently and for a longer time than their peers and become easily upset without a clear cause.
Activities of Daily Living Training
Activities of Daily Living include any tasks that a person engages in, that involve taking care of his/her own body. These can include eating, grooming, dressing, and toileting tasks.