Practical and Effective Strategies for Integrating Sensory and Motor Learning

Many of our children are growing up in very busy environments where they are constantly on the go. Learning environments and expectations are changing, and play and leisure activities are looking different. It is important that weprovide our children with a strong foundation so that they are able to develop skills to succeed throughout life. It is also imperative to fully understand the impact of the demands we are putting on children, where the challenge begins and how to appropriately support children with strategies and copingmechanisms. It is our job as therapists and educators to help support families and teams in this dynamic evolution to set up our children for success and teach them how to adapt and cope to different situations.

This interactive one-day course will look at typical development and areas to monitor. It will provide a wide variety of strategies and resources to support the child andhis/her families. We will identify what play looks like and how we can change the activity a child may be interested in to provide some challenges and enable more learning. We will look at the different sensory systems and strategies to support overall regulation so that children can improve focus and concentration, engagement and intentional communication in a variety of settings. Participants will be involved indiscussing how small adaptations can be made in classrooms, community settings and in the home environment to help empower the child and families. Participants will also be involved in discussing guidelines, the role of technologyand interactive media and how to choose appropriate types of media for our children. After attending this course,participants will learn how to prioritize the needs of the children, providing support at the foundation and building upon successes so you will be able to promote learning and growth.

Target Audience: Physical Therapists, Physical Therapist Assistants, Occupational Therapists, Occupational Therapy Assistants, Speech-Language Pathologists

Highlights

• Confidently develop clinical reasoning skills to identify redflags in child development including physiological, sensory, motor and environmental areas of need for the child
• Gain effective strategies to build a solid foundation of support for learning and growth that will improve function
• Learn the different sensory systems and identify strategies to improve sensory regulation throughout the child's day in a variety of environments that impact development
• Discuss how to integrate technology and interactive media in a meaningful and developmentally appropriate way for children
• Comprehensive resources: Articles, handouts, visualsupports, digital media sources, and activities to use immediately in treatment sessions, home programs, and classrooms