I originally recorded this lecture for a group who work tutoring children with dyslexia and other learning difficulties. It’s based on a lot of experiences I’ve had with children getting referred to me in my occupational therapy role, with goals to improve their handwriting. But how can I, an occupational therapist, work within the bounds … Read more
One student used a giant Sharpie and a still-giant-but-slightly-less-giant Sharpie to draw the outline on this big piece of butcher paper. An artistic, abstract, scribble. Same student plus more students helped me make watercolors in a project I’ve talked about before here: we used pliers to break open washable markers that had dried out, harvested … Read more
Use ultra-washable paint (1 part washable kids’ paint, 1 part dish soap) — or, even easier, chalk — to decorate outdoor toys. A car like this one, a scooter/bike, a backyard slide…you name it, you can probably color on it. If you can’t get the chalk to stay, you can dip the chalk in water … Read more
This post has an audio and video recorded version for those who prefer to learn by hearing rather than by reading. Scroll to the bottom for the video of me reading it. Let me tell you a story about child-led learning, and about The Very Hungry Caterpillar. About one month ago, my coworker asked me … Read more
A few years ago, I was working as an occupational therapist for a group institution/foster home for older children with disabilities. I could basically come once a week and do a group activity that anyone could participate in if they wanted to. It needed to be accessible to a wide range of ability levels. This … Read more
…I was going to put “play with scissors” and “play riskily” on here, too, but I thought that might freak people out TOO much. 😉 Seriously, though. It’s the start of summer break at the American schools I work at. I know English schools go awhile longer before having more of a break in August, … Read more
The kid I’m working with is a hardcore gestalt language processor*. I notice that they’re singing a song while the two of us work side by side on an art project. I can tell some of the lyrics are about characters from Mario, but many of the words are hard to understand. I think, “This … Read more
I had a student recently who I wanted to give a fidget to. He already had a fidget for his classroom, but I had recently got a big bag of fidgets and found a particular one I thought he’d enjoy, that I would gift to him. I set up a little scavenger hunt for our … Read more
Someone recently told me, “Ugh, I know that the 3yos in my preschool class are supposed to be wiggly and playful and loud and silly. But I know that they’ll have higher expectations in the 4yos class next year. I’m always torn between letting them be themselves, and trying to prepare them for what will … Read more
I was going to take a selfie showing off my homemade bubble wands and it turns out that I’m incapable of blowing bubbles, keeping my eyes open, AND not looking mean or worried. Pipe cleaners/chenille sticks make great homemade bubble wands! I’ve found that they work best of all with any kind of bubble solution … Read more