We, at Great Kids Place, are finding great value in the opportunity to work virtually with families. Meeting with parents and children in this way allows us to be immersed into your “real life.” We have the opportunity to get a first-hand look at your sensory lifestyle and make recommendations for ways to use the things that you have in your home to support your Great Kid’s sensory profile. As we all know, our kids can be different little people in the comfort of their own home. This opportunity allows us to get a glimpse at what social interactions look like at home and make suggestions to support your sensory motor and social emotional goals. The silver lining in all of this, is that by doing this we can make future recommendations with your ‘real life’ space and routines in mind. Further, it gives us an opportunity to help create games to support relationships between siblings too.
Suggested plan for the use of your virtual sessions:
Evaluation
Evaluation to determine your child’s sensory processing preferences and challenges. We replicate the evaluation process that takes place in person with the parents as our helper in the room. The goals of the evaluation are: determine how sensory processing is impacting behavior, social interactions and participation in daily activities; find strengths in sensory processing that can support focus in home based learning and participation in daily routines; find challenges in sensory processing that can be supported through play based activities and environment and task modification in your home; and help develop a sensory balanced routine based on sensory strengths and weaknesses.
First Treatment Session: Home Sensory Lifestyle
Introduction to your current sensory lifestyle with a tour of the toys, equipment, and space of your home. This will include:
- Growth assessment: discussion of ways to use the things you have to reach your sensory motor, social emotional goals
- Opportunity assessment: determine if and what additional items can be added to your home
- Adaptation assessment: determine things that could be modified to align with and enhance with your child’s sensory profile, including environmental modifications.
- Setting up routines and habits during home instruction and social distancing (which can also be used all the time)
Second Treatment Session: Sensational Play
You and your child will engage in favorite/familiar activities and/or the therapist will provide ideas for what activities to do during this time based on the evaluation and home ‘tour’. The therapist will make recommendations for things to add/modify and do to help reach your sensory motor, social emotional goals. The therapist will recommend toys and equipment based on your supply at home.
Third Treatment Session (or second session): Sensational Area of Growth
Problem solving session. You and your child will engage in a more challenging activity/routine of your “real life”. The therapist will introduce a practical way to problem solve through daily difficulties from the resource book No Longer A SECRET. Areas of discussion will be strategies for attention, social, emotional, culture/habit, relationships, environment and task adaptations. You will get recommendations for things to add/modify to help reach your sensory motor, social emotional goals.
Fourth treatment session: Sensational Exploration
Use of new/novel items. Your therapist will coach you through an exploration session of new items with your child – best use for your child’s sensory needs.
One important logistical thing to note: during these sessions the kids are not expected to sit and look at the therapist on the screen. They will be engaging in activities for the majority of the session, moving their bodies and playing in activities while the therapist works with the parent to make adjustments to what the child is doing. In this way, it is different from a “class” model that is being used by teachers and other professionals at this time.
If you feel you could benefit from sessions of the type described here, but have other ideas for how you would like to use this time with us please let us know what you would like and we will work to put that together for you. We are forever flexible during these very different times!
To schedule a call to discuss options, please email michele@greatkidsplace.com. We look forward to helping!
Video samples
We have been doing Zoom sessions now for several weeks and I am pleasantly surprised how well they are going. We use items such as painters tape, pillows, stuffed animals, and furniture to create obstacle courses and fun games my child enjoys and benefits from sensory-wise. Other than the actual sessions themselves, the best part is that we now have permanent access to the obstacle courses and games created in sessions. This has been very helpful as we continue to practice social distancing and are mainly confined to our home. My son loves teaching his little sister the new games and sharing his obstacle course creations with his dad at the end of the day. I feel so grateful that we can still keep our weekly Monday morning sessions and my son can get his sensory needs met in the comfort of our home.
