Since our office started offering Occupational Therapy, I have had so many parents ask me, “What exactly is occupational therapy??” Well, according to the American Occupational Therapy Association, “Occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants help people participate in their desired occupations with the therapeutic use of everyday activities, based on the client’s personal interests and needs.” You may be thinking, “Children don’t have jobs – why do they need occupational therapy?” However, children have many jobs! Their jobs include playing by themselves and with others, going to school, and learning how to do daily tasks like getting dressed and feeding themselves. When a child has difficulty with any of these things, it can affect their self esteem, development, and ability to interact with the world around them at an age-appropriate level. Let’s look at some of the common areas that occupational therapists target during their sessions with children. 

1. Gross Motor
   
   Gross motor skills involve moving the large muscles in the arms, legs, and torso. Some children might demonstrate weakness or discoordination of these muscles, which would make it hard for them to perform typical activities such as balancing, catching a ball, or doing a jumping jack. These skills might not seem that important, but they are vital to a child playing on the playground or participating in PE! 

2. Fine Motor
   
   Fine motor skills are a huge component of occupational therapy. Whereas gross motor skills involve the big muscles in our legs and arms that help us to do things like walk and run, fine motor skills involve the smaller muscles in our hands that help us do precise tasks like write, cut with scissors, tie shoes, and fasten buttons. 

3. Sensory Integration
   
   Sensory integration refers to the way our brain takes in sensory information, processes it, and responds to it. We are constantly taking in sensory information, such as sights, sounds, tastes, smells, and touches. Some children can be either over reactive or under reactive to these senses, and need help learning how to process different experiences and react appropriately. 

4. Feeding
   
   Occupational therapists can help children who have difficulty eating and drinking. This can be done by expanding the range of accepted or preferred foods, decreasing sensitivity to certain tastes, smells, and textures, and helping a child to use a fork and spoon. 

This is not an exhaustive list of everything that our amazing occupational therapists do every day, but a brief overview of some of the main things targeted in therapy. If you have any questions about how your child could benefit from occupational therapy, please give us a call at 407-703-2711!