14/10/2025
I love this... its looks much more simple than it happens in my brain.
This isn’t *exactly* how it looks in my brain when I do occupational therapy but it feels close. 😉
(it’s also not exhaustive, obviously kids can like other things)
When I first meet a kid, I tend to figure out the first row pretty fast—it’s whatever they adore immediately, wear on their sleeve, are drawn to from their first step into my room. Sometimes their grownups can go ahead and tell me what they think their kid will love and gravitate towards and that’s always one of the things I have set up. (And, like I said, it may not be one of the things listed in the image.) Or sometimes their kid comes outta left field and apparently picks a “therapy interest”. Either way, I’ve got it.
Also, their grownups and I have collaborated on the third row. We know what it is they’re there to work on and I’ve written goals to come back to and make sure we’re doing what we mean to do.
Then after some time, I start to get to know the kid enough that I start figuring out the second column, and then setup gets more fun and more interesting.
How do we do G6V — combine art and craft with movement to learn more about how their body processes sensory input? Maybe we end up upside-down on the aerial silks, drawing with markers on butcher paper on the floor in spiral patterns as the silks spin around and then talking about the vestibular system, which is also shaped kind of spirally and responds to going upside down and makes you feel balanced or dizzy, settled or alert.
How about A1U? Gross motor, puzzles, and executive functioning? Maybe I take physical puzzle pieces and scatter them around the room near pillows, the pillows are the stepping stones in “the floor is lava”, and you have to rescue all the puzzle pieces then assemble them—but first you have to tell me out loud what your plan of approach will be.
F4S? Directing/scripting, music, and better handwriting? Good thing I know a lot about handwriting: I could go in the “increased understanding that handwriting is delightful” direction, or in the “physical skills that underlie difficulty handwriting” direction. Maybe I gather up all our musical instruments, I play whatever I’m directed and stay silent when I’m not directed, and all the while I model making a list of all the instruments we’ve played—or I might make a list preemptively, and invite the child to check the boxes of the ones we’ve tried, maybe by having one of my irresistibly fun pens available. Or, we might try to play a song from a favorite movie or show on the Bluetooth speaker while we do something targeting core strength or upper arm strength — swinging, waving ribbons, shaking tambourines…
My room is VERY child-led; I never go into any session being like, “we are going to for certain do this, this, and this.” Instead, I set up things I think will hook attention and bring delight, and the more I get to know a kid the more often I’m right. The good news for me is that kids often have more than just one goal on their plan, so if we absolutely can’t come anywhere near touching emotional regulation in this particular session, maybe we DID self-advocate.
Not every single session hits every single highlight, either. The kid who loves sport and drawing might surprise me and be super into playing a board game or really focused on building something today. This isn’t me trying to put kids in boxes or keep them constrained in any way. But when I’m trying to plan quickly for a session, if I can think, “Oh yeah, Jeff always likes Lego and also is recently really into hiding under stuff,” it’s way easier to think about what to grab and set up that Jeff might like. (Disclaimer: I know zero children named Jeff.)
What combination would’ve described you when you were a kid? Or make up your own, cause, like I said: not exhaustive.
[Image description:
A chart with three rows. The first row is labeled with letters A through I. It says “kid primarily likes…”
Then the options given are: gross motor, messy play, Lego, pretend play, screen-based play, directing (enacting scripts), art & craft, sport, and board games. Each one correlates in the table with one of the letters.
The second row is labeled with numbers 1 through 9. It says “with a bit of…”
Then the options given are: puzzles, playdoh, drawing, music, visual delight, movement, hiding/being cocooned, imagination, and oral sensory input.
The third row is labeled with letters R through Z. It says “and their goal is…”
Then the options given are:
Increasing emotional regulation skills, better handwriting, improved body coordination, Learning some more executive functioning skills like planning and remembering, Understanding more about how their body uniquely processes sensory input, Being better able to hear and interpret their body signals (interoception), more independence in self-care, New ways to self-advocate (and be heard), and Having a positive, neuroaffirming understanding of themself.
The end result is that you choose a letter from A-I; a number from 1-9; and a letter from R-Z to convey any match of any three of these things. End description.]
