Have I ever mentioned that I love using things I already have around my home to help Andrew build developmental and academic skills? Perhaps only a hundred times but it is so true! I also like to pass on ideas to you that are simple to put together and also easy to adapt to various skill levels. Most everyone has Scrabble or Bananagram letters in their house and they are so great to help build literacy skills. In this My Obstacle Course Station Activity, I have combined some basic cards with … [Read more...] about Make The Same- Sight Word Building
Archives for June 2011
Dinosaur/Dragon Type Water Squirters
I found these dinosaur/dragon type water squirters at Walgreens in the "seasonal" aisle. They are basically water guns without the pointy gun aspect, which I really like! I picked them up because they are great for water fun on hot days but also help build hand strength through squeezing to squirt the water out. If you look closely, you can see that the part they will squeeze to squirt the water is quite long, requiring all of the fingers to squeeze down, which builds hand muscles. As … [Read more...] about Dinosaur/Dragon Type Water Squirters
Sensory Sand Bin
I’ve done previous posts on using sensory bins with dried beans and fake snow and think that a perfect summer sensory bin is a sand bin. This is something that I would do in a low, wide plastic bin with a lid, so it can be stored away while not in use. I would also place it on a beach towel to contain the sand. This may be something that your child already does all of the time but in the past it is not something that has been a preferred activity for Andrew. There are so many motor skills to … [Read more...] about Sensory Sand Bin
Summer Themed Memory Match
If you've been following my posts, you know by now that Andrew is crazy about memory match games. Using colored index cards and stickers makes it so easy to create new, thematic memory match games that go with whatever we are doing. (Here is the link for the original Thematic Memory Match post with step by step instructions.) Since it is summer and we are still in our "beach" theme, I made a game with lots of different colored fish. Through this basic game, we work on social skills and game … [Read more...] about Summer Themed Memory Match
Party Tray Sorting: Buttons and Coins
I shared a few weeks ago about these fun, colorful plastic party trays that I found that can be also used for sorting items. (Here is the link to Party Tray Sorters.) Here are two more ways to use them with things that you probably have lying around the house. Using a party tray like this makes it super simple to set up, easy to have the items contained while also providing a good space to sort into. My Obstacle Course Station Activity: Sorting Buttons By Color I have a huge bag of buttons … [Read more...] about Party Tray Sorting: Buttons and Coins
Pipe Cleaner Twisting
This is an activity that I came up with to work on hand coordination with Andrew. He is not yet tying his shoes (I am thankful for velcro and Crocs!) but I wanted to work with him on using his hands together while doing different things with each hand. (Turned out that his Occupational Therapist wanted to work on that with him as well! Bonus!!) I like to use pipe cleaners when starting to build a skill like this because they are sturdy and are less frustrating than wiggly laces or string … [Read more...] about Pipe Cleaner Twisting