Archive for March 2019
Dyslexia vs Visual Perception
How does the child present in the classroom/at home: 1.Dyslexia Reverses letters/numbers Skips words/lines when reading Performs poorly in spellings tests Has anxiety when reading Guesses words when reading Reading and/or spelling below age level Knows the work when mom asked them at home but performs poorly in the exams Adds extra letters to words/omits…
Read MoreWhen should a child be referred to an occupational therapist? (Part 2)
7. Praxis Praxis (also called motor planning) is the ability of the brain to conceive, organize, and carry out a sequence of tasks/actions. Praxis is the ability to self-organize. Praxis includes ideation – motor planning – task execution. Impairment here will influence gross motor skills, planning tasks, work speedand task execution negatively. How will I…
Read MoreWhen should a child be evaluated by an occupational therapist? (Part 1)
It is important to keep in mind that each child develops at his/her own pace. The moment a child’s performance is impaired/influenced/limited in a life sphere (school, play, social skills, self-care, communication) the child should be referred for an occupational therapy assessment. If a child shows impairment in one of the following areas and/or struggles…
Read MoreWhat is visio-motor integration and why is it important for hand writing?
Visio-motor integration is the ability to coordinate the visual system (what we see) with our fine motor skills (to be able to copy this using our hands). Our visual system consists of 3 factors: 1.Visual perceptual skills Discrimination Memory Sequential memory Form constancy Foreground-background Spatial relations Position in spaceVisual acuity 2. Vision Eye-muscle functioning 3.…
Read MoreSensory Integration (Part 7) – The Vestibular System
The vestibular sense has an influence on: Vision Hearing: speech and language development Muscle tone Bilateral integration Motor planning Movement Balance Gravitational security Emotional security Physical security Registration The vestibular system is regulated by two systems: the semi-circular canals and the otolith. The vestibular system is activated by movement of the head (linear, angular or…
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