Heavy work has been used to help calm and stimulate students with sensory needs for years! You are probably already using some heavy work activities and you might not even realize it! So what is heavy work? Heavy work is an activity that either pushes or pulls against the body and provides the muscles and joints with input. Heavy work activities can be beneficial to EVERY student but can be particularly helpful for students with sensory processing needs. Heavy work can help students feel regulated and focused. Heavy work activities fall into 3 main categories: Whole body/ gross motor activities (like pushing, pulling, lifting, and moving) Oral activities (like chewing, sucking, and blowing) Fine motor/ use of hands (like squeezing and pinching) 1) Examples of gross motor/ whole body heavy work at home and school include: Pushing & pulling objects / items: Vacuuming, sweeping, moping Pushing someone on a swing Pushing a heavy/ full grocery cart Pulling a heavy/ full wagon Pushing heavy doors open Raking leaves Dusting furniture/ wiping tables Cleaning the white board Scooters Climbing on the playground or obstacle courses Lifting heavy objects/ items: Carrying everyday household objects (laundry basket, groceries, taking out trash, etc.) Playing toss/ passing games with weighted balls or weighted toys Carrying buckets of sand or water Yoga & exercises with body weight Carrying a heavy lunch bucket/ basket Stacking and un-stacking chairs Jumping & bounding on/ with items: Jumping on a trampoline Jumping/ falling into beanbags Bouncing on therapy balls/ chairs Jump roping Gymnastics Climbing/ hanging on items: Hanging/ swinging on monkey bars Rope swings/ rings Rock walls Ladders and slides 2) Oral heavy work activities at home and school include: Chewing food items: Gummy candies (like gummy bears, licorice and Sour Patch Kids) Bagels Gum Cheese Dried fruit (raisins, craisins, mango, etc.) Dried meat (beef jerky, turkey jerky) Popcorn Blowing activities: Blowing bubbles Blowing up balloons Using whistles Blow party favor toys (like kazoos) Blowing through a straw Sucking activities: Sucking through fun straws (bendy or twisty straws are awesome!) Using water bottles with straws Drinking smoothies or milkshakes with a straw Hard candies Popsicles & lollipops 3) Fine motor heavy work activities at home and school include: Resistance toys and activities: Using stamps and molds with Play Doh Using spray bottles to spray cleaner on tables or water plants Cutting thick paper or cardboard with scissors Putting clothespins on materials Bingo dabbers Ripping heavy/ thick paper Writing & working on vertical services: Writing and drawing on vertical or slanted chalkboard or whiteboard Erasing and cleaning/ wiping chalkboard or whiteboard Tabletop easels for art or writing Cleaning/ wiping vertical surfaces above eye level (like doors, walls, showers, etc.) It's also important to observe your students and take data to determine what activities calm and stimulate (or over stimulate) your students. You should remember that what calms one student might over stimulate another student. There are so many different ways to incorporate heavy work into your day! Take the time to figure out what works best for your students and then start sprinkling the activities throughout your day!

Over 35 heavy work activities for kids, toddlers, and preschoolers that are designed to help calm and improve attention. Many of these activities can be done through natural activities your child is already doing!

Gross motor planning for your April gross motor activities. A break down of different themes to use with your April Gross Motor planning ideas !

Heavy work activities are powerful tools for self-regulation, attention, focus, body awareness, and calming sensory input.

Students love this Four Square Hula Hoop activity! It works on teamwork, fitness, spatial awareness, and underhand throwing skills. It’s a competitive

After seeing this post on Pinterest from Creative Clinical Social Worker, I thought it would be helpful to post about terminology to use for pediatric therapy. If you follow my blog or website, you know I love the words "facilitate", "promote" and "encourage". When documenting therapy sessions I tend to overuse the words "completed" and "accomplished". So in order to expand my vocabulary I looked over the list and added some of my own. Some of the terms are more suitable for evaluations and some are more suitable for on going documentation of therapy sessions. Try adding some measurable outcomes to these verbs for goal setting. Here is a list of documentation terminology for pediatric therapists: Accomplished Assessed Assisted with Completed Created Cued Decreased Developed Discussed Educated Elicited Encouraged Engaged Explained Explored Evaluated Facilitated Generalized Guided Helped Identified Increased Informed Investigated Modeled Modified Monitored Observed Problem solved Promoted Provided feedback Reviewed Reinforced Responded to Recommended Taught Tracked Utilized Validated Worked on If you would like a printable of this page to toss in your therapy bag, wallet or purse to increase your vocabulary next time you write up an evaluation or session note visit YourTherapySource.com. What is your favorite documentation terminology?

Self-talk is the inner voice that goes on inside our heads throughout our waking hours. Positive self-talk is when we talk to ourselves in a reassuring, kind, and more optimistic way. It's the difference from saying to yourself: "I'm an idiot, I can't believe I failed this math test" or "I'm disappo

Fun indoor movement games, aka gross motor activities, for toddlers to keep them active and entertained at home whilst developing their gross motor skills.

Five Fun Activities with Dyna Discs! Dyna Disc activities for children to address balance, strength, motor planning & posture!

Through my experience working in a skilled nursing and long term care facility, I have found that patients can greatly benefit from therapy exercises and strategies to improve their breathing coordination as well as expiratory duration and strength. This in turn will positively affect their breath support, swallowing and communication skills. Patients who have are ... Read More about When Communication, Cognition And Swallowing Are Affected By Decreased Breath Support

I have seen a lot of great ideas around the internet for tasks students can complete when they THINK they're finished. I poster-size charts like these and place them around the room. It really does cut down on the number of times I hear "I'm done, what can I do?" These tasks also give students great ideas for creating. You can really find out where some of your students' talents lie after they complete these tasks. This is also a great template for using like a Bingo board. If your students complete 5 across, down, or diagonal, they could receive an incentive. If you are interested in poster-sizing, Staples does a great job and they are very inexpensive if you ask for industrial prints. Good luck and have a great year. Please check out my other products. Clipart by Creative Clips. https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Krista-Wallden

How to incorporate body awareness activities in your child's daily routine for better proprioception.

These are some of the best therapy toys and games used by pediatric occupational and physical therapists to promote skill development.

Occupational therapy game & toy reviews. Fine motor, visual perception, eye hand coordination, spatial relations, figure ground, executive function

I tried many different study methods, some more effective than others. Some worked well for certain classes and not for others, so I had to adjust for each class and each professor. Hopefully this …

Waiting in line is hard for everyone! Stop worrying about your child waiting in line and checkout these 12 tips that can be used anywhere....

One of our OT’s was so excited last week to show us the new activity she was doing with a few of her kiddos. She had just started it so she hasn’t had time to embellish it for pictures…

Are you new to the world of school based therapy? If so, here are 5 blog posts that will help you hit the ground running. 8 Getting To...

Looking for occupational therapy activities using free or household materials? This list of OT activities supports development of OT goals.

Explore a big handful of DIY adaptive writing aids for people with diverse abilities and needs! This post covers the use of everyday materials to create adapted pen and pencil grips, built up holders, cuffs to hold writing or drawing tools, and more. Whether you’re a person with a disability, a teac

Click here to learn more about how to create an effective workout program using the fundamental human movement patterns.

UGH Knee Pain SUCKS! 😩 - Whether it’s arthritis, meniscus tears, plantar fasciitis, tendonitis, or bursitis… none of these should bring you fear. Especially if you’re doing something to combat those...

At Fresh, when we want to get more comfortable, we get less conventional. We balance on skateboards and use mini stair climbers. There’s a gym downstairs for fitness breaks. Occasionally, we’ll sprint over to someone’s desk. And, an entire group committed to doing push-ups throughout the work day. Of course, we still spend the majority of … Continued

As an OT, you'll likely see patients with decreased fine motor skills. Here are the best functional fine motor coordination activities

Check out all of these fun and creative ways to practice single leg stance with kids through play! Which one will you try today?

Want to help your kids learn about gratitude? Play the gratitude game with them. It's a fun game that the whole family will enjoy!