General Questions
Why is my child referred to an Occupational Therapist?
Your child may have been referred for an Occupational Therapy assessment by your pediatrician or another health care professional. An assessment by an Occupational Therapist is usually necessary to evaluate your child’s ability to perform activities of daily living (brushing hair and teeth, getting dressed, eating,toilet training), play (interacting with other children and toys) participation in academic tasks (attention, writing, colouring, learning abilities), motor development (fine motor and gross motor skills) and sensory processing (attention, behaviour over sensitivities). The occupational therapist will work closely with you and your family to understand your concerns for your child, develop goals and a treatment plan to achieve those goals.
What can I expect from the initial assessment at WonderKids?
The parental questionnaires and concerns discussed with the therapist prior to your child's assessment, will determine the type of specialist assessment to be carried out. The therapist will then carry out your child's assessment to identify strengths and areas of difficulties. Following this, the therapist will discuss the results with you and review the recommended treatment options. You will be guided about future appointments.
What do I need to bring for my first appointment at WonderKids?
Bring a list of concerns and any questions you have so you can be sure to get the answers you need by the end of the assessment process. You would also need to bring any professional and medical reports related to your child's development.
How can I prepare my child for his first visit at WonderKids?
Explain to your child that they will be visiting a fun place and meet a special teacher with whom they will play and do some writing tasks. If your child is young or has a language delay find some fun online occupational therapy activities so they can understand better what to expect. Try not cause extra anxiety by going into too much detail and make sure to explain that this is not a medical appointment. You can rest assured that your child will be relieved and happy to enter our therapy rooms. Our therapy areas are child-friendly-bright, colorful spaces filled with toys and games. Our therapists will do everything to help you and your child feel comfortable.
What is Sensory Integration? Why do I need an Occupational Therapist specialising in Sensory Integration?
Sensory integration therapy is used for children who have sensory issues. Many children who have
autism,dyspraxia, ADHD, ADD, learning difficulties or other neurodevelomental conditions experience sensory processing difficulties. An occupational therapist trained in Sensory Integration will be better able to determine your child's sensory reactions and carry out the adequate therapeutic intervention.
Sensory Integration Therapy assists the child in participating in his/her daily life activities by helping their nervous system to react and interpret better the sensory information.
Does my child really need the help of an Occupational therapist? Does my child really need Sensory Integrative therapy? Can’t they just practice?
Unfortunately, it is not that easy. Unless your child has the internal ability to do a skill correctly, they will not be able to learn skills on their own. It is not a question of just practicing a skill for example handwriting but it is important that your child has the underlying motor functions working well to be able to learn the skill and generalise it.
How can the therapists at WonderKids be of any help to teachers and schools?
The therapists can collaborate with teachers and the educational team to understand better the children's performance and needs in their environment. This can be done via school visits, workshops and participation in IEP meetings. The therapists can provide recommendations in areas related to motor skills, coloring, promoting a functional pencil grasp, handwriting, attention, participation in circle time, and social interaction.