About our Pediatric Occupational Therapy Services:
Our Occupational therapists work with children to support development and gain skills necessary for increased participation, success, and independence in everyday activities across environments and contexts. The OTs at our clinic, located in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, aim to holistically help each child engage in daily occupations, tasks, and activities needed for success at home, school, and in their community. We help kids gain independence and confidence while strengthening development in the following areas:
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Self-care skills (dressing, feeding, hygiene), ADLs, IADLs
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Sensory processing, integration and regulation
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Play skills
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Emotional regulation
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Body/spatial awareness
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Fine motor skills
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Visual motor skills
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Executive functioning skills
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Motor planning and sequencing skills
How do we do this? Through a child’s most foundational tool: play! The professionals at our pediatric clinic in Buffalo Grove, IL work to connect relationally to each child, to learn their strengths, interests and motivators to support their individual needs. The goal is to create a fun and inviting environment to foster growth and development through play.
The Impact of Occupational Therapy:
A child’s role in life is to play, learn, and interact with others. Our pediatric occupational therapists evaluate where a child is at in a variety of areas of functioning related to play, school performance, and daily activities and support age-appropriate development of areas of difficulty OTs help children perform daily activities they may find challenging by addressing sensory, social, motor, and environmental factors.
Occupational therapy’s goal is to promote children’s independence in all facets of life while having fun.
You may want to seek out an Occupational Therapy evaluation if your child struggles with:
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Self-care skills (bathing, teeth/hair brushing, nail or hair cutting)
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Sensitivity to touch, taste, sound, smells, or multi sensory input
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i.e. Difficulty with different clothing textures, wearing socks/shoes, food/texture sensitivities, bright lights, loud sounds, etc.
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Handwriting skills
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Transitions between activities and places
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Clumsiness/Bumping into things/decreased body and/or spatial awareness
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Constant need for movement, bouncing off the walls, rough housing
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Fine motor activities (coloring, puzzles, cutting, general use of hands together)
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Visual motor skills (puzzles, visual scanning tasks, reciprocal sports activities such as ping pong, basketball and soccer)
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Emotional regulation challenges
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Maintaining focus, attention, and engagement
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Low muscle tone (floppy body), W-sitting, appears weak
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Feeding concerns
Child Development – Occupational Therapy Program:
Some kids struggle to develop the abilities that will let them explore and understand their surroundings on their own. Deficits in fine or gross motor skills, sensory processing, visual-perceptual skills, and other abilities may impact a child’s participation and independence in all areas of their lives. In these cases, the occupational therapy program can bring a positive difference to the child’s development.
Keep in mind that every child is unique and develops these skill sets at their own speed. However, if you believe your child is having trouble acquiring some of the skill sets, you can speak with a member of our Occupational Therapy Team.