35 YEARS

35 YEARS

I celebrated my 35 years as an Occupational Therapist with a huge Open House at Dynamic Kids’ new space.  We showcased our beautiful, expanded, new office with 3 sensory gyms, treatment rooms, evaluation rooms, staff rooms and more.  We included everyone;  clients (past and current), families, educators, therapists, colleagues, neighbors and the general community. 

I want to thank everyone who attended, those who have supported us along the way and especially my wonderful staff!  We put our heart and soul into making Dynamic Kids the best pediatric practice and our love and commitment to what we do shows in the joy in our space and the outcomes in our children.

Please join us as we continue to provide advanced level therapy; Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Speech and Language Therapy.  In addition, attend any of our other programs; Family Therapy/Coaching, Lecture series, Enrichment Classes (art, handwriting, music, bike-riding, language, self-regulation, yoga). 

I feel so blessed to be able to wake up everyday and do something that I love to do and make a difference in the world! 

Robbie

Seven Senses-Using All Of Them In The Winter

SEVEN SENSES-USING ALL OF THEM IN THE WINTER

WE HAVE 7 SENSES AND NEED TO USE ALL OF THEM FREQUENTLY

Here are some suggestions for both indoor and outdoor activities. We want to keep your bodies filled with the right amount of sensory input no matter what the temperature or weather!

OUTDOORS

1-Whether it is snowing or not go outside.  Bundle up and take a walk, play in the backyard or go to a public or school playground. Use your imaginations!!! Look at winter scenery including frozen waterways and listen to winter sounds including animals, nature and music.  Smell winter scents.

2-Go to the zoo.  It is a quiet time and easy to maneuver.  If you are cold, drink hot chocolate/coffee/tea/cider or duck into one of the indoor spaces.  Your olfactory sense (smell) has many opportunities.  If you want to stay completely indoors then try an aquarium. 

3-Enjoy winter sports and games.  Ice skate, ski, sled, tube, make snow angels, forts, have snowball tosses. Winter activities allow you use your muscles and stimulate so many senses.  If the snow is heavy or thick, you are giving your proprioceptive system extra input.

INDOORS

4-Ceramics-It is great for heavy work of the upper body and works the entire arm from upper to lower.  Once it dries, you can paint your creation and work on fine motor precision (helps handwriting) while stimulating your visual and olfactory systems.  

5-Swimming-A possible addition or alternative to outdoor activities.  The water envelopes your body providing deep pressure as well as working most muscle groups. 

6-Be creative indoors-Use your furniture, blankets, sheets, pillows etc. to build castles, forts, obstacle courses, etc.  Have fun! Cook winter foods.  Enjoy the tastes and scents of the season.  Use your muscles for stirring heavy dough and add proprioceptive input to your body. 

7-Get involved=Advocate for outdoor recess at school.  There is no reason that students can’t go outside if it is cold. Make sure students are dressed warmly and cover their heads and hands.  If the students really cannot go outside, make sure recess is more than just watching a video or movie. 

Enjoy the winter and stimulate all 7 senses!

7 Sensory Activities for The Winter Months

Here’s to a Sensory-Rich 2015

A new year is upon us and with it comes endless possibilities for growth, renewal and new experiences.  Outdoor exercise is often difficult in the Northeast but here are some suggestions to keep your bodies filled with the right amount of sensory input.  We have 7 senses so remember to stimulate all of them.  Here are 7 suggestions.

1-Go outdoors whether it is snowing or not.  Bundle up and take a walk, play in the backyard or go to a public or school playground.  Look at winter scenery and listen to winter sounds.

2-Go to the zoo.  It is a quiet time and easy to maneuver.  If you are cold, drink hot chocolate/coffee/tea/cider or duck into one of the indoor spaces.  Your olfactory sense (smell) has many opportunities.  If you want to stay completely indoors then try an aquarium. 

3-Enjoy winter sports and games.  Ice skate, ski, sled, tube, make snow angels, forts, have snowball tosses. Winter activities allow you use your muscles and stimulate so many senses.  If the snow is heavy or thick, you are giving your proprioceptive system extra input.

4-Ceramics-It is great for heavy work of the upper body and works the entire arm from upper to lower.  Once it dries, you can paint your creation and work on fine motor precision (helps handwriting) while stimulating your visual and olfactory systems.   

5-Swimming-A possible addition or alternative to outdoor activities.  The water envelopes your body providing deep pressure as well as working most muscle groups. 

6-Be creative indoors-Use your furniture, blankets, sheets, pillows etc. to build castles, forts, obstacle courses, etc.  Have fun!

7-Get involved=Advocate for outdoor recess at school.  There is no reason that students can’t go outside if it is cold. Make sure students are dressed warmly and cover their heads and hands.  If the students really cannot go outside, make sure recess is more than just watching a video or movie. 

Enjoy the winter and stimulate all 7 senses!

UNPLUG AUGUST Sensory activities for the hot days ahead!

UNPLUG AUGUST

Sensory activities for the hot days ahead!

We are half way through the summer and the weather has been gorgeous here on the East Coast which allows you and your children to be outdoors most days and nights.  Make sure you stay outside, experience nature, and enjoy as many whole- body sensory and motor activities as possible together.

Here are some suggestions for making the most out of the remainder of the summer with your children.

1.       Play in the sand!

If you have access to a beach that’s great, but you can also take advantage of a sandbox or even a sand-pit.  Bury your legs or arms.  Make castles and forts with motes filled with water.  Carrying the buckets of sand to provide “heavy work” along with the tactile play.  Use your HANDS as much as possible for the tactile experience of the sand.  Add tools for a change of pace and hoe, push, shove the sand. If your child cannot tolerate the sand, add water to change the texture.

 

2.      Have fun with water balloons!

Fill balloons with water and throw them at targets (if you have older kids) or into containers. Use funnels and measuring cups to work on bilateral skills when filling up. Watch the water balloons explode.  Make this into a math activity by adding up points or multiplying your “hits”.  As you add more water to the balloons, you increase the “heavy work” your children participate in. 

       3.   Pick wildflowers!

              Pull off petals ( for fine motor precision) and turn them into potpourri. 

Paint flowers with fingerpaint and make abstract pictures.  Varying scents provides olfactory information to the nose.  Talk about the differences in smells.

       4.   Play hopscotch and boxball!

              Draw your own boards with different colored chalk.  Vary the way you play

              to challenge your motor skills.  Hop more, jump sideways, jump backwards,

              spin jump or clap while you jump.  Sing songs while moving if possible. 

So remember to get outside every day and get your senses activated in big and small ways while inviting friends and family to join in the fun!

 

 

 

 

 

Sensory Earth Day 2014

Sensory Earth Day 2014

Earth Day 2014 is upon us and it is a beautiful, sunny and warm day in New York.  This comes after a long, cold, snowy winter when many children spent too many hours indoors and attached to technology.  As Therapists and Child Development Specialists we know the importance of the natural environment in the lives of children and their development. 

Richard Louv wrote an influential book in 2005 named, “Last Child in the Woods”.  He discusses the importance of the natural environment and coined the phrase, Nature Deficit Disorder.  He links our lack of exposure to the natural world to an increase in obesity, attention disorders and depression in children. 

While Louv discusses the importance of nature for our physical

and emotional health, I would like to suggest that we participate in the natural environment from a sensory perspective as well.  The outdoors provides sensory experiences in six of our seven senses. If you are eating outside, then all 7 senses are included.  Think of all the different experiences your children can have in the natural environment that they cannot have indoors. All of our sensory exposure is different outside and provides varied and learning experiences for your child.  Try to think of all 7 sensory systems when choosing activities. 

They are: light (visual), sound (auditory), smells (olfactory), touch (tactile), taste (olfactory), movement (vestibular) and joint sense (proprioception).

Here are some ways to uniquely celebrate Earth Day:

1-Go to a new playground!  This provides your child with new sensory experiences especially movement and proprioceptive. 

2-Fly a kite!  See how long your arms can keep it in the air.  Watch the changing colors.  Run in different patterns; stopping and starting.  Watch it dip and rise.  This provides extra sensory input.

3-Go to a petting zoo! This provides extra touch and smell experiences.

4-Plant a garden! Get messy with your hands and dig with your fingers.  This provides extra input that helps develop your child hands for handwriting and other fine motor activities. 

5-Have a marching band!  Play real or pretend instruments while matching and singing in your backyard, in a park or on your street.  This provides movement, proprioceptive and sound input while also exercising your body and fingers.  You can sing too! 

6-Most importantly, have fun!

These are just a couple of ideas but don’t limit yourself.  Use your imagination and be creative.  What is most important is that you get outdoors and use all your senses to explore, experience and enhance healthy development.  

For more information, contact me at rlevy@dynamickidsny.com