Occupational therapy (OT) can sometimes feel like a world of its own with specialised terms and concepts.

To help you better understand and support your child’s development, our team have created a parent-friendly guide to some common OT terms and areas we can support your family.

Emotional regulation

• Big emotions: Helping your child manage and cope with challenging emotions. OTs with big emotions by uncovering triggers and building strategies around emotional vocabulary, teaching calming techniques, and improved sensory processing skills.

Attention and focus, impulse control

• Completing tasks: Encouraging your child to stay on task and finish activities by building strategies around task management.
• Following instructions: Supporting your child in listening to and following directions.
• Adapting to structures: Helping your child adjust to routines and structured environments.
• Planning and organisation: Assisting your child in organising their thoughts and activities.
• Remembering tasks: Helping your child remember and complete their responsibilities.

Social skills

• Peer interactions and building connections: Encouraging your child to make friends and build relationships.
• Participating in healthy competitions: Supporting your child in engaging in friendly and fair competitions.
• Responding when their name is called: Helping your child respond appropriately when addressed.
• Expressing and advocating for themselves: Developing strategies and encouraging your child to communicate their needs and feelings.
• Maintaining personal space: Educating your child around personal boundaries.

Gross motor skills

• Safely moving around their environment: Helping your child navigate their surroundings safely.
• Exploring playground equipment: Encouraging your child to use playground equipment confidently.
• Engaging in sports and play: Supporting your child in participating in physical activities and sports to the best of their ability.

Fine motor skills and handwriting

• Letter fluency and legibility: Helping your child write clearly and fluently.
• Manipulating small items: Assisting your child to develop skills with tasks like using zippers, buttons, bottle caps, and shoelaces.

Self-care tasks

• Feeding: Supporting your child in eating independently.
• Toileting: Helping your child with bathroom routines and understanding body cues.
• Dressing: Assisting your child in putting on and taking off clothes.
• Toothbrushing: Encouraging your child to brush their teeth properly.
• Grooming: Helping your child with personal hygiene tasks.

Sensory preferences/needs

• Exploring variety of food: Encouraging your child to try different foods.
• Aversions to certain textures/fabrics: Understanding and accommodating your child’s sensitivities to textures.
• Sensitive to sound and light: Helping your child manage sensitivities to sensory inputs.
• Interoception: Assisting your child in recognising and understanding internal body signals like hunger, thirst, and the need to use the toilet.

Routines

• Transitions: Supporting your child through changes like school drop-offs, leaving the house, and starting or completing activities.

If you have any questions or need further clarification, feel free to reach out to us!

We have appointments available to support your family with your everyday needs.