Remote Therapy Tools

It's hard to believe how quickly things shifted for us as therapists, parents, teachers, etc. in such a short time. For kids, they may be feeling scared about how many things in their life have changed and as their grownups, it's our responsibility to offer them comfort and consistency. While I am preparing to move towards remote therapy sessions, I am trying to gather ideas and tools on how to make this as successful as possible. This is definitely going to be challenging, but I am looking forward to expanding my skills and helping parents through this time. One of the things I am doing is trying to think about what parents might have lying around their houses or what might still be easy to get. I know that stores are closed to foot traffic and browsing, but are still open for deliveries or curbside pickup. I urge parents to take advantage of these stores and the personalized care they can provide to you. For my New York City folks, check out places like Lulu's Cuts and Toys, Norman and Jules, Little Things Toy Store, Stationary and Toy World and Stoopher and Boots (follow on Instagram to see her awesome toys).


Here are more than 20 of my favorite and most commonly used therapy tools:

PopTubes-I think any therapeutic gym you go to will have a bag of these. Used for working on improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, encourages hand eye and bilateral coordination skills. One of our favorite activities to do at our gym is to set up our sorting bears and cups, have the kids stretch out the poptube and use it as a slide for the bears.







Stickers-I use stickers for SO much. Kids love them as a reward at the end of a session, but I find them to be so useful for therapeutic activities. Here are a few things I use stickers for:
-find stickers of your children's favorite characters and put them on a piece of paper and have them write their names next to them (I make boxes for my early writers)
-draw lines and put stickers at the top of them and have kids practice cutting. Make curved or zigzag lines to increase the challenge


Bag of Beads-there are so many things you can do with a bag of beads! There are a variety of sizes of beads. Typically I recommend larger beads for smaller hands and smaller beads for bigger, stronger hands. Obviously stringing beads are great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and improves hand eye and bilateral coordination. You can simply string beads or add some challenges by doing the following:
-make pattern cards and have kids follow them
-add a sensory component and hide the beads in a bucket of rice and have them dig through and find them
-when using smaller beads, like these alphabet beads from Norman and Jules, pick up all the beads you are going to use with kids chopsticks

Squeeze Popper Toys-these have been a huge favorite of mine for a while. Definitely check out your local toy stores for these as I have seen them everywhere! Kids really get a kick out it but don't realize that there are a ton of occupational therapy goals that can be worked on using them. Let them choose their favorite animal or food and then let them play. These are a perfect toy to work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, increases grasp strength and encourages hand eye and bilateral coordination skills. Make a game out of this and set up a target (think something like a dart board) and see how many points you can get by aiming at different numbers or colors worth different points.



Fiskars Scissors-there are a lot of kids scissors out there but many of them are poorly made which could lead to kids getting really frustrated and giving up easily when you present them with cutting activities. The Blunt Tip (made in both left and right hand options) have been my go-to since I started as an occupational therapist. Some people thing I am crazy, but teaching preschoolers to learn how to cut in a safe and appropriate way is a very important thing to me. As a pediatric OT how many times I have seen kids walk into my sessions with chopped up bangs and wished that more schools taught kids the appropriate ways to use scissors in order to avoid this. I have a lot of great cutting activities and resources that I will be sharing with my families as I begin remote therapy. If you want to

Discovery Putty-Fun and Function's Discovery Putty is another one of my favorite and most recommended items when parents ask for activities to do at home. Theraputty is perfect for working on increasing grasp strength, improves fine motor, manipulation and grasping skills and encourages bilateral coordination skills. There are a bunch of different themes to choose from with different resistance depending on your child's hand strength. Kids have just as much fun finding the hidden objects as they do when I challenge them to hide them for whoever is going to use it next. Putty can also be used for other things. If you remove all the hidden objects, you can roll it into a snake and practice cutting it into pieces. You can also use putty to practice making letters, numbers and shapes.



Colored Paper-don't underestimate how helpful a good supply of colored paper can be. I like to use thicker card-stock weight paper because it doesn't tear so easily and I also find it is easier for kids to cut through if we are practicing cutting. I plan on having kids set up some easy obstacle courses during our remote sessions and will be using colored paper for this.



Legos-I have spent hours and hours scouring Pinterest and so excited to find that there are a million ways to incorporate them into my soon to be remote therapy sessions. My daughter had a thing for a long time with Legos so we have a massive amount of them lying around and it's amazing what you can do with them. We all know that Legos are a motivating hand strengthening tool, especially if you pick out the right set (we have a new Trolls set that we are going to tackle during our time at home) but there are so many other things you can do with them. Here are just a few things:
-practice making letters and numbers with Legos on a baseplate
-solve a secret code: using 26 different Lego pieces and a baseplate, assign a letter to each piece
-this 31 Day Spring Lego Calendar provides you with a whole bunch of other things you can do with your Legos

JaqJaq Reusable and Washable Paper-these are my new obsession and I can't think of a better time for us all to be trying to use less paper than now. Especially when doing handwriting or drawing apps, I always have kids practice when pen and paper immediately after practicing on the iPad. For example, when using LetterSchool, I have the kids practice the letter first on the iPad and then have them do hands on writing practice using this amazing product. You can use chalk, chalk markers, JaqJaq Butter Stix, or ooly Dustless Chalk Crayons. Easy to clean with a wet paper towel and can be used over and over again.




Wikki Stix-another classic, inexpensive and really versatile therapy tool that I have been using for years. I have been using these for as long as I can remember to and the kids love them and could be used for so many things. Wikki Stix are pieces of yarn dipped into a safe, non-toxic wax that can be manipulated for open-ended creating. One of my favorite things to do with Wikki Stix, other than making a pair of eye-glasses, is to have kids practice making shapes, letters and numbers. Make sure to have a pair of scissors handy so you can cut them into the smaller pieces. It's amazing to see how motivated kids are to practice these things when they have fun, sensory materials to engage in more challenging activities.


Zoo Sticks-love, love, love these and I know that you can buy them at Stationary and Toy World and Lulus in Park Slope. Another one of my most favorite and most recommended tools for parents. These child-friendly chopsticks have different objects on the top that connect the sticks together. There are a variety of animals, car, etc. so if you find the right one, your kids will love using them. They are a great way to improve grasp strength and manipulation skills, encourages hand eye and bilateral coordination and can work on motor planning skills. Kids can eat with them or they can be used to pick up small objects in games. For example, I like to use them when playing Kerplunk or Tumbling Monkeys instead of them using their fingers to pull the sticks out. One of the kids favorite things to do is to use them to pick up these Squishy Animals.

Dry Erase Board-I have a feeling that this is going to come in really handy with my upcoming remote sessions. Whether it be to write out the session plan, practice letters or play games, I know my dry erase board is going to come in very handy and have asked parents to make sure they have one handy for their children. I'm looking forward to playing Tic-Tac-Toe, Hangman and other games with my kids using this! An added benefit of using a dry erase board is that if it is hung up on the wall, working on a vertical surface is great for working on improving upper body strength and encourages proper wrist positioning when writing.




Playdoh-I have to admit that I have never been a fan of traditional Play Doh, but the kids love it and it is an easy to find and inexpensive sensory material that can be used in a ton of different ways. Playing with playdoh is great for improving grasp strength and manipulation skills, improves hand eye and bilateral coordination and encourages creativity and imagination skills. Practice cutting by rolling the playdoh into a circle and cutting out pizza slices. Roll the playdoh into snakes and turn them into shapes, letters or numbers. Throw out challenges and have them create different things: face, snowman, cars, buildings, etc..
Since parents have a lot of time to fill during the day with their kids right now, homemade playdough is a fun thing to do with them. There are SO many recipes out there but I have tried this one and it is great.
If you are looking for something more natural, check out my post last week featuring the almost too beautiful to use Land of Dough.

Pegboard-pegboards are a pretty common toy that you will find in a therapeutic gym because they can be used in a bunch of different ways and work on a ton of goals. Great for increasing grasping and manipulation skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages hand eye and bilateral coordination. The pegboard I have linked comes with two double sided boards for different challenges such as matching and sorting. Add a gross motor challenge by having them stand on a balance board forcing them to go from standing to pick up pegs and squatting to place them in the board.




Bubbles-these are probably something that most of us have lying around and if not, go to your local drug store and get a giant bottle of them. First of all, kids just love bubbles and if you blow them for them, they can get some energy out by running around to pop them (great visual motor activity!). If you find that your kid's starting to feeling dis-regulated or anxious, taking deep breaths and blowing bubbles can help calm them down. A fun (outdoor) art activity would be to place a large piece of paper on the sidewalk or driveway, fill a bunch of paper cups up with bubble mix and add some food coloring to them and then blow different colored bubbles to make a picture.

Rainbow Indoor Tunnel-I like to make reasonable recommendations to families when it comes to gross motor toy ideas because the families I work with tend to not have a lot of space. This tunnel is great because you can do a lot with it and then fold it up and put it under a bed or next to the couch. A tunnel is a great thing to have to add to an indoor obstacle course and can be used with kids of all ages....new crawlers to big kids who need to move around and release some of their energy. Also great for increasing upper extremity strength, motor planning and coordination. Give it more of a sensory experience by putting it over beanbags, couch cushions, etc. and then having kids crawl through.

Balance Board-I tend to add a balance board to some simple activities for my kids at work like completing simple puzzles or doing sorting activities. There are a bunch of different ones to choose from, from a low price point to more expensive. At the gym I work at we have the Alex Monkey Balance Board  which is small and doesn't take up much room. The balance board is great for strengthening balance skills, improves trunk control, strength and coordination skills. While they are standing on the board you can play a game of catch for added fun. For my daughter, I have the Wobbel Board which I got from Norman and Jules and just printed out the Wobbel Cards to add to our daily routine to get her up and moving around.




Zoom Ball-this is one of my all time favorite therapy tools and one of my most highly recommended gross motor toys on my annual gift guide. Safe to play indoors or outdoors and even though it is meant for two players, there are ways to set it up for a single child to play. Kids can work on improving upper extremity strength, motor planning and motor organization and encourages self-regulation, focus and attention. Make a game out of it by counting how many times they can pass it back and forth without messing up. I like to add a little challenge by having kids answer questions while we go back and forth. For example, name the days of the week in order every time you send it back, name different animals, colors, foods, etc..


Sidewalk Chalk-we are all pretty fortunate that the weather is getting warmer and that we can spend some time safely outdoors. I am feeling very grateful for our little Brooklyn front yard and have been encouraging my own daughter to go out and draw and write messages of hope to those who are out for some social distance walks. Practice letters, play games, make hopscotch boards, draw pictures or make draw a picture on a fence or wall if you have it. This kind of drawing is great for working on building those upper body muscles

Hopscotch Board-keeping our kids moving, especially those of us in New York City who are more limited by our smaller living quarters, is going to be crucial. But space and storage is also limited so we don't want big and bulky things. I am a big fan of a hopscotch rug as it can be used in a bunch of different ways and doesn't take up any space. And if you are outside of the city and have a driveway, you can use sidewalk chalk and draw your own! Check out this article from Parents that teaches you how to play hopscotch and even provides some variations so you don't get bored!

Craft Box-crafting is going to become really popular during this time. I have always had a big collection of crafting materials for my daughter and in the office. I was inspired by Lizzie Assa from The Workspace for Children years ago and have started to encourage open-ended crafting with not only my own child, but with the kids I work with and my kids in The Meeting House Juniors group. Guys...I highly recommend following Lizzie on Instagram for some amazing ideas...like really can't recommend enough! The Arts and Crafts Supply Library from Kid Made Modern would be a great thing for you to have at home. It comes with fuzzy sticks, wooden pieces, pom poms, wooden and plastic beads, googly eyes, glue, scissors and SO much more in a sturdy case so you don't have to worry about making a mess.

Writing Journal-this could be a great time for your older children to start journaling. My 10 year old daughter received a blank journal for her birthday and when all of this started, she decided to keep a Corona Virus Journal. At the end of each day she writes about what she did and rates her day. Giving children an outlet to talk about this time, share their feelings and vent is a really important thing, especially if they don't want to talk to you about it.

 Preparing for remote therapy has been a really interesting and exhausting thing but it has also been very helpful in me feeling ready to start working with kids in this new format. I hope that this list of materials is helpful for all of you whether you are parents, teachers or therapists. I would love to hear from you guys on what materials and toys are most important to you. I am always a click away and love hearing from you all. I think one of the most important things is that we all help each other during this crazy time and look forward to reading about other peoples ideas and experiences.

What's App 2020 Quarantine Edition

During this crazy time, many of my families have reached out to me for tips on keeping their kids stimulated and their brains working. Over the years, I have found that there are some amazing apps out there that motivate our kids and I am going to share some of my favorites. Many of these have been on lists I have compiled in the past but many are new. I have also included some mindfulness and movement apps because while we are spending a lot more time inside right now, moving around and keeping active is critical to a child's ability to learn.

LetterSchool-not sure when I started using this handwriting app, but it is used multiple times per week. When I first discovered this app, it focused on learning upper and lowercase letters and numbers. In the past few years, they have added many other learning components such as shapes/pictures, cursive, sight words and more. I love how motivating and engaging this app is. Kids learn how to write letters through a 3-step process. As they finish each step, they get to watch the letter come to life in a really fun way.
Tap-tap the dots and watch the lines come to life to create the letters. The letter won't come to life unless you hit them at the right place and in the right order
Trace-now that you know where to start your letters, you will now trace/drag lines at the dots to form letters.
Write-this is a chance for your child to practice writing the letter they have practiced with fewer prompts. The chalkboard portion of this app is a great last step to learning how to write letters, numbers or shapes.

Avokiddo Thinkrolls-this is easily one of my favorite apps for the older children on my caseload and is great for working on developing executive functioning skills. At this point, there are several to choose from but I am partial to the original two and the most recent one, Space. I think it's important to say as much as I love this app, kids ask to play it all the time. The purpose of the game is to move your chosen character/Thinkroll through a variety of obstacles in brightly patterned mazes. As they move through the chapters, they are introduced to new objects with unique physical properties that they have to problem solve in order to move through the maze. For example, there may a balloon in their way; by looking at the maze, they see they can move the balloon over so it goes up in the air and pops via spikes on the ceiling. Each of the apps provides something unique, but all help the children work on problem solving, organizational skills, sequencing all while teaching them about science. Here are links to all four of the Thinkrolls games:
Thinkrolls
Thinkrolls 2
Thinkrolls Space
Thinkrolls: Kings and Queens

Endless Learning Academy-another engaging, motivating, interactive and fun educational app that provides comprehensive early learning preparation for children between ages 2 and 6 years old. Through thousands of interactive learning activities, children will learn their letters and numbers, how to read, vocabulary, phonics, spelling, counting, sequences and so much more. I have been obsessed with the Endless Alphabet game for years and it is nice to have all of the games in one place. The kids on my caseload have learned how to identify letters, learn their sounds, practice matching letters and so much more with just the Endless Alphabet Game. This app from Originator is one of those apps that requires an annual subscription but I think it is totally worth it considering you can use it for so many kids at different levels of learning.

Math Tango-another great app from Originator that helps learning math interactive and fun! This app is targeted at children between the ages of 5 and 10 years old and focuses on learning addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. Kids will progress through dozens of math lessons as they earn monsters and robots, complete missions and build fun worlds. There are over 500 math games with over 40 levels of play. Once they conquer the structured levels, they have the option of practicing their math skills through free play mode.

Sago Mini World-Sago Mini apps have been a long time favorite of mine to use with my littlest friends. This is definitely worth the subscription fee. There are 30 mini games for the kids to play that encourage open-ended play and critical thinking skills. Some of the skills that can be worked on with the mini games are color recognition, painting and storytelling skills, develop numeracy (counting, 1:1 correspondence, etc.), improve hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills, encourage fine motor and manipulation skills and so much more.



Bugs and Buttons-this is an app that I have loved for years but wasn't available for a while because of the operating system on my iPad. Little Bit Studio has recently updated the app and I am so excited to introduce this game to a whole new batch of kids. I love how engaging and interactive the 18 educational games are and how they were on a variety of developmental skills. Some of the developmental skills that can be worked on are improving fine motor and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills, number and letter recognition and SO much more. Other games from  Little Bit Studio are:
Bugs and Bubbles
Bugs and Buttons 2
Bugs and Numbers 

Toca Boca Pet Doctor-this app is still one of the most requested by my kids at the gym after years and years on my iPad. Kids get to help take care of 15 different animals who are sick or injured. Once they are all taken care of, they get to feed them their favorite foods. The bunny rabbit has booboos and needs bandaids so kids have to find the matching bandaid for each booboo. The dog has fleas so you have to catch them and put them in a jar. This game is great for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on improving focus, attention and other executive functioning skills.

Little Fox Animal Doctor-another one of my favorite educational apps. And again, more importantly, a huge favorite with the kids that I work with. This game takes place in a magical doctor's office in a treehouse in the woods and lets children help 7 different adorable animals dealing with over 20 different ailments and injuries. There are so many great things about this game but I really like how it is different each time because you never know why each of the animals is waiting to see the doctor. In addition to being great for working on improving fine motor, visual motor, visual perceptual and executive functioning skills, it also works on improving speech and language skills. Before you start to take care of each pet, you have to watch a short video which explains why they are at the doctors office. I use this an opportunity for kids to tell a story. The other great thing about this app is that there are visual instructions they have to follow so they work on improving organizational and sequencing skills at the same time.

Pepi Doctor-this app by PepiPlay is another that has been on my must have app list since I discovered it years ago.  In this app, kids get to play the doctor to three different patients (Amber, Eva and Milo).  Each one of the kids has the same 5 ailments that need to be taken care of: a cold, a toothache, earache, broken bone and clean up cuts from a fall.  Each ailment requires them to complete several tasks in order for their patients to feel better.  Some of the tasks are putting the bone back together, brushing teeth, putting bandaids on scrapes and many, many more.  This app is great for improving visual motor and perceptual skills, hand-eye coordination, focus, attention and organizational skills.  It's also a great app to work on improving language skills.


Atomic Puzzles-puzzles are a huge part of my therapy sessions as they are great for working on so many different developmental skills. Our closet at Heads Up is filled with all kinds of puzzles but there isn't enough room to store as many as we would like, especially the larger interlocking puzzles our older kids use. Atomic Puzzles from one of my favorite app creators, Little Bit Studios, not only comes with almost 100 puzzles (3D/Live puzzles that come to life once completed, 2D puzzles with animated endings and mystery puzzles) but offers you the chance to make your own puzzles from your collection of pictures which can be so motivating and exciting for kids. This is a great app for working on improving visual motor and perceptual skills, focus and attention, organizational skills and working through frustration tolerance.

Toonia Differences-I love a good spot the differences game, especially for children who need to work on improving visual skills. Toonia Differences is a fun and motivating educational game where kids have to race the clock to spot the differences between two pictures. Kids have to visually track and focus carefully to noticed the 8 things that are different. It can be a flower is a different color, a character is facing a different direction or a change in the animals in pictures. There are dozens and dozens of puzzles to choose from with a variety of themes. In addition to working on improving visual skills, Toonia Differences works on improving executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organizational skills and changing attentional skills.

Peg+ Cat Tree Problem-another great app from PBS Kids based on the adorable cartoon, Peg + Cat. This math app is intended for kids 3-6 years old and teaches them early math and problem solving skills. There are 50 levels to play and 10 worlds for them to explore. The activities become more challenging as they move through the games. If you have kids who are eager to learn early math schools, this is a great game for them. Also, I think that kids are way more motivated to learn more challenging skills from some of their favorite characters.

Trilo Spelling-when my daughter was finishing up kindergarten and preparing for first grade, I started to really panic about her reading skills.  I knew developmentally she was where she was supposed to be but living in NYC, academic expectations are higher.  I had spent a lot of time looking for the right app and each time I thought I had found it, she didn't like it.  So when we found this one, we were both thrilled!  In Trilo Spelling, there are five levels of spelling and reading fundamentals with each level introducing kids to a different letter blends.  Within each level, there are three different games/challenges they can play.  The graphics and monsters within the app are fun and friendly, motivating children to want to learn how to spell.  In addition to learning how to spell, children can work on improving executive functioning skills, hand eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills.

Dexteria Junior-this is a great app for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills with your little ones.  What I love about this app is that the creators worked with occupational therapists to make it.  Perfect for preschoolers and getting them ready for school.  There are three different games:
Squish the Squash-encourages children to use their pointer finger to squish squashes.  There are 15 levels for the kids to work through.
Pinch the Pepper-encourages children to use their thumb and pointer fingers to pinch the peppers.  Great for developing a fine pincer grasp which is important for the developing proper pencil grips later on.  There are 10 levels that become increasingly more challenging.
Trace and Erase-kids can learn how to draw various lines and shapes.  They first trace the lines and then use an eraser after.  Once they finish erasing the lines, they can take a silly selfie of themselves which my kids love.  I have my kids use a stylus with this particular game to encourage proper grasp patterns when holding a writing instrument.
In addition to what I have already mentioned, this game is great for working on hand-eye coordination, visual tracking, focus, attention and planning and organizational skills.



Social Emotional/Mindfulness/Movement Apps
I think that we are all looking for tools to help our children get through this crazy time. Making sure our kids get opportunities for movement, mindfulness and social emotional learning on a daily basis will be very important, not only for them but for all the grownupsThere has never been a more critical time to spend time focusing on social emotional learning. Here are some great apps, some recommended to me by colleague, Dr. Chelsea Deng, from Milestones Psychology.

Super Stretch Yoga-I've used this one over the years and the kids really enjoy it and are able to follow along with it pretty independently. Move, play and breathe as Super Stretch introduces you to his friends and their yoga poses. Using storytelling, animation and video examples, kids move through 12 yoga poses and earn a star after each one. Yoga is a great way to help kids work on build overall body strength and motor planning, encourages healthy habits and is a quick and easy way to help them to be able to focus and attend to other tasks.



GoNoodle Kids-this app is intended for classroom use and offers a tremendous resource of brain and body breaks during the school day. Now that your children will be working/learning from home and the amount of time we should spend outside is drastically limited, it's important for not only them, but you as their grownups, to have these scheduled breaks. I highly encourage parents to engage in some of these movement activities as they are working from home.

Daniel Tiger's Grr-iffic Feelings-Daniel the Tiger is a big hit with many of my younger children and I have been a fan of the PBS Kids apps I have used in the past. Right now, kids are surely feeling a lot of feelings and emotions but may not be able to express that effectively and this app is perfect to help them. There are four games:
Trolley Game-drive the trolley to discovered more than a dozen mini-games about feelings
Sing-Along-choose from 18 of your favorite Daniel Tiger songs, each one fully animated
Drawing Easel-use paints, crayons, stickers and more to express yourself
Feelings Photo Booth-take pictures of yourself that show lots of different feelings. Daniel will help you pose!
Kids can work on developing fine motor, graphomotor, visual motor, visual perceptual and hand-eye coordination skills while learning all about feelings and emotions.

Breath, Think, Do With Sesame-this fabulous app from Sesame Street's in Communities program is a great way to teach kids strategies on how to calm down, identify their feelings and work through their problem. Big feelings are totally normal but they can also makes kids feel scared. Kids will laugh and learn as they help a Sesame Street monster friend calm down through a variety of relatable situations: putting on shoes, saying goodbye to parents/caregivers, fixing a knocked down block tower, waiting in line or going to sleep. They play an active role in helping them choose what strategy would be best for the monster and then get to see the plan in action through a little video. 

Headspace for Kids-this subscription based app may be a really good investment, especially if your child is feeling overly anxious or worried right now. For professionals, the app is now free through the end of the year for anyone all public health providers! Headspace for Kids focuses on the following areas: Calm, Focus, Kindness, Sleep and Wake Up. For each area, there are three age groups to choose from (5 and under, 6-8 years and 9-12 years). Kids can practice breathing exercises, visualizations even try some focus-based mediation. Quirky cartoons engage kids while the calming voice of the co-founder of the app offers guidance throughout. 



Stop, Breathe, Think-here is another great app for younger children that works on self-regulation and teaches them about feelings and 
emotions and appropriate mediation strategies to help them work through different situations. Kids pick a mission to find a guided mindfulness activity based on how they are feeling right now (they can choose up to three emojis to express how they are feeling). Missions are between two and seven minutes and made up of expressive narration, sometimes with quiet background music and simple animations. Missions  demonstrated by different characters will lead you through mindful movements. 


Balloonamils-I've been using this app for a while with my younger kids, particularly when they have a whole lot of energy or when they might be feeling anxious. Kids blow into the microphone of the iPhone and watch a variety of balloon animals come to life. One the balloon is fully inflated (about 3 deep breathes), they shake the phone a couple of times and they watch the animal come to life. Once done, they can interact with the animal and see what kinds of tricks they can do. When they are done with that animal, they tap it a few times and he will pop. Not only great for helping kids to calm down but helps with hand-eye coordination, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages grasping and manipulation skills. 

iPad Use Tips
I know and understand that there are many parents who have been resistant in using iPads/screens for learning but if used the right way, it is an incredibly effective and motivating tool. Below, I share some tips when using an iPad. 

JaqJaq Reusable and Erasable Paper-especially when doing handwriting or drawing apps, I always have kids practice with pen and paper immediately after practicing on the iPad. For example, when using LetterSchool, I have the kids practice the letter first and then have them write it again using "pen" and paper. In an effort to limit wasting of paper, I have recently begun using this amazing product. I like to use the ooly Dustless Chalk Crayons because they clean up quickly and easily and I have found that even my kids who have very weak hands have great success with these. 

Cosmonaut Stylus-for a variety of reasons, kids spend more time on tablets these days.  As with all things, as long as you don't overdo it, working on the iPad can provide a lot of benefits.  One of the things I recommend to all parents is that if they are going to let their kids use an iPad or other kind of tablet, be sure to have them use a stylus as much as possible to help develop fine motor and grasping skills.  I think this is especially important if your child is doing any kind of handwriting or drawing apps.  There are a lot of different stylus' to choose from but the Cosmonaut is my favorite.  It is a little pricier than some of the other ones made for children but it is far more durable.  I have had mine for several years and it still looks brand new.  The barrel of the stylus is thicker which encourages a tripod-like grasp when holding it.

Work Vertically-when possible, I have my kids use the iPad by propping it up so it is vertical (lean it against an easel). Working on a vertical surfaces is important for the following reasons:
-when you prop up the iPad on a vertical surface, it is in a better position and height which promotes visual attention
-improves hand-eye coordination
-encourages proper wrist positioning which helps with appropriate grasping on writing instruments
-strengthens shoulder, arm and and hand muscles

I have tried to include a variety of learning apps that will motivate your little ones and also tried really hard to choose ones that parents would have fun doing with their kids. This list is just a small sampling of the apps that I use so if parents are looking for certain apps, please do not hesitate reaching out to me. Also, I am always looking for new apps to use with the kids on my caseload so if you have any recommendations, please be sure to pass them along. I am always a click away and love hearing from all of you. 

Land Of Dough

Seems like right now is a good time to start this blogging thing again and I couldn't be more excited about partnering up with my dear friends Courtney and Avi, the owners of the magical Park Slope toy store, Norman and Jules. Each week I will be sharing a new product of theirs and talking to you all about the developmental benefits of it and different ways you can play with it.

As most of us, I'm trying to find the good in what we are all going through right now. While it may be difficult at times, I do want to be able to focus on the good as much as possible. So far for me, the good thing about all that is going on is that I have had to reacquaint myself with some of my daughter's toys so we can fill up her school days with more opportunities to play. She has always been a fan of play dough and even at 10 years old, she can spend a lot of time playing with it. Her new favorite play dough is from our favorite Park Slope toy store, Norman and Jules. Land of Dough makes the most beautiful collection of that I have ever seen and the best part is that it is eco-friendly! Using plant-based colors, compostable glitters and adding scents using essential oils to help add a calming effect while they play, they create the most visually pleasing dough. From Unicorn Sparkle Glitter  to their limited edition Easter collection, Eggcelent Dough and Chickety Chick Dough, each one is a work of art. So much so, I usually order two of each one so we can play with one and keep the other!  Another great feature of Land of Dough dough is that even once it starts to dry out a bit after a couple hours of play, you can easily rehydrate your dough by wrapping it in a damp paper towel in the container overnight.





The developmental benefits of playing with Land of Dough is significant. First of all, this is an open-ended activity which is crucial for the development of social and emotional intelligence, encourages problem solving skills, creativity and imagination and independence. It also works on the following developmental skills:
*improves fine motor and manipulation skills while increasing strength in your little ones hands
*improves pre-writing skills
*develops hand-eye coordination skills
*playing with dough can have a calming effect on children when they might be feeling scared or anxious
*improves social skills when you are sharing materials and taking ideas from others you are playing with



Here are a couple quick and easy activities you can do with your Land of Dough:
-practice making shapes, letters and numbers by rolling your dough into long snakes with both hands. You can make flash cards for younger kids and can put the snake along the lines and for older kids have them do it freehand
-work on improving cutting skills by cutting those long snakes into little pieces
-gather some loose materials (dry pasta, googly eyes, pipe cleaners) and have your kids create faces or animals
-find small, thin pegs or use birthday candles to poke into the dough and then have them pull them out using just their thumbs and pointer finger to help develop grasping skills

Be sure to check back weekly for my collaboration with Norman and Jules. While their physical doors may be closed, they are working as hard as ever to make sure our kids are entertained during these crazy times. You can order toys to be delivered or for safe pick-up during their designated hours. You can still reach out to them for their expert opinions on what toys would be best to keep your kids stimulated and learning at the same time.

2019 Holiday Gift Guide-Building Toys and Manipulatives

In today's gift guide, I share some of my favorite building and manipulative toys for children of all ages. Some are intended for a particular age group, while others can grow with your children from toddlers to tweens. I tried to share as many open-ended building toys as I could because I think the importance of this type of play is critical to child development. Open-ended play allows for children to be in control of their materials which encourages creativity, imagination and executive functioning skills. It also has been proven to help children with their cognitive development. In a time when children are being told what to do and how to do it more often than not, I think it is important for us to provide them the opportunities at home/during play to feel more in control.



Lalaboom Popbeads-we all know about the traditional plastic snap lock beads from Fisher-Price that have been around for as long as I can remember. They have been a staple in my OT tool box since I began working, especially with my younger kids. During one of my Fat Brain Toys website searches, I stumbled upon the Lalaboom Popbeads and was an immediate fan. I quickly became obsessed by how they took an already awesome toy and made them even more awesome. This set of 48 snap and twist-together beads work on developing fine motor, grasping and bilateral coordination skills, improve visual motor and perceptual skills while introducing kids to a variety of sensory experiences. The beads are interchangeable by twisting them apart, finding two sides you like and putting them back together.

Elemenosqueeze Blocks-these are a great first set of blocks for your baby as young as 6 month old. There are 26 animal themed blocks, 1 animal for each letter of the alphabet. Since they are BPA free, you don't have to be worried if a teething baby/toddler chews on them.  They are all different shapes and have different textures on each of them. I love that these can grow with your child by using them for different reasons throughout their development. As a baby, they can learn how to grasp and manipulate blocks. As they get older, they learn how to stack and build and as a preschooler, they can be used to teach your kids the letters of the alphabet. Kids of all ages can work on developing grasping, fine motor and manipulation skills, improve bilateral and hand-eye coordination and improve visual motor and perceptual skills while encouraging creativity.





Popoids-I've had these on the shelves at my gym for years and they are a constant favorite with the kids (and me). This set from Romper Room comes with 60 colored mini poptubes and different kinds of connectors and encourages creativity and imagination. This open-ended building set comes with suggestions on things you can make but they really are an invitation to create whatever comes to mind. Popoids are great for working on developing fine motor and grasping skills, increased grasp strength and manipulation skills, encourages bilateral coordination and works on developing hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills all while encouraging creativity and imagination.




Squigz 2.0-I have been obsessed with all things Squigz since they first came out years ago and didn't think they could get any better until I saw Squigz 2.0. Essentially the same concept as the originals but these have the ability to stick to each other in more ways because of the new design. This 36-piece set comes with a variety of new shapes and are great for teaching young children about colors. Additionally, they work on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and improves bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination skills while also encouraging creativity and imagination skills. These can be used on a variety of surfaces including the bathtub, walls, windows, mirrors and so much more. Easy to throw in a bag to keep kids entertained while at a restaurant, in the car or waiting for appointments.

Bristle Blocks Stackadoos-another great open-ended building set from B. Toys, this set is recommended for kids 2 years and older but can definitely be used with younger children who are being supervised by an adult. These chunky, soft pieces are easy to connect and offer a multi-sensory experience for little hands. This set comes with 68 assorted colored and shaped bristle blocks and a booklet with building ideas that can be stored in the sturdy jar that they come in. Great for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, increasing grasp strength, improves bilateral, hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and encourages creativity and imagination.





MagnaTiles-another staple to my holiday gift guide. MagnaTiles are pricey but worth the investment and will last you for a lifetime. My daughter is almost 10 years old and we still have her original set of MagnaTiles and are still in perfect condition. She may not use them as much but they are pulled out from time to time. MagnaTiles are also a huge hit with my kids in my social skills group and are a great tool to encourage creativity and imagination skills while also working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills and improves bilateral coordination and hand-eye coordination. I like to have my kids at work use different characters and work together to build something for them to then play with the dolls. For example, I have seen kids use them to build a castle for the Disney Princess Magic Clip Dolls. It's so fun to watch them not only create together, but then come up with a story for the princesses. One thing I was excited to learn was that in 2020 they will be releasing a series of new products that will have images on them that will encourage them to build different structures.

Way To Play City Speedway Set-totally love this collaboration by Way To Play and Candylab. If you have a transportation lover in your life, this is the perfect gift. I have used the Way To Play road pieces with the kids in my social skills group and they loved them. It was so fun to see how they would work together to put their road together, adding twist and turns and then take cars for a ride. This particular set comes with 12 Road Pieces that can be connected to make a closed loop and 2 Candylab Race Cars. This open-ended set is great for working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves bilateral and hand-eye coordination and works on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organization. And as previously mentioned, this is a great building set to work on encouraging social skills such as teamwork, flexibility and working with other people's ideas.



Build It Blueprint Puzzles-in these clever puzzles, children get to build a structure by following the blueprint. On one side of the puzzle there is a blueprint image and on the other is the exterior of what they are building (doghouse, birdhouse, a cabin or barn). The chunky pieces are great for little hands. I like that kids work on developing bilateral and hand-eye coordination skills while also working on improving visual motor and visual perceptual skills. While putting the pieces together, they are also working on increasing grasp strength and manipulation skills. Another great feature is that once they are done, the can take it apart and store the pieces in the board.






People Blocks-I have been a longtime fan of magnetic blocks, especially for younger children who have developmental delays. This cute set from People Blocks is intended for children starting at the age of 18 months. The way in which children will interact with these blocks will expand over the years. This open-ended building toy works on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills and encourages problem solving, creativity and imagination.





Design and Drill My First Workbench-I am obsessed with this workbench from Educational Insights! It makes a great gift for kids as young as 3 years old and I can say through experience that kids as old as 6 and 7 still enjoy playing with some of my other Design and Drill sets. This workbench (which comes in two different color choices) includes an electric bolt driver, a hammer, 60 bolts and 60 nails in a variety of colors and a guide that includes 10 different patterns all which can be stored in the built-in drawer under the work area. This is great for working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, increases grasp strength, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills and encourages focus, attention, planning and organizational and task completion.

Design and Drill Space Circuits-this STEM set from Educational Insights is the perfect set to introduce children as young as 5 to basic engineering. Kids can use the battery operated drill (which they absolutely love doing) to complete 20 space-themed, circuit building challenges that lights, spinning simple motors and more. I have had other of the Design and Drill sets and my kids just can't get enough of using the drill to screw in the bolts. I love how this works on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, problem solving, organization and task completion while also working on improving grasping, fine motor and manipulation skills and encourages bilateral and hand-eye coordination skills.




Straws and Connectors Building Sets-this simple open-ended building toys have been a staple in my social skills for years and I am always amazed at what the kids will build, especially when they are working together. This set comes with 750 straws, connectors and wheels in 4 different colors, an idea book and a sturdy storage container to keep everything contained. The straws are completely flexible so they can make curves for whatever your children decide to build. Straws and Connectors is great for encouraging creativity and imagination skills while also working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improves hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on developing executive functioning skills such as motor planning, organization and task completion.


Bamboo Builder Marble Run-this is another one of those items I would consider an investment piece that your children will use for years and years. There are a variety of sets to choose from and all can be used with each other. Kids can follow along with the book or make their own design. The kits come with a variety of hand-crafted carbonized tracks, bamboo cylinders, and wooden spirals that connect to each other. Some sets even come with special pieces that make music as the marble goes flying down the tracks. Kids can work on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, improve hand-eye and bilateral coordination skills and work on visual motor and visual perceptual skills when playing with the marble run. This is also a great activity for kids to work on together and collaborate on what to build, take turns adding pieces and be able to be flexible and take ideas from others.




Young Architect House Designer Set-this is a great activity set for kids 8 and older and introduces kids to the world of architecture. Kids get to build their own 3-D house using acrylic walls, corner blocks, tracing paper and a handful of other tools. Kids can make their own floor plan, including figuring out where furniture should go. Great for working on improving graphomotor skills, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, organization, problem solving and task completion.








Jixelz-these small and colorful-jigsaw shaped building pieces are definitely intended for older children who don't have significant fine-motor delays. There are a variety of sets to choose from including, but not limited to, animals, robots and mythical creatures. Kids can use the templates to create something or use their imagination and create something of their own. They can work on improving fine motor, grasping and in-hand manipulation skills, increases grasp strength, improves hand-eye coordination, visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning, organization and task completion.






Plus Plus Blocks-another open-ended building set that encourages creativity and imagination skills in children of all ages. These manipulative toys are awesome for working on developing fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills while encouraging creativity and imagination and working on executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning and organizational skills. There are several sets to choose from, including different size Plus Plus Blocks for younger and older children. In my Small Gifts/Stocking Stuffer Gift Guide, I recommended the tubes for on-the-go fun but here I recommend the larger sets that come with a baseplates for some more advanced building opportunities.





Engino Discovery Stem Kits-looking for something for some of the older kids on your list? This STEM set is a great option as it can be used to build 50 unique motorized machines, from race cars and motorcycles to bouncing mechanical creatures. Kids snap pieces together and turn things into moving objects. Great for working on improving fine motor, grasping and manipulation skills, encourages hand-eye and bilateral coordination, improves visual motor and visual perceptual skills and works on developing executive functioning skills such as focus, attention, planning, organization. While the set comes with directions for 4 models, you can go online to find the directions for 46 others.





There are so many great building toys out there that help children develop a crazy number of developmental skills. It was hard to weed out my favorites, especially since there are so many new things hitting the shelves each year. One of the things I did try and do were find things that could last a bit longer and could grow with your child. If you are looking for something a bit more specific for your child, don't hesitate reaching out to me. I am only a click away and love hearing from you all. Also, if you have building sets and manipulative toys that you think are fabulous, please send along! Not only am I always interested to hear what is out there, I know my readers are as well.