Today's activity for learning through fun is one that can be enjoyed by all ages. I've used line drawings and given colouring instructions, or simple drawings to be embellished, or started with a blank sheet of paper, a whiteboard or chalkboard. Gauge your learner - introduce concepts of colour, angles, complex shape names and more… Continue reading Draw what I say!
Tag: Child development
What did you say?!
The latest in a series of weekday tips to help develop chidren's skills for learning through play. Today's game is an old favourtite. It can be played by the whole family, regardless of age, and can help develop listening skills and sound discrimination. Posts are gathered together under the Learning at Home tab. You can… Continue reading What did you say?!
Word games
It's Wednesday, so we're working on word games in today's daily offering. Playing with alliteration (words starting with the same letter), onset and rime (the first sound and the bit that makes the rhyme) and rhythm (noticing the number of syllables, the length of the word) can help to build skills for spelling and to… Continue reading Word games
Supporting working memory at school
Working memory (WM) is one of the cognitive executive functions (EF). WM and EF difficulties in general are factors in many neuro-developmental conditions. This makes so much of what happens at work, university, school or indeed many everyday situations more challenging than it needs to be. The good news is that there are plenty… Continue reading Supporting working memory at school
Simple steps to a tripod pencil grasp
A few OT inspired ideas for parents and teachers to support handwriting
Getting ready for writing (2)
A few OT inspired ideas for parents and teachers to support placement and positioning for writing
Autism Awareness
As the social media spotlight moves on from autism even before April finishes, there is much to be done to raise awareness year-round in schools and other educational settings.
Sense of Sensory
Updated for Autism Awareness Week 2018. As with all my infographics, this one can be downloaded for printing. There's a link at the bottom of the page. It’s completely free, but please credit Sarah Gillie - Beacons Unique Download here More infographics here More posts related to awareness-raising can be found here You can share… Continue reading Sense of Sensory
Getting ready for writing
A few OT inspired ideas for parents and teachers to support children's posture for writing
Promoting fine motor skills
A few OT inspired ideas for parents and teachers to support children's fine mtor skills for writing
Building strength for deskwork
A few OT inspired ideas for parents and teachers to support children's developing skills for writing
5 phonics games
5 games and activities to develop phonics skills
Early number skills
Many very young children start to show an interest with quantity and other mathematical concepts such as shape quite early in their exploration of the world. Counting in everyday situations As parents, or adults caring for babies and toddlers, we may tend to count e.g. each spoonful eaten when feeding, or the number of trees… Continue reading Early number skills
When numbers don’t add up
There seem to be two camps for maths: those who can't stand it, and those who can't understand why it's not as easy as 1-2-3...
8 ideas to promote listening skills
Listening skills, like any others, often need to be explicitly taught.
ACAMH Dyslexia Conference
Links to the speakers at ACAMH's dyslexia conference.
TES SEN Show 2017
My report on the TES SEN Show 2017
Sensory Needs
A look at sensory perception originally created and posted to mark Autism Hour 2017.
DLD Awareness Day
It's DLD Awareness Day...
Why does he do that?
via Daily Prompt: Sympathy Sometimes, a parent will quietly ask their child's class teacher or another parent if what they see in their child is 'normal'. Other times, a teacher might ask their student's previous teacher whether a particular conduct or difficulty is typical for that chid, or they might seek the advice of a… Continue reading Why does he do that?
Skills for study 