Home Therapy
These tips have been compiled because of a demand by parents and caregivers of children with special needs for inexpensive alternatives to daily living aids and ideas.
- Sipper cup
Cut the spout of a picnic-style catsup or mustard bottle down far enough to fit a straw into it. Tape the straw in place with medical tape. What you have is an inexpensive, squeezable cup to teach your child to drink from a straw.
- Toy holder
Buy the type of Velcro which sticks to itself. Wrap around the child’s hand. Attach pieces of Velcro to selected toys and let them play.
- Balance
Take a large cardboard box and attach a rope. Either sit or stand your child in the box and pull the box, allowing them to hang onto the edge if need be. You can even add a pot or pan lid for a steering wheel by poking the handle into the box. ~ {Naz}
- Fine motor
Eye hand coordination, sequencing letters & numbers, and developing pincer grasp.Gather 26 wooden clothes pins and one large coffee can. Use a black permanent marker to write the alphabet (upper/lower) on one side of the top of the clothes pin. Put numbers on the other side. Have your child pinch the clothes pins on the edge of the can. Kids love it!! Store clothes pins in can with a lid for next time! ~ {SueLeo2}
- Small hand-held massager
For an inexpensive (about $4) massager for your child to use, a Squiggle Writer without the pen parts works well. Available in Wal-Mart and Toys R Us ~ {Kim Weiss}
- Arm & leg weights
To make very inexpensive weights to put on arms or legs, first go get your penny jar. Take strips of adhesive tape (about 6-8 inches long) and secure the pennies to the sticky side (use heavier coins for heavier weights). Then put another strip of tape sticky side down on top of them. Make as many penny strips as you need weight. Then cut off the toe of an old sock. Make a cuff with the sock and place the penny strips inside. Keep rolling until no more sock is left, and you’re ready to use! ~ Naz
- Fine motor skill work
Get a simple soap holder, the kind with the tiny suction cups on one side (each is about the size of a pea). Color the cups with markers using four or five different colors. Buy some cheap plastic beads at the craft store, the same colors as the suction cups. With a pair of tweezers, ask your child to drop a bead in each cup of the same color. Keep the holder in a shallow cereal bowl in case they miss — the beads won’t go everywhere ~ {Stacey Shuman.}
- Rebounder (mini trampoline)
It provides pressure to joints & bottoms of knees (and reduces jumping on the furniture) ~ Anne MacLellan
Compiled By L Naz’ Healthy Dose of Awareness
