Thanksgiving EET Project

Many of our clients have a difficult time expressing themselves.  Even talking about/describing common vocabulary or objects can be very challenging.  For older kids, expanding on and producing complex thoughts about topics can continue to be challenging.  When we discovered and started using the Expanding Expression Tool (EET), we began seeing huge improvements in the kids’ oral and written expression and ability to organize their thoughts!  The EET is a hands-on (e.g., multi-sensory) approach that uses colors and symbols to increase expression.  There are different areas/colors that are targeted to expand a child’s ability to describe objects and even more abstract ideas (e.g., Thanksgiving).  The kit includes a strand of beads with corresponding colors that the kids can hold while they are talking about their topics.  The toolkit is designed to be used with children ages preschool through high school and can be adapted to level of ability.  The goal includes improving a child’s ability to define and describe, organize information, and learn and expand use of vocabulary.  The idea behind the EET is that when children use a multi-sensory approach, there is a better chance that the information will be moved into long-term memory and used in activities outside of the clinic.  Not only are kids able to build on their vocabulary and describing skills, but the program can also be used to improve note taking.  Those notes can then be used to target forming complex sentences and can also be used for oral presentations on the topics.  We have found that the EET has improved our clients’ confidence and ability to expand their expression both in and out of the therapy environment in a positive way!

We have included a Thanksgiving example to show the different areas/colors that are targeted.  The capitalized words are the words/groups taken from the EET (e.g., they correspond to the feathers on the turkey in the picture) (please note spelling was not corrected): GREEN GROUP, what group does Thanksgiving belong to = “Thanksgiving is a holiday that we celebrate each year!”; BLUE DO, what do we do on Thanksgiving = “People give thanks, people eat lots of food, and som people wach football.”; WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE, purple = “Thanksgiving at my hous looks like a party and a celabretson.  Some kictons [kitchesn] are dury or messee.”; WHAT IS IT MADE OF, yellow = “Happens [happiness], love, tradition, food, givin thanks, fun, games, football, famiy, friends.”; PINK PARTS, parts of Thanksgiving = “Tukey, pupkin pie, mash photos [potatoes], famly, tradition, cranberry sause, celabret, grave [gravy], rolles.”; WHITE WHERE, where do you see/go for Thanksgiving = “I celabret Thanksgiving at my grandperints house in November.”; WHAT ELSE DO I KNOW, orange = “People celubret in many difrent ways.”

If you would like more information on this strategy/product, visit www.expandingexpression.com or ask one of us, we would love to tell you more!

Source: www.expandingexpression.com

Introducing Mrs. Annelise Boge!

On Sunday, October 7th, 2012 Annelise Nelson married Brett Boge.  The weather was perfect, and the setting was amazing at the Tannebaum Alpine Event Center!  The Sierra Therapy Group clinicians and their families helped Annelise and Brett celebrate this special day.  In case you are wondering, Annelise’s new last name is pronounced ‘bogey’ (just like when golfing!).  We hope she is enjoying a wonderfully relaxing honeymoon and that she will hold on to the many memories from her wedding day…  Congratulations Annelise!

2012 Buddy Walk

The 2012 Down Syndrome Buddy Walk took place last Saturday.  It was a perfect Northern Nevada September day for the event which was held at Reno High School.  The entire Sierra Therapy Group team helped support this great cause.  STG was a sponsor of the event, and we had a table that offered families a chance to ask questions and find out about the services we provide.  Lisa, Rose, Molly, Melissa, and Rhonda used their creative talents to face paint, which was a huge hit with the kids!  The kids also really enjoyed the new STG mini-frisbees, and they could be seen flying all around the football field!  Check out the Sierra Therapy Group facebook page for additional pictures from the event.

Through the eyes of an OT grad student

Kiersten Johnson completed a clinical rotation here at Sierra Therapy Group and blogged about her experience.  Kiersten is an OT graduate student at Pacific University in Forest Grove, OR who grew up in Carson City.  Here is her experience through her eyes:

“Hello, I would like to share my wonderful experiences as an occupational therapy student at Sierra Therapy Group.  As part of my graduate education I completed a 10-week clinical rotation working with Rhonda Serr as my clinical supervisor.  Over the 10 weeks I had an opportunity to not only work with amazing clients and their families, but to also work with a successful interdisciplinary team of fabulous speech and occupational therapists, working together to create an environment of success for their clients.

As a student you come into a setting with an open mind ready to learn and absorb as much new information as possible.  We are provided with general knowledge and background to work within a pediatric setting, but real learning happens with real clients and supervisors to support you along the way.

Sierra Therapy Group, particularly Rhonda, provided me not only with an incredible setting to learn, but she also guided me in developing skills I needed to become a successful future occupational therapist.

During my rotation I had an opportunity to work with children with varying diagnoses such as Down Syndrome, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, traumatic brain injury, developmental delay, and sensory processing disorders.  In learning about each of these conditions, I discovered that regardless of a child’s diagnosis, they are still just children.  Children with families who want them to play, learn, and explore their environments.  As occupational therapists, we have the capacity to encourage and enhance a child’s abilities to simply be children and eventually develop the skills necessary for the maximal level of independence in their lives.

I am forever grateful and blessed to have had the opportunity to learn from each and every member of the Sierra Therapy Group team, as well as to have met and worked with the clients and families during my rotation.  After completing my first clinical rotation, I left with a new found passion for working within a pediatric setting, and I look forward to my future as an occupational therapist when I graduate in 2013.”

Thank you Rhonda for going above and beyond to pass your knowledge and passion about occupational therapy to graduate students.  Check back for a future blog from Bryn who is here now completing one of her 10-week rotations!

 

Superflex Summer Camp 2012!

Congratulations to all of the super flexible thinkers who completed Sierra Therapy Group’s first ever “Social Thinking” Summer Camp which was based on Michelle Garcia Winner’s “Think Social! A Social Thinking Curriculum” (2008).  The campers learned how to use ‘Whole Body Listening’ and super flexible strategies to defeat their own teams of ‘Unthinkables!’  The campers also enjoyed jello brains, body tracings, and obstacle courses while the clinicians observed measurable gains in their social skills.  Sierra Therapy Group looks forward to future camps based on this highly motivating and successful curriculum!

5th Annual Free Screening was a HUGE Success!

The 5th Annual BHSM Free Screening was a HUGE success! 23 children attended the screening. Most of the families didn’t know about valuable community resources, so we were able to spread our knowledge about development and where to get help…. Special thanks to all of the clinicians and Dr. Swank from Silver State Hearing & Balance!!!

BHSM Free Screening Update

Our 5th Annual FREE screening for Better Hearing & Speech Month is taking place this Saturday (May 19th, 2012), and we have over 18 kids scheduled to come.  This will be our largest turn-out yet for this annual event!  Special thanks to the clinicians at Sierra Therapy Group AND Silver State Hearing & Balance for providing the speech-language, occupational therapy, and hearing screenings as part of this wonderful event!

OT Month: Play time is more important than you may think →

Shhh! Don’t tell the kiddos, but that play time they love so much… they are actually learning a lot through play. Yep, it’s an educational experience.

I said, shhh!

Playing is an important tool in a child’s life—it’s one of the primary goals of childhood (learn, grow, and play). It is your child’s “job” or occupation to play and through play your child develops physical coordination, emotional maturity, social skills, and self confidence.

Because it’s such an important occupation, it’s no wonder that occupational therapy plays a role in helping children learn through play. From infants to teens, occupational therapy practitioners can use their expertise in evaluating children’s neurological, muscular, and emotional development to ensure that children are growing and developing through play.