Learning Center

Occupational Therapy is a holistic health profession focused on improving functional performance in every day life, across the lifespan. The field of Occupational Therapy is well-grounded in the science and knowledge that engagement in meaningful activity supports...

“We Live on the Leash of Our Senses” – D. Ackerman, “A Natural History of the Senses”   Sensory processing is the earliest form of processing that takes place in the brain. Processing of sensory information is a delicate neurological interaction between brain and...

“Turn on the radio, then turn it up as loud as it will go. Until it hurts your ears. Put 150 watt light bulbs in every lamp in one room, and turn them all on. Put on a pair of pants backwards and somebody else's shoes that are too small. Shove a stiff hairbrush down...

“Just as we are what we eat, we live what we sense.”   SPD can best be diagnosed by an occupational therapist who has advanced training, experience, and expertise in sensory processing theory and sensory integration practice, both evaluation and treatment. The...

SPD is typically treated with a program of occupational therapy (OT) conducted within a sensory rich environment. Appropriate OT can change the neurological functioning in children with SPD so they can manage their responses to sensations and behave in a more...

“Honor your child’s unique sensory profile which contributes to his/her unique individuality. There is no one else like him on the planet, so enjoy!”    The diagnosis and classification of Autism Spectrum Disorder is constantly in flux, as defined by the American...

“The foundations of non-verbal reasoning are body movements, the ability to touch, to feel, to manipulate, and to build sensory awareness of relationships in the physical world.” – Jane Healey, “Endangered Minds”   Non-Verbal Learning Disability is a diagnostic...

“People who spend more time playing video games have more attention problems, and individuals who are more impulsive or have more attention problems subsequently spend more time playing video games.” (Swing et al, 2010)   Attention and focus is dependent upon...

“Motor planning is to the physical world, what language is to the social world. This is how we communicate with the environment.” -Jean Ayres “To understand what it is like to have a motor problem, imagine wearing a suit that controls your movement. Each time you try...

Fine-motor/visual-motor development is the developmental process of utilizing the arms, hands and fingers for skillfully reaching, grasping and manipulating objects and tools. As with gross-motor development, fine-motor development begins to develop the first day of...

“The lover of nature is he who’s inward and outward senses are truly adjusted to each other.”  – Ralph Waldo Emerson   Vitamin N (Nature) is the mind-body-nature environment and enhances our physical and emotional health. Our sensitivity to nature is essential to...

“Comorbidity” is when two or more “disorders” co-exist in one person, frequently inter related, and often difficult to differentiate one from another. SPD scientists and parents alike are keenly interested in understanding the relationship between SPD and: Attention...

I frequently think about having formal standardized testing completed during some day in the near future, to assess my overall learning profile. I wonder what my test scores would be? I wonder how they would be interpreted by the clinician that I chose to do the...

Self-regulation is the ability to get oneself into an optimal state of alertness to do what needs to be done in any given situation. It is the ability to modify actions and adapt to situational and task demands. This includes regulating one’s sensory needs. To...

“Just 9 minutes of viewing a fast-paced television cartoon had immediate negative effects on 4-year-olds' executive function. Can you imagine how many hours of fast-paced video games impacts executive functioning?” – Angeline Lillard, PhD and Jennifer Peterson, BA...

Muscle tone is the firmness and tension in a muscle, with vestibular processing responsible for developing the postural muscle tone of both flexor and extensor core musculature. Muscle tone is not the same as muscle strength, but the firmness and tension in a muscle...

           Oral-motor development is impacted by many inter-related factors including sensory over responsivity, sensory under responsivity, immature suck-swallow-breathe synchrony, and low oral-motor muscle tone. Oral hypersensitivity can be manifested in a...

Eating is dependent upon environment, nutrition, and development, and is a very complex task of sensory integration, which we so easily take for granted. Eating involves sensory integration of tactile textures, visual colors, varying temperatures, gustatory flavors,...

“Let food be our medicine and medicine be thy food.” – Hippocrates   Good nutrition impacts the developing child’s brain and body, and supports attention, behavior, learning and self-regulation. Lack of water is the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue. A mere 2% loss...

Sound is processed through the single sensory receptor in the cochlea of the inner ear, having similarities in location, structure and function with the older more primitive vestibular movement sensory system, which has 5 sensory receptors in the inner ear. Both sound...

Transitions involve novelty, and novelty involves adapting to new sensory information. Each time we enter a new environment, a new activity, a new demand, a new social situation, each and every one of us has to organize and integrate all the incoming sensory...

"Our future is a race between the growing power of technology and the wisdom with which we use it." – Stephen Hawking, 2015   Remember our childhoods? Play was rolling down hills, climbing trees, building forts, impromptu ball games or tag, riding our bikes,...

  The vestibular system in the inner ear is the grand modulator and integrator of all the sensory systems, because all other sensory systems are processed in relation to basic vestibular information. The vestibular system is stimulated through movement involving...

“When sensory input is balanced with movement output, the energy body is at its optimal state for learning.” – Cris Rowan, OTR, Pediatric Occupational Therapist   The proprioceptive movement receptors are located in our muscles, joints, ligaments, tendons and...

“We are meant to play throughout life. Whether it is through physical activity, social interaction, competition, adventure, music or art, our need to play is hard-wired into our brains.” – Stuart Brown, M.D.            Childhood play involves all the senses....

Provide activities throughout the day that use a high level of energy. Offer oral supports during tasks requiring sustained attention (chewing gum while doing homework, having a water bottle always available) Talk, and listen to your children Establish a consistent...

Soften the lights. Give a hug or give yourself a hug. Minimize visual and auditory stimulation, particularly alerting activities. Create a cozy “chill out” space or “time-in” space or a “relaxation space.” Be aware of temperature and make adaptations accordingly… open...

           Children love to jump and jumping can be helpful in calming and alerting children. Try a mini-trampoline, mattresses, jump-roping, or a hoppity-hop. A large exercise ball can be used to roll on, sit on, bear weight on, or watch TV on. Playing with...