OT: Day 20/30

Today's plan included a barrel, a trapeze, "Animal Planet" and charades; not all together at once.

To begin with, Turbo and Ms. Renee set up the safe area with pillows, the barrel and the trapeze. This activity was fun for him because it gave him the vestibular input, but was designed to strengthen his core muscles. Playing on monkey bars, and things that give him the resistive pull is a great source for him to build strength in his hands to help with his writing.



The next swing was a game of saving the animals by bringing them to different planets. The swing allowed him to wrap his arms and legs around which helped with muscle core strengthening (sitting still muscles), but also a vestibular input which he loves. By adding a cognitive element it helped him to focus more and learning is more likely to take place. Ms. Renee sat behind him and showed him the beanbags with letters on them. This way, Turbo had to turn his head and use his peripheral vision to see the letters, and to focus his eyes on something while his body was moving. What surprised and didn't surprise us at the same time was how "smart" he was. The task was to say a name of an animal that begun with the letter on the bean bag. He pretty much got it right each time. We both looked at each other and agreed that we think he is smarter than he lets on. She again encouraged a gifted program.



We discussed how this could be used at home. Using a ordinary playground swing is a way to do this, but the core strengthening is lost. Another option is to use the rope swing at my paren'ts house, but to add a disc seat to it. That way he could sit down on it while I pull him and help him with his "learning". She said that there are some places in town which sell circular disc seats, but I suggested that maybe at Home Depot there is a disc seat for playground sets.

We moved on to a game of Charades. This game is boring in of itself for a 5-year-old, so adding an obstacle course to go through before having to act it out intensifies the game. Using charades helps Turbo, who likes to go fast, to stop to read and understand verbal cues which he would otherwise miss because of his speedy impulsivness. Having him act out emotions as well is something that would benefit him.



As I walked away from this session, I realized more and more that our "school time" will not really consist of pencil and paper as much it as I initially thought. Our "school time" needs to look more and more like OT until Turbo and I figure things out together. My next task is to look into a gifted program that will suit our family.

Any suggestions out there?

OT: Day 15/30 - HALF WAY THERE!

Yesterday was our half way marker! It was a pretty typical day in our activities. He played in the helicopter swing We discussed how that for some kids, swinging and spinning disorganizes some kids, but that it seems to help calm and setting Turbo. That being said, I can now understand why he spins like he does. He has found something that soothes him, but drives me CRAZY!! (I'm the adult, I'm the adult!) So for pretty much the majority of our hour-long session, he spun around and grabbed beanbags while trying to throw them to knock down frogs on a log (or aliens as they have now known to become).

During our discussion, she approached me with something that I still haven't chewed full on yet. She suggested that we look into some type of gifted program. At once she could see my hesitation, and continued to explain. Turbo is a bright kiddo, but there seems to be a lot more going on inside his head that even he cannot fully explain. She reassured me that she wasn't talking about reading/writing at an 8th grade level at 5-years-old, but that he is gifted in the WAY he thinks. She called him a gifted thinker. OK, I can see that.

Common Characteristics of Gifted
While it is rare for a gifted child to exhibit all characteristics, it is
common for a gifted child to manifest many of the following:

Good at problem-solving
Learns rapidly
Extensive vocabulary
Good memory
Longer attention span
Compassion for others
Perfectionism
High degree of energy
Prefers older companions
Wide or narrow range of interests
Unusual sense of humor
Early or avid reader
Insatiable curiosity & persistence
Intense concentration
May question authority
Advanced sense of conscience
May demonstrate intense emotional and/or physical sensitivity
Exhibits creativity
Ability with puzzles, #s
Perceives abstract ideas
Sees relationships

Here is what I found to help me differentiate the two:

BRIGHT KIDS and GIFTED KIDS.
A Bright Child....(B)
A gifted child....(G)

(B) Knows the answer
(G) Asks the questions - sometimes deep probing questions of an abstract nature.

(B) Is interested.
(G) Is highly curious

(B) Is attentive
(G) Is mentally and physically involved

(B) Has good ideas
(G) Has wild, silly ideas

(B) Works hard
(G) Plays around, yet tests well

(B) Answers the questions
(G) Discusses in detail, elaborates

(B) Top Group
(G) Beyond the group

(B) Listens with interest
(G) Shows strong feelings and opinions

(B) Learns with ease
(G) Already knows

(B) 6-8 repetitions for mastery
(G) 1-2 repetitions for mastery

(B) Understands ideas
(G) Constructs abstractions

(B) Enjoys peers
(G) Prefers adults or older children or seeks out other very bright or gifted peers.

(B) Grasps the meaning
(G) Draws inferences and opens up new questions.

(B) Completes assignments
(G) Initiates projects

(B) Is receptive
(G) Is intense

(B) Copies accurately
(G) Creates a new design

(B) Enjoys school
(G) Enjoys learning - but may hate school.

(B) Absorbs information.
(G) Manipulates information

(B) Technician
(G) Inventor - Loves construction toys

(B) Good Memorizer
(G) Good guesser - draws on vast information store.

(B) Is alert
(G) Is keenly observant - seems to remember fine details.

(B) Is pleased with own learning
(G) Is highly self-critical - can be a perfectionist to the point of tantrums when young.

(B) Enjoys straight-forward and/or sequential presentation
(G) Thrives on complexity - needs the whole picture. Requires a gestalt approach.

**GESTALT APPROACH**a structure, configuration, or pattern of physical, biological, or psychological phenomena so integrated as to constitute a functional unit with properties not derivable by summation of its parts


Afterwards, we continued his Vision Therapy which is coming along, but we would like to see it further. Guess I am going to have to work on that at home too.

He played the ZOOM BALL and climbed the rock wall, then we settled for a game of rhythmic activity.


This activity helped him focus on a moving object (Vision Therapy) while having his body moving (sitting on the ball), and being able to cross mid-line. Since he didn't crawl very much as a baby, his mid-line crossing isn't the greatest - which somehow connects with the brain and allows...yada yada yada - my brain was mush by then.

Then of course, it was the Jedi Knight training room. (He totally loves this room)

Then she drug him down the hall. Which of course, he loves too!

HALF WAY DONE!