Our blogs are inspired by our passion for enhancing childhood development and pediatric physical therapy. We write for both parents and professionals and work to provide a mix of education, activity/treatment ideas, and our favorite toys. Because we write for you, we would love to know what topics you are interested in or what questions you have that we can answer!
Teaching Ball Dribbling
A while ago we did a post on how to progress dribbling a playground size ball starting with two hands and working down to one hand while walking. Here is a video also explaining the process also: Another way we have worked on dribbling a ball is for kids that have a hard time understanding […]
Progressing Cruising
Cruising – what is it? This older post of ours will talk about it. We may come out with another one in the future so stay tuned! Today’s post is about how to progress cruising. Your child has mastered moving along the couch or other straight surface, what can you work on next? Here are […]
Using the Ball for Rolling
We recently had posts for practicing rolling from back to stomach and from stomach to back. Check out the videos below for ideas on how to use the the therapy ball to help! You can also use this same idea with bigger kids who are working on rolling, just use one of the really large […]
Using the Ball for Getting into Sitting
I am a big fan of using the therapy ball for helping little ones learn new techniques. I think it is great for helping them to get into sitting from their back. Using the combination of the ball rolling, gravity, and my hands, they start to learn what the movement feels like for this transition […]
Walking with a Hula Hoop
We have a lot of little ones who are working on getting independent with walking (or even just standing). I know I have shared a few ideas here before for some tips and tricks but here is another one. We have been using a hula hoop with a few of them. This has worked well […]
Toy Selection for Young Kids
There is an overwhelming amount of choices in the toy stores these days and we live in a time where digital and electronic games are increasingly being used to replace physical toys. Should we be buying toys marketed as educational? What should our developing children be playing with? As physical therapists, we get asked a […]
Teaching Rolling – Stomach to Back
This is one that I find harder to teach little ones. A lot of time it comes about naturally as they spend more time on their tummy, and also begin to push up more onto their extended arms. This is why it is really important to encourage tummy time and prone skills. To work on […]
Teaching Rolling – Back to Stomach
Rolling is one of the first forms of independent mobility your child will learn how to do. This is when they start to learn that they can control their body to explore their environment. In terms of teaching rolling I always find it easier to teach them how how to go from their back to […]
Single Leg Stance with a Ball and a Wall
Was walking through the clinic the other day and saw this great idea for working on single leg stance. I’ve also tried it with a few other kids and it’s great! Start with a softer, squisher ball to make it easier. We like to use a Gertie style ball. Have the child stand next to […]
Encouraging Balance Reactions
One of our therapists was recently working on balance reactions with a child and I thought it was such a great simple idea. You take some Squigz and put them on a surface. We don’t have a good child height surface so we use a wedge. The goal is for the child to pull them […]