School-Based AEA Occupational therapy practitioners provide services to infants (0-3 years old), who have or are at risk for developmental delays, and to school-age students (3-21 years old) who have motor or sensorimotor challenges that impact their participation in educational activities.
Occupational Therapy Role in Early Access
Serving Families and Children Birth-3 Years
Occupational therapy practitioners provide early intervention services to support the development and learning of babies and young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families. Occupational therapy practitioners work together with families to identify and address specific family concerns and priorities as they relate to the child’s overall growth and development, offering expertise in the areas of fine motor development, sensory processing, and development of feeding and self-help skills.
Occupational Therapy Role in the Schools
Serving Students ages 3-21
Occupational Therapy practitioners provide a continuum of services and supports to students and school personnel. They have expertise in seating and positioning, self-help skills, sensory processing and self-regulation, motor/physical skills (including the use of writing tools and scissors), and access to technology. The goal of these supports and services is to improve student performance and participation in their learning environments (e.g., playgrounds, classrooms, lunchrooms, bathrooms, transitions, and work sites).
Parent Resources
Teacher Resources
Classroom Strategies for Self-Regulation:
- Auditory Sensitivity
- Difficulty in Chair and on Task
- Oral chewing sensory
- Tactile Sensitivity
- Task Initiation and Completion
- Visually Distracted or Visual Sensitivity
Classroom Strategies for Letter Formation/Handwriting:
- Copying from the Board
- Hand Fatigue/ Too Much Pressure
- Left Handed Writers
- Letter or Number Reversals
- Letter Alignment
- Letter Formation
- Pencil Grasp
- Production of Written Work
- Spacing in Written Work