IEP Today

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We have an IEP for our son Jeff (DS 3 1/2). We will be looking at the assesment from his OT. Present will be the Early intervention teacher, school psychologist, the school dist DA, our attorney and Jeff's OT as well as the director and teacher from his day care. Our goal is for Jeff to get more services than he does currently. Right now it's only one group OT twice a week for 30 mins each and group speech w/informal one on one in an already oversized class of 13.Any suggestions are certainly appreciated.Thanks-Holly FamilyTo: Beijing Mamas <beijing_mamas >; beijing_organic_consumers ; beijing homeschoolers <beijing_homeschoolers >; DS Infoexchange <DownSyndromeInfoExchange >; einstein syndrome ; special childbeijing <special_child_beijing >Sent: Tue, November 9, 2010 5:48:47 PMSubject: [DownSyndromeInfoExchange] Old Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills

A friend of mine sent me this fantastic article that was on NPR. Thanks, B!LioraOld

Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19212514

{excerpt below}

Better Ways to Play

Self-regulation is a critical skill for kids. Unfortunately, most kids today

spend a lot of time doing three things: watching television, playing video

games and taking lessons. None of these activities promote self-regulation.

Simon Says: Simon Says is a game that requires children to inhibit

themselves. You have to think and not do something, which helps to build

self-regulation.

Complex Imaginative Play: This is play where your child plans scenarios and

enacts those scenarios for a fair amount of time, a half-hour at a minimum,

though longer is better. Sustained play that last for hours is best.

Realistic props are good for very young children, but otherwise encourage

kids to use symbolic props that they create and make through their

imaginations. For example, a stick becomes a sword.

Activities That Require Planning: Games with directions, patterns for

construction, recipes for cooking, for instance.

Joint Storybook Reading: "Reading storybooks with preschoolers promotes

self-regulation, not just because it fosters language development, but

because children's stories are filled with characters who model effective

self-regulatory strategies," says researcher Berk.

Encourage Children to Talk to Themselves: "Like adults, children

spontaneously speak to themselves to guide and manage their own behavior,"

Berk says. "In fact, children often use self-guiding comments recently

picked up from their interactions with adults, signaling that they are

beginning to apply those strategies to themselves.

"Permitting and encouraging children to be verbally active - to speak to

themselves while engaged in challenging tasks - fosters concentration,

effort, problem-solving, and task success."read full article here <http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=19212514>