Movement breaks for kids- getting through your virtual school day!

If you have a child, you know that sometimes they can have TONS of energy that needs to be burned throughout the day. This is not a new thing, but with more kids in virtual school again this year due to the second (or third) wave of the pandemic, managing your child’s energy is more important than ever!

It is important to recognize that movement breaks for children are not only important to help them expend the energy they have, but also to help them keep their energy up (especially when sitting at a desk staring at a screen all day), and to help kids focus. Think about your own BEST days – if you’re working at a desk all day, do you find that you’re better able to focus if you work out before work or taking mid day walks/workout breaks to refocus? Do you feel yourself perking back up after a bit of movement? If movement is something that helps you, as adults we are usually able to recognize that we need to build movement breaks into our day. Often times, children need someone to teach them the benefit of movement breaks even if it seems obvious!

As an occupational therapists, this is something we discuss with families quite frequently. There are some children that have sensory processing challenges and need movement breaks to calm their bodies, but most children benefit from movement breaks regardless. So let’s dive into some of my favourite easy recommendations for parents!

Kids Yoga!

Yoga is not just for middle aged, lululemon wearing women; but for kids yoga often looks much different than what you might know from “typical” yoga.

Kids yoga is often quite energetic, and for younger kids, it can be helpful for yoga to follow a story line! One of our favourite ways to introduce very young kids to yoga is by reading yoga story books and doing the poses as they come up in the book. This way kids can connect the names of the poses to what they look like! You can also print out a bunch of different yoga poses for kids to have as visual reminders, or purchase yoga cards like these ones here Yoga for Children–Yoga Cards: 50+ Yoga Poses and Mindfulness Activities for Healthier, More Resilient Kids: Flynn, Lisa: 9781507208236: Books – Amazon.ca

We know moving away from screens for a movement break is the ideal, but if you are also working and not able to really engage in movement with your child or take them outside for a walk or adventure to the park, Youtube has some incredible options! Cosmic Kids Yoga is one of our favourites as kids are lead through yoga stories, and there are options for everyone!

Our recommendation for yoga is to get involved in the yoga session with your child if you can (even if that is on a weekend so they know what’s going on during the week), and make it a fun time! Also, be reminded that a lot of times kids who need movement to focus and self regulate may NOT be into yoga. And that is OKAY. Sometimes adults get fixated on the idea that yoga is the best to help calm your body and mind, but not every adult enjoys yoga, and kids are the same. If your child doesn’t like yoga, that’s ok, move onto trying another different style of exercise!

Just Dance!

For the kids that need something guided but are into something a little more exciting, we LOVE Just Dance (yes, the video game). You don’t need a gaming console to use this as a movement break however, as Youtube has tons of these dances recorded for you to watch! We use these in our occupational therapy sessions with kids as a movement break, and a reward for getting through all the activities we had on our visual schedule for that session.

Again, these are super fun to pop on in the middle of the day to follow along to, and are also a really great way to get your blood pumping! Adults, jump in to take a dance break with your kids if you can, you’ll get them going, move your own body and most likely get a laugh as you stumble to follow along! I screen share these videos with my clients and we both look super silly dancing together, but kids LOVE to see adults dance too!

Build your own Obstacle Course!

If you want a more interactive, low tech way to get your kids moving, you can always try to build a little obstacle course or fitness circuit in your home! This can be as high or low cost as you like and take up as much or as little space as necessary. There are some play structures that you can buy for inside your home that gives kids a place to climb, swing and hang, or small trampolines that kids can bounce on. These can be quite pricey sometimes, so I often recommend parents to try to DIY as best as they can first! This might be something you create outside with chalk on the sidewalk or drive way, or perhaps you do something like the picture to the left with rearranging a room to scoot, climb, crawl, jump etc. If you need something even more simple, you can print out some different pictures of exercises and place them around the room like a circuit, and as your child moves from paper to paper they have to do the activities. More physical things like jumping jacks, planks, frog jumps and balancing can be included, and music can always be played to encourage spontaneous dance parties!

Whatever you do choose to do, make sure that you walk your child through the exercises or do them together so that they know what the obstacle course looks like, or how to safely use the play equipment! That way they may be able to initiate the exercises on their own.

Get Outside!

This is a pretty straightforward and non structured way to get some movement in! Just schedule some time to get outside! If you are working from home and your child(ren) is at virtual school, you most likely will benefit from getting outside just as much as they will! Whether it’s getting out for a short walk, or for some playtime at the park, the fresh air and natural energy expenditure will be excellent to restart energy for the rest of the day!

Remember: it is important to recognize if your child needs movement breaks throughout the day and to figure out a time to make these happen. If your child seems to be extra bouncey and energetic throughout the day, sometimes it is beneficial to schedule some time in the morning to start the day with some movement! This way their body will have gotten the sensory input they need from the movement, will have woken their bodies up and help them focus in class. Then schedule a break throughout the day and maybe something after dinner to help them get their sillies out before bed!

If you want to learn more or interested in Willow OT please don’t hesitate to reach out! www.willowot.com or by email at info@willowot.com

Kristina Marchiori

OT Reg. (Ont.), Msc (OT), BSc (Kinesiology)

Benefits of Colouring

If you've stepped into a dollar store, craft store, book store, etc in the last couple years, you must have seen the HUGE variety of colouring books lining the shelves. From Frozen, to Power Rangers and Paw Patrol, to more specifically created colouring books to focus on mindfulness, there is literally a colouring book for EVERYONE. While we know that most children like to colour (and some adults too!), did you know that colouring is important to help your child's development? Colouring is fun and can keep kids entertained and contained to a space for a while, but it can also be so much more. Here are a few of the benefits of colouring from an educator and occupational therapist point of view.

Hand Strength and Pencil Grasp (fine motor skills)

Often times we can get confused with the idea of practicing fine motor skills and handwriting skills such as hand strength and pencil grasp, with pure handwriting. Kids get frustrated when they don't feel they have the spelling/vocabulary skills to write, so we get frustrated that they won't practice because we are worried about their handwriting skills not developing. But the process of colouring can be a fun and creative way to practice holding the pencil with our alligator grip while working on control and coordination of the tool. By using a pencil crayon, children learn the amount of pressure they need to put on a pencil to make dark enough markings on the paper, and work on the strength of their hand muscles at the same time. As their skills get more developed, colouring will become neater and more in the lines (perfection is not the goal here!)

Visual Motor Skills

Also known as hand eye coordination, colouring requires attention to detail and precision in order to be able to colour within the lines. Visual perception can help strengthen awareness of the hand's position and line on the page. Even just colouring in a simple shape can give your children an opportunity to develop coordination which will translate to many other skills in the rest of their lives.

Language development

If you are able to sit with your child while they are colouring, you may be able to help them further their language development as they share what they are colouring on the paper. Being an inquisitive parent/caregiver/teacher, can help them learn descriptive words to describe their art, names of colours etc, as you ask questions about their artwork! This can help improve their language development as they feel more confident in their vocabulary and can try using these words in different situations.

Self Regulation/Calming

Colouring can be a great way to give a child some quiet time if they are over-tired, over-excited or stressed out. Colouring has the ability to relax the fear centre of your brain, which can help you find rest and feel more at peace - this is why adult colouring books have been all the rage lately! Whether you believe it or not, children often feel stressed and anxious, and can benefit from some time during the day for their minds to process their day, the ups and downs, and the emotions they may be experiencing. Allowing a quiet time to colour and process can help them talk about anything they may need help with or need to let go of, which can help them have a clear and ready to learn mind for school. This can also be a lovely time for your child to bond with their caregivers/siblings etc!

Focus & Attention

For a child who may struggle to sit still and focus for longer periods of time, an interesting, quiet table top activity like colouring might take a lot of work to focus, but can be a great tool to practice concentration and attention. Often times when we talk about attention, we focus on the idea of getting rid of distractions and keeping ourselves still, but we don't focus much on developing the skill of concentration. Colouring pages can provide kids with a simple task they can complete by themselves, and can help them learn to complete a task despite the distractions around them. Just like handwriting, getting dressed, using scissors and eating properly are skills that need practice, concentration is a skill that must be learned and practiced so that your mind can master the ability. Colouring allows for a fun and creative way to practice, in a less academic manner (and maybe more enticing) than focusing on writing!

Brings out Creativity!

Creativity and imagination is a beautiful part of childhood that I wish could be fostered and captured from a young age and carried through out our lives. Colouring can offer a platform for creativity to be expressed, whether they are drawing an original picture, or colouring a store bought (or printed) colouring book. Creativity can help them grow and learn as they explore different styles, emotions, and worlds in their imagination as they colour, and they may find a hobby that they can carry with them through the rest of their lives!

Bonus : Communication and Social Emotional expression!

My favourite benefit of colouring is the opportunity for communication and social emotional expression. Colouring can be a peaceful way to process emotions and take the focus off challenging situations. From my experience working with children who are either in the hospital or have siblings in the hospital, colouring can provide a safe space to show how you are feeling, and to talk about it with someone. There have been many times where a child has given me a look into their world through the pictures they draw. Comic books can be a great way to tell a story that often can be inspired by real life events. Sitting with your child and perhaps drawing or colouring along side with them allows them the opportunity to talk with you without the formalities that regular social interaction comes with. They are able to share stories or emotions without making direct eye contact, and with another task to focus on if they feel tired of talking. I have often had extremely deep and meaningful conversations with children during structured art times. It can also just be a fun way for kids to connect! As a virtual camp counselor this summer, a couple of the 6 year old girls I ran programming with were super quiet and shy, but when I hosted a colouring and disney music session, they really opened up! Everyone was singing, sharing stories about their summer and their families, and it took the edge off of talking to new friends!

There are many articles as well that show that adults also get these benefits from colouring as well. I have a couple sketch books and basic colouring books on my shelf as part of my winter self care tools - it's a beautiful way to escape from some of the anxieties you are experiencing in the moment. A cozy space, some enjoyable music, and some quiet colouring time can help you be mindful in the moment, and zone out a little bit. Crafternoons can also be a wonderful date to have with friends (even virtually during this time), where you can check out, be as chatty or as quiet as you like, and everyone is focused on their artwork so it is ok for you to show up however you need to in the moment!

Whether you're colouring alone, with some friends or with your children, consider setting up some colouring dates this fall/winter to nurture a little self-love!

October is Occupational Therapy Month!

The month of October represents a lot of different things for different people. Halloween decorating begins, the leaves start to change, fall activities are engaged in, it's #PSL season, and different organizations and issues are brought to awareness. All of these parts of October are more or less significant to people depending on how meaningful they are. Often traditions of apple picking and visiting pumpkin patches bring the feeling of love, fall cooking can help you bring warmth to your home, a warm fall drink might help you connect with friends or "treat yourself", and you may resonate with an awareness month theme more depending on what you've experienced.

October is also Occupational Therapy month!

Occupational therapy is a profession that many people don't know too much about. Our scope of practice is so broad that throughout our master's degree, we practice explaining what we do. If you know what an occupational therapist (OT) done, you most likely only know a small portion of who we work with and what our role can look like because of the context of your interaction. For example, if you met an occupational therapist on your family member's care team who was in the inpatient unit of a hospital, you most likely will think of an OT in hospital, helping get your family member ready to go home safely or to a rehabilitation unit. If you or someone you know has had a workplace injury, you might know OT's to help people return back to work safely, perhaps helping modify the workplace, work with insurance to get assistive devices, or provide strategies for you to work safer. But did you know that OT's can work with everyone from babies to elderly people and everyone in between?

Occupational therapists have some pretty job specific language, which sometimes can be a bit confusing when it comes to recognizing when an OT might be helpful to see. Let's look at a couple words and their meanings in the OT context:

Occupation - In our day to day vocabulary, occupation usually means what you do for work, which is why most people think that occupational therapists help you with job related tasks (partially true!). In the OT terminology however, Occupation looks at any activity that we do in the day, the things that we need to do, want to do or are expected to do. Thinking of occupation in this sense, OTs can help you to achieve anything you need to! Cooking, eating, dressing, cleaning, going to work, going to school, participating in social activities or leisure activities like painting, playing instruments etc! This is why OTs can be an important resource for anyone at any age!

Meaning - Often times, Occupational therapists will talk about working on things that are meaningful. In an ideal, client centred practice, an occupational therapist is referring to activities that are meaningful specifically to YOU. So if you could care less about being able to prepare anything more complex than a peanut butter sandwich, you will most likely focus on goals that are more meaningful to you!

Leisure - In OT school we learn that we need to have a balance of self care, productivity and leisure activities in our lives to maintain our wellbeing. Leisure is categorized as a preferred activity that is non obligatory, and that you do just because you are motivated to do it. This can include both the exploration and participation in these activities. So for example, engaging in art might include creating your own art, or going to the art gallery to learn about art! These categories are different for everyone but this is a general definition

Self Care - This is a term that is thrown around on social media a LOT. It often is referring to doing something nice for yourself to take care of your mental health, and often examples show people taking bubble baths or reading a book in a room full of candles. In occupational therapy definitions, self care is much broader than this. It is anything that you do to care for yourself - this can include the basic activity of eating. Occupational therapists can help you learn, relearn or modify the way you eat, dress, bathe, sleep etc! So looking at it broadly, if you are seeing an OT for your mental health and scheduling time to take a bubble bath or engage in yoga is something that helps you, perhaps you'd be working with your OT to help make those things happen!

Productivity - This term often gets connected with work and making money, which is true but not complete. Depending who the individual is and what their situation is, productivity might include work and job performance. It could also include anything that makes you feel productive including volunteering, employment seeking, applying for a job, and maintaining a household (ex: cleaning, paying bills, household repairs etc)

Social Participation - Often times, and we have seen this a lot in COVID times, people who experience loneliness can experience disconnection and decrease in mental health. OTs often work with people to help them engage in a variety of different occupations (remember: activities) that support interaction with other people. This could include family and friends, also community and meeting new people!

Where do Occupational therapists work?

Occupational therapists work in a variety of settings, and in each setting they have different roles and scopes of practice. Occupational therapists can be found in hospitals, home care, private practices, clinics, community mental health centres, workers compensation boards and in long term care facilities. There are occupational therapists that work in the community, meaning they will travel to your home to help you modify your home to be more accessible, or to prescribe you a wheelchair or assistive device. You can find them in schools, insurance firms, architectural companies and in all levels of government advising in the areas of health promotion ... the list goes on. Right now, my practice happens virtually with children and their parents!

Basically, OTs can work anywhere and with anyone! Over this next month, I'll be writing more about what Occupational therapists do, where they practice and what common practices they might use with different populations.

Written by: Kristina Marchiori