For children, play is serious work and as therapists, we see it as an important part of their development! In this video, Jenna and Lola talk about the open-ended toys, toy rotations, teaching by example, playing outdoors, imaginative play, limiting screen time and why it's important to let your kids be bored.

TOPS Tips video for getting your kids to play more!

Toe walking can be caused by a variety of different reasons. If you see it, pay attention or ask a parent how often they notice it. It is common for kids to walk on their toes when they first start walking, but toe walking should decrease over time.

Do not expect kids to sit in front of a screen for more than 10 minutes without a movement and eye break. So, what can we do if we notice that our children are exhibiting these behaviors during distance learning?

October is Bullying Prevention Month. Please check out this reposted blog on Bullying Prevention and Remote Learning.

he Minnesota Department of Health in conjunction with the CDC recently revised their Covid-19 guidelines. One of the big changes they have announced is the differentiation between showing a single common symptom of Covid-19 versus multiple less common symptoms and how to react when our children show these symptoms. The image attached to this post is a flowchart of the revised guidelines and below is the full explanation of the tool that the MDHS released to the public. It defines common symptoms and less common symptoms and the steps we should take when they are identified.

There is an amazing SLP, Tara Tuchel, that created a number of social stories regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. As Tara explains “As humans, we all thrive on routine. Children's (and adults) routines have been disrupted over these past several months. Stories can help ALL children understand what is going on around them.”

As a kid grows and develops, their balance grows and develops with them. In order for that to happen, the key parts of balance must develop with them. We like to think of balance as a three legged stool, with all three parts being needed in order to have a balanced stool, or child.

There was a wonderful article written by Janet Lansbury about parents constantly feeling as though they have to be the center of their child’s entertainment, constantly leading playtime. As Janet states “For the first three months of my daughter’s life, I’d been entertaining her nonstop, assuming it my duty to occupy and engage her every waking moment with my activity while she remained mostly passive (which is all I thought she could be).”

Like so many others, Therapy OPS staff have been processing all of the events this past week, starting with the death of George Floyd on May 25th, 2020. In addition to this past week’s events, we are in the midst of a global pandemic that has caused long-term changes to our daily routines that has disrupted our lives. So many of us have been left with raw emotions;

For our latest Screen Free Saturday adventure, my husband and I ventured to Osceola, WI to see and hike around the Cascade Falls. If you have never been to Osceola, it is a quiet, little town – it has a main street, mom and pop shops, and the hidden treasure that brought us there, the Cascade Falls! Not only can you see the falls, but you can feel them too!

While we have been fortunate to have nice weather to go outside for Screen – free Saturday the past two Saturdays, this past Saturday we were met with rainy weather posing “what’s fun that we can do inside without our screens?” After some thought and discussion, we decided when is a better time than to have our own mini- MasterChef bake – off competition?

Hey there, Heidi here! This past Saturday for Screen – Free Saturday my husband and I walked around Lake Harriet. It is one of our favorite places to walk! While there are famous landmarks of the band shell, downtown Minneapolis Skyline, and a Rose garden, there is a lesser known landmark – the home of the Lake Harriet Elf

Hey there, Heidi here! This past Saturday for Screen – Free Saturday my husband and I got out of the house (while maintaining social distancing) and drove to Fort Snelling Cemetery to watch planes take off and land at the airport.

Did you know each year there is a National Screen Free Week where children and adults are encouraged to turn off the tv and put down their phones and do something they wouldn’t otherwise do? Typically, Screen Free week occurs in May but given our current circumstances with distance learning and social distancing, the individuals behind Screen Free week have changed it to Screen – Free Saturdays!

April is Autism Acceptance Month, so we wanted to take a moment to write a little something. Many of you may know it as Autism Awareness Month, but over time this has been shifting to acceptance. Why acceptance? Because acceptance requires action!

The Zones of Regulation is a tool that is used in many different places and may be something you have heard of before. We see it used a lot with kiddos in the school and we use it right here at Therapy OPS! But what are the zones and what does this program help with? For the month of June, our blog posts are going to focus on the different zones and what each one means and what emotions are part of each one!

The Zones of Regulation is a tool that is used in many different places and may be something you have heard of before. We see it used a lot with kiddos in the school and we use it right here at Therapy OPS! But what are the zones and what does this program help with?

The Zones of Regulation is a tool that is used in many different places and may be something you have heard of before. We see it used a lot with kiddos in the school and we use it right here at Therapy OPS! But what are the zones and what does this program help with?

The Zones of Regulation is a tool that is used in many different places and may be something you have heard of before. We see it used a lot with kiddos in the school and we use it right here at Therapy OPS! But what are the zones and what does this program help with?

A pacifier is a way to calm babies and provide comfort through sucking. Sucking is a skill that is necessary for feeding. Premature babies often have great success with pacifiers to increase their feeding and weight gain. They can also be used in stressful situations or distinguish fussiness between meals. In addition, they are often used as a way to reduce re-flux.