What better way to integrate fun and learning than with a new piece of equipment that allows our students autonomy and ways to be creative?
When I started at P.G. Chambers School 12 years ago, it was amazing to see so much adaptation happening both in the classroom and in therapy. From hand grips and grasps to elbow supports and arm skates, the organization had a large variety of adaptations to help facilitate students’ independence. Some were handmade and created from cardboard, leftover phone books, contact paper, and Velcro. As technology has advanced over time, more adaptations can be purchased and trialed for a variety of student needs. One important area of need for adaptation is to support students fine motor skills to grasp writing and art tools, even access a tablet. How can we help our students create and participate in education more independently?
What we do know is that the world of adaptation is ever changing just like our students. To stay in the now, our classroom teams collaborate on what the students can do and how we can help them get there. We are always striving to reduce physical prompting to allow the students the ability to “feel and do” as much as they can.
Juliana Menniti, an elementary school teacher at P.G. Chambers School, brought the idea of the Guided Hands tool to her class team meeting. She was really excited about what it could do. It got me excited as an occupational therapist because Guided Hands is a unique tool that helps the student to stabilize and use their hand, wrist, or forearm movements to write, draw, and use other art utensils. This tool supports a students’ ability to “try” on their own and to “create” more independently. With the support from a grant made available to P.G. Chambers School, two Guided Hands tools were purchased to be used by our students in all grade levels. It truly is the best to see our students having fun and participating in meaningful learning activities!
Author: Caitlin Rienzi, Occupational Therapist at P.G. Chambers School
