Occupational Therapy

Occupational therapy (OT) helps children learn to perform everyday tasks and take part in day-to-day life. Our occupational therapists teach children with delays, special needs, and autism skills for interacting with others, skills for sensory processing and self-regulation, self-care skills, and gross and fine motor skills.

Areas of focus:

• Fine motor skills – Developing coordination of small movements with wrists, hands, and fingers to improve activities like drawing and using scissors
• Gross motor skills – Increasing ability to balance, run, jump, and play using the whole body and limbs through guided movement
• Visual motor skills – Improving hand-eye coordination through activities such as handwriting or copying from a whiteboard
• Sensory processing – Helping improve tolerance for kids with an increased or decreased sensitivity to noise, touch, sounds, and smells
• Self-regulation skills – Teaching a child who has difficulty controlling behavior ways to cope
• Self-care skills – Practicing feeding, dressing, toileting, and grooming for greater independence

Handwriting Readiness Groups:

Handwriting Readiness groups are facilitated by an occupational therapist and enrolls up to 6 students. This group class is a fun way to help children learn to compose legible and fluent handwriting as an automatic and natural skill. Perfect for children learning to write, as well as those needing a little extra support, this program uses entertaining and educationally sound instructional methods to teach handwriting basics. Classes are held for one hour each week, for 16 weeks.

For the most successful class experience, children should be able to follow multi-step directions and be able to participate in a group activity for at least 4-5 minutes. If your child would benefit from a higher level of support while learning to write, please fill out the below interest form to receive more information about individual occupational therapy services.

Classes Include:

• Motor warm-up with games related to the day’s lesson
• Circle time with direct instruction, including hands-on activities, songs, and interactive materials
• Art activities incorporating writing concepts and related fine motor skills
• Suggested home activities to promote generalization and faster progress
• Activities and lessons are presented with a multi-sensory approach and tailored to each child’s learning style

SKILLS ADDRESSED DURING CLASS:

• Upper body strength & finger strength
• Postural stability
• Eye/hand coordination
• Visual perceptual & fine more skills
• Proper grasp of pencil/crayon
• Letter formation
• Spacing

For more information visit Handwriting Readiness Groups page.

Locations for Occupational Therapy

• Burlingame
• Redwood City

Coverage and Payment Options:

• Insurance: Kaiser, Blue Shield PPO, Health Plan of San Mateo (HPSM)
• Regional Centers: Golden Gate Regional Center (GGRC), San Andreas Regional Center (SARC)
• Private Pay
• Occupational Therapy Evaluation — $800
• Speech/OT Therapy Session — $175/60 minute session
• Handwriting Readiness Groups — $130/session