Occupational Therapy For Children
What Does an Occupational Therapist Do?
Our Occupational Therapists work with children aged 2 – 17 years to develop the skills they need for everyday life. Therapy is fun, research-based, and tailored to each child’s unique strengths and challenges. Here’s how we can help:
✋ Fine Motor Skills – Developing hand strength, coordination, and control for tasks like writing, cutting, and self-care
🏃 Gross Motor Skills – Improving balance, coordination, strength, and motor planning for physical activities and play
🧠 Sensory Processing – Helping children regulate responses to sights, sounds, textures, and movement
📝 School Readiness & Learning Skills – Supporting handwriting, attention, organisation, and classroom participation
❤️ Emotional Regulation & Coping Skills – Teaching children how to manage big emotions, self-regulate, and use calming strategies
👕 Self-Care & Independence – Building skills for dressing, eating, and daily routines
💬 Social Participation – Encouraging confidence, play skills, teamwork, and positive peer interactions
🎨 Play Skills – Encouraging creativity, imagination, and age-appropriate play to build developmental and social skills
🔄 Transitions & Daily Routines – Supporting smoother changes between activities, school readiness, and independence in structured and unstructured settings
🍎 Feeding & Mealtime Skills – Assisting with picky eating, oral-motor challenges, utensil use, and mealtime routines
👀 Visual-Motor & Visual-Perceptual Skills – Improving skills like copying from the board, tracking when reading, completing puzzles, and hand–eye coordination
🧩 Support for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) – Developing independence, regulation strategies, and participation in everyday activities
Signs Your Child May Need Occupational Therapy
Not sure if your child needs OT?
Here are some key signs to look out for:
✋ Fine Motor Skills
- Struggles with holding a pencil, using scissors, or fastening buttons/zippers
- Avoids tasks that require hand strength or coordination
- Writing is messy, slow, or difficult to read
🏃 Gross Motor Skills
- Appears clumsy or uncoordinated and often bumps into things
- Has difficulty learning new physical skills (e.g., riding a bike, catching a ball, skipping)
- Avoids playground activities or sports
🧠 Sensory Processing
- Overreacts to sounds, textures, or movement
- Picky eating or particular about food colours or textures
- Seeks excessive movement (jumping, spinning, crashing)
- Has trouble sitting still, paying attention, or regulating emotions
📝 School & Learning
- Finds handwriting or classroom tasks difficult
- Struggles to stay focused
- Has trouble understanding and following instructions
- Difficulty with organisation of school or learning tasks and activities
- Becomes easily frustrated with schoolwork
- Difficulty with visual-motor and visual-perceptual tasks (e.g., copying from the board, completing puzzles, tracking words when reading)
❤️ Emotional Regulation & Coping
- Has frequent meltdowns or difficulty calming down
- Struggles with changes in routine
- Finds it hard to manage frustration or anxiety
👕 Self-Care
- Has difficulty dressing, feeding, or toileting independently
- Avoids trying new foods or textures
- Struggles with transitions between activities (e.g., moving from playtime to mealtime, or getting ready for school)
- Takes much longer than peers to complete daily routines
💬 Social & Play Skills
- Has trouble joining in with play or group activities
- Finds it hard to share, take turns, or make friends
- Avoids social situations or becomes easily overwhelmed
If you recognise any of these signs, our Occupational Therapists can provide guidance on the next steps.