Child Development
Things We Don’t Know
“Sometimes, my son asks me a question. If I tell him I don’t know the answer—and I truly don’t know the answer—he’ll get mad and protest, ‘you DO know!’ How do I explain to him […]
Articles by The Occuplaytional Therapist
Philosophy
The Stories We Tell Ourselves
I read a post in one of my favorite facebook groups the other day that made something so incredibly clear to me, that I sometimes struggle to put into words clearly enough for other parents […]
At Home
Diagnosing
If a child called “oppositionally defiant” could label the adults in their life, what kinds of things might they call them? Needlessly antagonistic? Endlessly demanding? Perhaps their adults themselves would receive the diagnosis of ODD […]
At Home
Everyone is Sensory
PSA: Everyone is “sensory”. 😊 (A second, more pedantic, more pet-peevy PSA: “sensory” is an adjective, not a noun!) Everyone in the world has a sensory system. Everyone interacts with the world around them through […]
At Home
The Dividing Line
When you start to understand how thin — or nonexistent! — the dividing line is between “playing” and “learning/growing”, suddenly so much more of what children do makes sense. And suddenly so much more of […]
Child Development
Reflections on Christmas Eve
Hey! This post is going to be about Jesus, and child development, and the kind of Christianity I grew up in, that I’ve moved away from, and where I see myself now. I recognize that […]
At School
Kids' Shows
Fear & Anger Speaking
My kids have been watching Inside Out recently. It’s a movie that takes place largely inside the characters’ minds from the point of views of their personified emotions. Everybody has the emotions Joy, Sadness, Anger, […]
Babies
Three Scenarios
Imagine three scenarios. You’re holding your child on your lap. Your child is sobbing and screaming at the top of their lungs, curled up against you. In one scenario, they have just tripped, fallen, and […]
Personal
Driving & Disability
A small thought (from my time in studying for my UK driver’s license)… I got this practice question on a practice test and it made me pause. Can you read it and think of why? […]