Starfish Therapies
Starfish Therapies Newsletter

Happy August!
 

August 2015
Volume 80
In This Issue
Starfish Updates
Motor Smart Kids

Developmental PlaygroupsWe are continuing to have our Developmental Playgroup for parents and their kids who are Pre-Walkers. Please don't hesitate to come on by! 

 

When:  Wednesdays 10am-11am    

 

WhereStarfish Therapies 

1650 S. Amphlett Blvd

Suite 108

San Mateo, CA 94402

 

Cost:  Free    

 

**We have added a second day!  Beginning Thursday August 27th from 10-11:30 am we will hold a second playgroup for pre-crawlers.  This class will run in 6 week sessions and cost $150.  It will be limited to 8 participants and will include a t-shirt and a report card for your child at the end.  Please see the website for more information** 

 

 

Contact:  For more information please contact Starfish Therapies 650-638-9142 or by email at [email protected]  

 

We are also looking at adding other group ideas so if you have a suggestion please email us! 

 

starfish   

Job Openings

 

We are adding to our team and have a few job openings available.  Laniesha will be moving back to LA and is leaving our Office Coordinator position vacant, and we are also looking for some amazing Occupational Therapists to join our team. Please click the links below for job descriptions and feel free to pass the information on to anyone you know who might be interested!
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Speech Therapy



We are excited to announce that The Speech Pathology Group will be renting space in our clinic beginning September 1, 2015.  Please check out their website if you are interested in inquiring about their services.
Yoga for Special Needs
Grace Yoga started a program this summer for children
with special needs!

Yoga for Special Needs Children
meets every Thursday from
3:30pm to 4:00pm. In an effort
to keep this program affordable and accessible to all
we offer classes at only
$10.00 per student.

Classes are designed to
stimulate the 
cognitive and motor development in children with Down Syndrome, Autism, Attention Deficit Disorders, Anxiety Disorders and learning and developmental disabilities.

This gentle and therapeutic program includes a series of balanced yoga poses to increase body awareness, coordination, strength and flexibility. In addition, breathing and relaxation techniques are incorporated to increase concentration and focus. Children who are unable to follow visual and oral instructions, may require the attendance of a parent or guardian. 


Welcome back! Happy Summer!  
My Child Isn't Rolling: Should I be Concerned?

 
Rolling over is one of the first major gross motor milestones you will see when your child is growing and developing and it is your baby's first opportunity for independent mobility.  Now they can change from tummy to back and vice versa!  Just a note, this may make tummy time more challenging but tummy time will also encourage sooner rolling so its all on the right track!

Rolling should occur in the 3-6 month age range although again, this is a range.  If your child isn't rolling and is in this range or even outside of this range there are some things you can look at to determine if you should or shouldn't be concerned.
First, are they spending more time in a carrier, bouncy, bumbo, stroller, etc than on the floor?  Babies should have lots of tummy time and in general kids who spend more time on their bellies begin to roll sooner because they have more muscles that have been strengthened, allowing them to activate different muscles to make rolling more efficient.
If your child is spending time on the floor are they on their tummy or just on their back?  As mentioned above tummy time is critical to muscle development and movement development.

If they are on the floor and they start to fuss or get frustrated do you automatically pick them up and put them in a sitting position (or supportive seat, or carry them)?  Generally they can get frustrated or upset for a variety of reasons but if we begin to show them how to move it can help.  For instance, you can help them to roll over.  This way they can begin seeing options for themselves.  If they start to learn that they can move out of a position it encourages independent movement as opposed to being dependent on someone coming and picking them up or moving them around!
In addition to beginning to encourage independence, learning to roll adds to their motor planning arsenol.  They get to figure it out which will carry over to each new motor skill and activity they learn as they get older.

Learning to roll is just one more building block in the development of gross motor skills and movement!
So, if your child isn't tolerating time on the floor, they spend a lot of time in a bumbo, car seat, bouncy or being held, they are sitting on their own but not rolling then I would get some advice on how to encourage movement. Its better to catch up early than later!

My Child Isn't Walking: Should I be Concerned?
Big Ball  
Walking, one of the major milestones that people know in a child's development.  Walking can happen at any time.  You have kids that are walking before they are a year old and some that are still working on it once they've turned two, or even older.  If you ask my family, I was running before I turned one but am still working on mastering the concepts of walking without tripping!

There are so many pieces that go into walking.  When you stop to think about all the parts, its amazing that any of us got up off the ground, let alone took our first steps!

There is such a wide range of ages for kids to start walking and many families may ask their pediatrician's about if they should be worried if they aren't walking by age one, or by age one and a half, etc.  That in and of itself isn't a concern, however what you need to look at is what they ARE doing.  If you take a look at the precursors to walking it may give you a better idea about whether or not you should be concerned.

Prior to a kiddo being able to walk they need to be able to stand.  So look at if your child is pulling to stand at furniture or if they are standing holding onto your hands or they may even be standing all by themselves.  A lot of times kids will start pulling to stand in their crib and bouncing up and down.  This is how they are learning about how their muscles work so that they can use them in this 'new' upright position they've discovered.

If your child is standing but not yet taking independent steps then the next thing you want to look at is if they are cruising.  Are they moving sideways along the furniture while holding on?  This process helps them to learn how to weight shift so that when they begin to take steps they know to put their weight over one foot so they can lift the other foot up and step.

If they are cruising but not walking you want to next consider if they are attempting to move between pieces of furniture.  This is a more advanced form of cruising.  You can encourage this by having your couch and coffee table and chairs spaced out so they will have support to target as they attempt to move around on their feet.  They may be taking one or two steps between the objects or they may be keeping their feet planted while they reach as far as possible to get their hands on that next support surface before they move their feet.

If they are doing this but not walking then they are almost there.  You just want to create opportunities for them to have to take steps more and more on their own.  Maybe its moving a short distance from mom to dad or from the couch to mom.  Make it motivating and they will move!  It won't be pretty initially because it will look more like a lunge at the support surface but that is how they learn how much of each muscle group to turn on so that they can eventually maintain their balance and move.

So, as you start to ask yourself if you should be concerned work backwards looking at what they are doing.  Get them solid on their building blocks that lead up to walking and they will get to walking sooner.  Just make sure you are ready for them to be into everything!!
Thank you for reading. Have a great month! 
Sincerely,
 
Your Friends at
Starfish Therapies