Tag Archives: adaptive scissors

Oct24

Week 8—Nocturnal Animals and the letter H

Posted on October 24, 2011 by jd785

Week 8—Nocturnal Animals and the letter H

Our theme this week was Nocturnal Animals for our sensory and fine motor groups.

For both of these groups we started by turning off the lights and closing the blinds to darken the classroom. This illuminated moon was pulled from the schools science kit. Our students were very attentive to the light and loved running their hands over the bumpy surface. It was a huge hit.

We then read Cara’s book “Creatures of the Night” using a flashlight to additionally highlight the pages. We also used it to highlight the voice output device as each student took their turn activating the device—-or holding the light for a friend!

Sensory Group—Nocturnal Animals

After reading Cara’s book we put some Tonic Water in a cup and held a portable black light (purchased from Wal Mart in their Halloween section). It has an amazing glow! Our students poured the water onto cornstarch…..

amazing, glowing oobleck—-WOW! Our students were absolutely enrapt (and so were the adults).

When we finally tore ourselves away from the oobleck, we rinsed our hands in some scented water.

We searched in some black beans to find the letters O and B to match with our owl and bat.

We explored fur (a strip of fun fur cut into pieces) and feathers (a feather boa picked up at Joann Fabrics). This box also contained some black pompoms (another soft texture) and some black mardi gras beads (a hard texture) in addition to a plush owl and some rubber bats. Discussing all the different properties of these items addresses a variety of access points.

Fine Motor Group—Nocturnal Animals

We started our fine motor activity with some precut bat wings (drawn by Joy). We counted them as we passed one to each student. (Math access point).

Then we put some glue (colored with food coloring) in the middle of the wings. This student worked very hard to squeeze the glue all by himself (demonstrating improving shoulder stability and hand strength) and was very proud of his efforts.

Each student was given half of a precut styrofoam ball which they then placed on top of their glue dot. Prior to handing the balls out, we demonstrated how two halves make a whole. Addressing math access points again.

Then—lots of black paint and two googlie eyes later—some very awesome bats…..

Ta Da!!!

On Thursday we made an owl. We started by giving our students a choice of 3 strips of paper. Since our state Alternate Assessment is given in a 3 choice format we try to give our students lots of practice.

This paper was from a give away wallpaper sample book. Sorry for the blurry picture—those little hands move quite fast 🙂

We then flipped the paper over and trimmed it using our adaptive scissors.

The paper was glued and taped around a prepared toilet paper roll (notice the dimpled end).The precut wings (we counted 2 for each student) were taped on. We used tape because our glue needed a little help on the wallpaper. The students really enjoyed using tape.

We counted out 2 googlie eyes and 1 triangle nose (more access points). We really got a chance to work on pincer grasps while completing these finishing touches.

These owls are just so super cute!

Thanks to Nancy for finding this idea on the happy hooligans website. http://happyhooligans.wordpress.com/2011/10/06/adorable-owls/

Alphabet Group—letter H

We started by Holding a Heavy Hound with our Hands and Heaving Him around the group. This activity worked on upper extremity strengthening, trunk rotation, and social skills.

We used our tongs to pick up Halloween colored pompoms out of a House. We counted each students Haul to see How many pompoms they picked up. Tongs are wonderful for building eye hand coordination and pre scissor skills. Counting out the pompoms also addresses math skills.

Next we placed Happy face stickers on our House (drawn by Joy). Peeling and placing the stickers is great for promoting pincer grasp skills. We gave our students directions on where to place the stickers, for example “on top” of the roof to work on spatial concepts and following directions. Of course, we counted all the stickers when we finished.

Here is a Happy Haunted House 🙂

We finished by playing Cara’s listening game and looking at all the words we placed on our post its. Joy forgot to take a picture of the words this week, but we really did find lots of H words!

We had so much fun this week! Join us again for more fun Group by Group.

Oct9

Week 6—Washington DC and the letter F.

Posted on October 9, 2011 by jd785

Week 6—Washington DC and the letter F.

This week Cara did not write a book, our Sensory and Fine motor groups read the book “Let’s Visit the President” from the Unique Curriculum.

Sensory Group—Visiting Washington DC

We recorded the sounds of a jet taking off and marine band playing “Hail to the Chief” on our voice output device to add an auditory component while reading our book. Other props included a dog house (from a line in the book). We used scratch and sniff cards with scents of oil and gas which might be associated with travels in a plane or car. We added the scent of cherry blossoms for our water play and lotion.

We had a collection of lighted toys to remind us of the varieties of flashing lights seen in a city. These were especially attractive to some of our students with a visual impairment and great for visual tracking.

We searched for big and little W’s in white rice and lima beans. We noted that the grains of rice were little, while the lima beans were big. These are all access points.

We finger painted the letter W in white shaving cream. The shaving cream (or any of our sensory box items) can be placed in a ziplock bags if oral exploration is an issue.

Our box of cherry blossoms was made by pulling the petals off dollar store silk flowers. Hidden among the blossoms were small people figures (there are lots of people in Washington) and inset puzzle pieces of cars, houses and airplanes. In addition to searching for the hidden treasures, our students loved picking up handfuls of the petals and watching them drift down (another great visual tracking activity). We got some lovely smiles as the soft petals drifted down over them.

Fine Motor Group—-Visiting Washington DC

We read “Let’s Visit the President” from the Unique curriculum and our students especially enjoyed the “jet” sounds made by the voice output device. Then we proceeded to make a map of the United States, identifying Washington DC and our state capitol.

First we used our adaptive scissors to cut our paper strips (with the words Washington DC and Tallahassee) and set them aside.

Our students chose which color paint they wanted to use by pointing to a communication board we made with some construction paper.

We counted out sheets of yellow construction paper and discussed its shape (rectangle) targeting math access points. We then painted (go fairly goopy on the paint) our students RIGHT hands with the paint color of their choice. Its important to paint the right hand. If you don’t, you quickly realize your mistake (as a couple of us did) when you proceed to the next step! We also found it helpful to assist our students with thumb abduction.

Before proceeding to the next step, turn the paper into a horizontal orientation with the thumb portion pointing downward.

We used our purple glue (made by adding food coloring to regular white glue) to help our students locate the approximate geographical locations of Tallahassee and Washington DC. Working on pincer grasps to pick up the paper, our students placed them on the glue. We continued to work on pincer grasp by counting and peeling off star stickers (one to one correspondence–a math access point).

The final product——TA DA!

On Thursday we read our book again and talked about who lives in the White House.

We cut out our sentence strips using a paper cutter and set them aside.

Next we counted out 2 white card stock rectangles (working on math access points). Then we glued a picture to each rectangle. We used glue that we colored with food coloring. The colored glue helps our students see where they have placed the glue and to identify where to place their paper. Squeezing the glue also helps build hand strength.

We glued our sentence strips to the appropriate photo. We added a highlighted “Who” to the White House photo. “Who” is a new word from our Meville to Weville reading curriculum.

We then glued the rectangles back to back onto a paint stick.

And the answer to the question is……….

President Barack Obama!

Our students really loved lifting their signs overhead and getting lots of Ta-Da’s for their efforts. Just so much fun!

Alphabet Group—letter F

We Fanned our Faces with battery operated Fans. Operating the fan addresses isolating thumb movements.

Next we went Fishing. We asked the students to Find Four or Five Fish. This activity works on shoulder stability, eye hand coordination, and graded motor control. It also addresses math access points and color identification.

For our students with motor differences we used a fishing set that had a soft, easily grasped rod with a velcro tip. By swiping their rod across the pile of fish, our students were easily able to catch their share.

For our Final activity our students Found Four pink dots and drew vertical lines From each dot. We like using markers because of their vivid colors, low friction which makes it easier to make marks, and the larger diameter allows for an easier grasp. This activity addresses math access points and handwriting skills.

Next, our students stamped Four Fragrant Flowers. Joy made the stamp by cutting a flower shape out of some leftover foam and used double stick tape to attach it to a dish scrubber purchased at the dollar store. The rounded handle of the dish scrubber makes it very easy to grasp. Our students had to remember to place their flowers at the top of the “stem” (working on spatial concepts) and to stamp just one flower on each stem, counting to 4 again.

Fabulous Fragrant Flowers!

For our students with significant motor difficulties, Joy attached a marker (using velcro) to a battery operated toy they could access via a pressure switch placed by their temples. As the toy moved around, our students were able to scribble along with their classmates.

This was a huge hit, and needless to say, everyone got a turn (or more than one) to join in the fun as seen in the picture here 🙂

Some of the Fantastic, Fabulous F words we Found this Friday—-so many we couldn’t Fit them all into the picture!

Join us next week as we make learning fun Group by Group.

Sep24

Week 4—Fall and the Letter D

Posted on September 24, 2011 by jd785

Week 4—Fall and the Letter D

Our themes this week were Fall for the sensory group and fine motor groups and the Letter D for the alphabet group.

Sensory Group—Fall

We read Cara’s book “Its Beginning to Feel Like Fall” using our voice output device.

While reading the book, we took turns shaking a leaf garland to listen to the “rustling leaves”. We also used a hairdryer to simulate the cool fall breezes.

We looked for the letter F hidden in assorted dried beans. Our students really enjoyed the varied colors of the beans.

We looked for soft squirrels, hard pumpkins and strands of soft yarn in the fall colors of brown, yellow and orange. It was fun to watch our students pick out their favorites. Some of our students on the autism spectrum were particularly drawn to the colorful yarn strands.

We found some silk leaves at the dollar store.

We used the hair dryer to blow the leaves away to reveal the word FALL that was taped to the tray. Blowing the leaves (great for visual tracking) was a huge hit and our students loved gathering them all back up (working on grasp patterns and eye hand coordination). Yes, it was a little chaotic but lots of fun!

Joy made brown playdough using coffee and whole wheat flour. We used cookie cutters to make fall leaves.

Corn flakes made a delightful crunching sound, just like dried leaves.

We finished up with water play using Spiced Apple body wash and then Sweet Cinnamon Pumpkin lotion from Bath & Body Works. Lovely scents reminding us of the fall season.

Fine Motor Group—Fall

We started by reading Cara’s book, shaking the leaves, the cool breeze from the hair dryer and stroking the soft squirrel.

We tore pieces of tissue paper into small pieces. A great bilateral coordination activity.

We talked about the shape of our paper and number of leaves (drawn by Joy) which are both math access points. We added food coloring to our glue to help our students differentiate the designated areas on which to glue their tissue paper. We found this to be very helpful.

Our student with a visual impairment glued silk leaves onto his paper.

On Thursday we continued our Fall theme.

We cut brown yarn into small pieces. Many of our students use adaptive scissors, such as this tabletop version. We set the yarn aside.

The students then painted a squirrel (drawn and precut from poster board, by Joy) with brown paint. We like these brushes made with larger handles that are easier to grasp.

We then squeezed some glue onto the tails and the students practiced their thumb/finger grasp patterns by picking up the yarn and dropping it onto the glue. A googlie eye was the finishing touch! We talked about the color brown and that the paint and the yarn were the “same” color.

After the paint and glue dried, Jeannie practiced number skills with the students by counting the number of squirrels they had made.

The Alphabet Group—Letter D

We used our home made playdough again. We rolled it out into long snakes, working on graded fine motor control.

We joined the ends to make a Donut.

Next, our students Decided how many bones to feed the Dog. We like giving our students choices of 3 as they have to choose between 3 answers when taking the alternate assessment. This activity also works on number identification and as we count the bones out: one to one correspondence.

Then we used tongs to pick up the bones and feed the Dog. This toy was purchased from the Lakeshore company catalog. Tong activities are great for building pre-scissor skills and eye hand coordination.

For our students whose motor difficulties preclude tong use, we adapted (hot glueing a plastic shower curtain ring) a toy Dog. Loop velcro was glued to his mouth and hook velcro to some of the bones. Linda Burkhart (if you ever get a chance to hear her speak—don’t miss it!!!) originally came up with the idea.

For our next activity, we put Dots (round stickers) on a Duck Drawn by Joy. Peeling off the stickers works on developing a pincer grasp.

Placing the sticker on the students thumb was a way to adapt the activity for those students with increased muscle tone.

Delightfully Decorated Dotty Duck!

We played Cara’s sound matching game. She used Boardmaker pictures to make the board and computer generated sound bites.

Our students really enjoy the post-its. We try to pick up the post-it or point to it each time we repeat a word and the students really enjoy watching the array of words build up during the session. We also try to give them opportunities to identify some of the words.

Wow, another week gone by! Please join us next week for more fun Group by Group!

Sep4

week 1—Beach, School Tools, and the Letter A

Posted on September 4, 2011 by jd785

week 1—Beach, School Tools, and the Letter A

This week our themes were The Beach for our sensory group, Cool School Tools for our fine motor group and the letter A for our alphabet group.

The Beach

Cara made a super book (she will upload it later in the week) with a repetitive line. We recorded the sounds of waves and seagulls on one sequencer and the repetitive line “at the beach” on the other. Our students were able to add the auditory component by pressing the switch after the page was read. In addition, we passed around the “mer” smell from the Follow your Nose game.

We sprayed water up into the air so it would gently land on the students—-like the ocean spray.

We used coconut scented lotion as our “sunscreen”. We also had goggles and sunglasses for the students to wear.

A hairdryer placed on “cool” setting made a wonderful ocean breeze!

After we finished the story we started our water and fluid play activities.

We made salty sea water.

We used large shells and playdoh stampers in the moonsand.

Students practiced their pincer grasps finding small shells in the play sand.

Cool School Tools

In our Fine Motor Group we talked about Cool School Tools. Cara made another wonderful book (uploaded next week) with a repetitive line. After we finished the book we got to work on our activity. Joy adapted an idea she saw in Family Fun Magazine to make a giant pencil.

First the students cut a small paper plate in half using an adaptive scissors.

Then they picked a marker and colored one half of their halves. We like markers because they have less “drag” than crayons and have vivid colors. They also have nice fat handles which make them easier to grasp.

The adults then folded the plate into a cone shape and taped it closed. We pointed out that it was a CONE shape, which is a math access point.

Precut yellow and pink rectangles were passed to the students. We talked about the shapes, the colors and counted each one as it was passed out.

Students practice writing their names then turn the paper over. The pink rectangle is glued to the bottom of the yellow rectangle. Squeezing glue is great for hand strengthening!

Next we passed a precut blue strip that was then glued on top of the pink rectangle.

We turned our rectangles over and glued them around paper towel rolls.

Smoosh the cone into one end.

The finished product! Some of our students started pretend writing with their pencils—–very cute.

The Letter A

In our last group, our students practice their fine motor skills, literacy and communication skills reinforcing the “letter of the week”.

We used tongs to Add Ants to A bowl. Counting the bowls as we passed them to each student.

Joy has a variety of tongs for the students to choose from. Working with tongs is a great pre-scissor activity.

We keep some post-its and a marker handy to write down any A words. We stick them on the table so the students can see them, point to the words etc. If we use one of the words again, we pull the post-it off and hold it up.

Next we buttoned Apples on the Apple tree.

We then passed out worksheets from Autumn Activities: Apples Apples Everywhere by Peggy Hundley Spitz, OTR and purchased from Therapro.

Students were given a choice of red, yellow or green tissue paper. When taking the Alternate Assessment our students have to pick from 3 choices.

The tissue paper was then torn into smaller pieces and glued onto their apples.

Tearing paper is a great pre-scissor/bilateral coordination activity.

Well that’s it for our first week. We hope you find some useful information and come back next week for more activities Group by Group!