Occupational Therapy for Children in Singapore
Occupational therapy is a specialised form of therapy that focuses on helping individuals develop, improve, and maintain the skills necessary for daily activities and participation in various environments. This form of therapy is especially beneficial for children in Singapore who face challenges with sensory processing, motor skills, social interaction and cognitive development.
The most important factor for success in preschool readiness is a child’s ability to self-regulate their behaviours, emotions, and thoughts. Universally, children aged 3 to 6 are deemed ready for preschool, including in Singapore, due to the process of neuromaturation.
Occupational Therapy for Children’s Developmental Challenges
A child lacking adequate self-regulation abilities can lead to developmental challenges that would be hard to rectify later in life. Our occupational therapists will provide training for children with the following challenges:
- Navigating Step-by-Step Instructions: Displays difficulties in following instructions sequentially.
- Understanding New Concepts: Finds absorbing and applying new information challenging
- Emotional Control: Struggles to self-soothe and regulate emotions during stressful moments.
- Social Play: Finds it hard to adjust their play and interactions with peers.
- Organising Movements for Daily Tasks: Displays difficulties in physical coordination needed for active participation in daily routines.
- Maintaining Attention in Handwriting Tasks: Struggles to sustain concentration and motivation for handwriting and similar activities.
How to Develop Your Child through Occupational Therapy
- Fine Motor: Developing the precision and coordination of small muscle movements in the hands and fingers. Activities are tailored to improve tasks, such as writing, buttoning, and manipulating small objects, which are essential for everyday independence and academic tasks.
- Gross Motor: Focusing on the control and coordination of large muscles for movement and balance through engaging in playground activities and physical education classes.
- Sensory Processing: Addressing sensory processing challenges by identifying and applying strategies that help children better manage their environment, making daily activities more manageable and enjoyable.
- Visual Perception: Improving the ability to interpret and understand visual information. This includes recognising shapes, letters, and numbers, crucial for reading, writing, and navigating the environment.
- Cognition: Enhancing thinking skills, including memory, attention, problem-solving, and decision-making. Cognitive activities are integrated into our therapy to support academic learning and daily decision-making processes.
- Core Strength: Building the foundational strength needed for stability and posture. A strong core is vital for gross motor activities, maintaining attention in a classroom setting, and performing tasks that require sitting or standing for extended periods.
- Praxis (Motor Planning): Helping children develop the ability to conceive, plan, and execute unfamiliar motor actions. This includes the ability to sequence actions appropriately, essential for learning new physical activities and organising tasks.
- Bilateral Coordination: Fostering the ability to use both sides of the body together in a coordinated way through activities such as cutting with scissors, typing, and tying shoelaces.
- Body Awareness: Develops a child’s understanding of the body’s position in space, which is crucial for navigating physical environments safely and effectively participating in group activities.
Learning Outcomes:
- Your child may develop a refined ability to monitor tasks and execute plans with greater precision.
- You may observe an improvement in your child’s working memory and ability to initiate tasks without delay.
- Your child will learn effective strategies for emotional regulation, transitioning between activities, and inhibiting impulsive behaviours, enhancing their daily life skills and independence.
Experienced and Qualified Pediatric Occupational Therapists in Singapore
Finding the right therapist who aligns with your values, skills and experience is crucial for both your and your child’s success. An occupational therapist is not merely a professional providing a service, but a trusted partner in your parenting journey.
At Cornerstone Therapy, we meticulously select our team based on their character traits, years of relevant experience, commitment to family empowerment, and knowledge in intervention approaches to build Self-Regulation, Organisation and Motivation (ROM).
The ROM Theory is the cornerstone of our therapy because we prioritise ensuring that your child is regulated, organised and motivated during therapy. This ensures that the child will be actively engaged in the activities specially designed for them. This active engagement is how we achieve meaningful progress in speech, communication, and social skills, whether it’s through occupational therapy, educational therapy or other therapeutic forms.
By building and developing these skills, children can then apply them to real-world environments more effectively, enabling them to interact with others more successfully, and embrace a broader array of learning opportunities. These are the outcomes that our occupational therapists strive to achieve.
Our Facility in Singapore
Location: 20 Sin Ming Lane Midview City
#03-66 Singapore 573968