Making a referral:
For detailed information on how to make a referral, please see the referrals page.
Occupational therapy focuses on the following areas of development. If you notice any of the difficulties mentioned, a referral to occupational therapy may be appropriate.
Gross Motor (physical skills like running, jumping and co-ordination)
- Clumsy – often trips over, bumps into things, awkward movements
- Poor balance
- Weaker than other children his/her age (floppy/lethargic)
- Difficulty with hopping, jumping, skipping, running, throwing/catching a ball compared with other children his/her age
- Avoids or shies away from playgroup equipment
- Poor posture
- Difficulty copying body position or performing new motor sequences
- Restless – doesn’t sit still in chair or on the mat
Fine motor (table top skills, eg using pencils and scissors)
- Hasn’t developed a dominant hand
- Difficulty holding pencil, immature grasp
- Difficulty using scissors
- Alternates hands when crossing the midline
- Draws on one half of the paper only
- Difficulty with drawing, copying shapes or colouring-in
- Difficulty with manipulating small objects/fine dexterity tasks
- Can’t use both hands together with ease (bilateral movement)
Sensory processing
- Sensitive to noise
- Avoids water/sand/messy play
- Overreacts to touch, cant stand in line
- Constantly touching or mouthing
- Under-responsive
- Seems unaware of own body or body position in space
Visual perception
- Cannot complete puzzles/block designs appropriate to child’s age
- Difficulty copying shapes, numbers, letter formations
- Difficulty sorting objects according to shape, size and colour
- Has a hard time finding things eg. objects in locker or desk
- Letter/number reversals
- Difficulty discriminating similarities and differences
- Difficulty copying from the blackboard
- Difficulty with position concepts (in front of, behind, under...)
Self-help skills (such as dressing, using cutlery)
- Difficulty with dressing – sorting back from front, doing up fastenings
- Difficulty with eating – messy eater, spills often, difficulty managing cutlery
- Toileting – difficulty managing clothes, wiping self, opening/closing taps to wash hands
Social/emotional
- Poor concentration, easily distracted
- Doesn’t shift attention easily from a stimuli
- Can’t focus attention to complete a task
- Difficulty settling or separating, often restless