Play therapy is one of the most effective ways of learning for children, especially in their younger years.
When our PIP Counselor would come out to our house, she would bring all kinds of books and toys to help teach different tasks that had to do with listening or speech. One of those tasks was to listen to the speech patterns, ooh/ahh/ee/o/… and so on.
When she taught this part – what the sounds were and then to listen and put the piece in its place – it was so exciting getting to hold those toy pieces, but so hard to not just put it in its place before she had the kids listen to the sounds. It was one of those therapies that was fun and frustrating!
There are so many things that we can do if we incorporate them into our daily routines. One that we liked to do, is to listen to the dryer tumble or the washing machine swish-swash when we do laundry. Outside it is fun to point to the sky and say, "blue sky," or "green grass," etc. Pretty flowers, birds chirping, a bee buzzing, kids swinging; there are so many different things that we can do to incorporate play into the many therapy assignments we have. It's a really good way to reinforce to all children, but the repetition for our special needs kids is so beneficial.
Many teachers, therapists, and state agencies (as well as your pediatrician) may have suggestions or ideas for you that you can incorporate into your child's routine. If you have ideas that you can share with the rest of us, we would love for you to share them in the comments below!
Play Therapy Information and Resources
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