Interview wtih Kirsty Moore
What are the typical problems that a child can experience with regards to his/her early development?
There are no typical problems, but if in early development it is apparent that a child is slow to reach his/her milestones this can affect play skills and in turn affect learning.
For example: poor trunk control- when a child seems to be quite floppy- can lead to difficulty with fine motor tasks like writing, playing with bricks, and stringing beads together.
If a child has poor fine motor skills he might have difficulty manipulating a pencil which will lead to problems with handwriting.
Or, if a child has difficulty doing puzzles, copying block designs, or using shape sorters, he may have perceptual problems, so learning to form letters will be difficult.
At what stage do you suggest a parent should see an Occupational Therapist?
Children can be seen for Paediatric OT at any stage between 0-18yrs if parents feel that their child is developing slower than their peers. Parents should definitely take their children to see a Paediatric OT if they have an identified medical condition or disability which affects their abilities in daily life, whether that is in play, school activities, leisure or at home.
How do you assess the level of OT a child may need?
When I meet a child I evaluate his/her current needs through a combination of observation at play, discussion with parents / carers, and standardized assessments. A child would usually have blocks of therapy, maybe for 6 weeks, then a re-evaluation to determine if further intervention is necessary.
Early intervention is the key for OT, especially with children, and doesn’t mean that your child will have to have years of treatment! It might be the case that your OT can give you ideas for play at home to develop a certain skill, and that he/she doesn’t actually need to be seen regularly.
How common a problem are handwriting difficulties among the children that you see?
Handwriting problems are very common indeed and can be caused by a variety of reasons: developmental delay, visual difficulties, physical impairment, ADHD, learning difficulties etc.
At what stage do you believe an OT should intervene if a child is having difficulty with handwriting?
Early intervention is always beneficial for children who are struggling to keep up in any area, so if you or your child’s teacher feel he is having difficulties it is worth getting a specialist OT to assess him.
How do you go about tackling handwriting problems?
It depends on the reason and the problem, but generally speaking the OT will try to find another way of teaching the child to overcome his handwriting difficulty. For example, it may be helpful to provide a sensory approach where the child learns through touch, the shape of the letters, before having to put pencil to paper.
Or, if a child has dysgraphia, which is difficulty producing written language due to poor motor planning, he will struggle with organizational skills and movements that need to be in a specific order, such as the formation of letters. So, developing the child’s organizational skills, or providing visual clues for where to write on the page, will help him.
How can parents & schoolteachers help?
Parents and teachers need to keep in mind that trying to rush children’s development can do more harm than good. Learning to write is a complex skill and just as children go through developmental milestones for gross motor skills, a similar process occurs for preparing to write.
However, if a child´s handwriting problems persist, the style of teaching may need to be adapted so co-operation and understanding from the teacher is essential.
If a problem with handwriting is not tackled early on, is there an issue with avoidance behaviour?
As already mentioned, early intervention is the key with handwriting difficulties and so obviously if a child is struggling for whatever reason, he will not be keen to participate, which could then lead to problems in his overall learning and achievement in the school system.
Many children can’t write legibly and find the physical act of handwriting daunting. They are confused about the process of forming letters and sometimes hold their pencil so tight that it hurts. This leads to frustration because they can’t express themselves.
However, it is never too late and there is usually a solution or an alternative to help with the difficulty.
If a parent in Mallorca would like to see you about their child’s developmental issues, what is the best way to contact you?
They can contact me via my website www.kdosk.com/therapy, on kirsty@kdosk.com or tel. 618486852.
(April 2010)
