Mealtime is often a cherished family experience, filled with laughter, bonding, and nourishment. But for some families, it can become a source of daily stress and worry when a child struggles with mealtime success. If you’ve ever watched your child refuse food, cough while swallowing, or struggle to gain weight, you know how emotional and…
A weighted feed is a procedure that measures a baby’s weight before breastfeeding and after breastfeeding to see how much milk has been transferred/consumed during that feeding alone. At CPTWC, our Lactation counselors have the equipment to weigh baby and assess feeding consumption. To perform a weighted feed, you can: Place the scale on a…
Many parents involved in speech therapy are concerned about speech sound production. They are also worried about the level of language their child is able to produce. It is equally important for the speech therapists to consider a child’s hearing and the way they receive auditory input. All Sounds Are Not Created Equal If your…
An IEP meeting has been called on behalf of your child: now what? The process can quickly become overwhelming and daunting for parents. Especially if it is your first time navigating the process. So, it’s important that you know what to expect! Also, to keep in mind your rights as a parent throughout the process….
The Holidays are great time to have the whole family team up in the kitchen and create something delicious and spectacular! You can use the four fun holiday snacks as grounds to explore new foods with kids! These will help kids learn about foods without pressure to consume the foods, but they just might turn…
Halloween is almost here! Before the big day, please see below for the tips our Occupational Therapy Team compiled for sensory-friendly for Trick or Treating experience. Each of these tips will help you and the whole family have your best Halloween yet! 7 Sensory-Friendly Trick or Treating Tips Make Costume Comfortable: Wear tight clothing under…
Need to spice up playtime at your house? Need toy options that are not only fun for your child but also help stimulate your child’s speech and language skills? Well we have just the list of toys for you! We have created a list of our favorite toys! Also, we have suggestions on how to…
Read the latest Tribune Article to feature our clinic and one of our kids! In the middle of May we were visited by John J. Kim, photographer for the Chicago Tribune. He spent time with two of our therapists, Alex Meeske and Jessie Smith. Additionally, he met with one of our incredible clients, Hayden Cheng….
Food Chaining is a therapeutic approach that helps introduce new foods while building on successful eating experiences. It is an approach that can be effective for all ages, specifically, selective or picky eaters that have a limited number of foods in their repertoire. Creating Food Chains In this approach, the child is presented with new…
Typical language development consists of parents, family members, and professionals talking to babies for almost a whole year before anyone expects them to produce words. We often put augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems and AAC devices in front of a child and expect them to functionally use it right away. We need to use…
Valentine’s day is right around the corner! Here’s some craft ideas to wash those winter blues away and add some colorful decorations to your house, all while working on those love-ly fine motor skills! Heart Card – Great activity for children to work on hand strength, visual-motor skills including scissors and lacing. Materials: 2 different…
With the cold weather taking over Chicago, and the ebb and flow of the pandemic, it’s important to know that Teletherapy is a useful and viable option for all families looking for help for their children from the comfort and safety of their homes. But did you also know that all insurance plans (as of January 2022) are still covering Telehealth…
If your child uses an augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) device, chances are you have heard about the importance of modeling. Modeling, aided language stimulation (ALS), natural aided language, aided language modeling and partner augmented input (PAI) all refer to the same thing: providing the AAC user with language models using their communication device. Think…
Halloween is around the corner and we have three fun and festive crafts that focus heavily on fine motor development and sensory play! Each of these crafts has an emphasis on development of pincer grasp, tripod grasp, and index finger isolation. Explore touch senses and messy play with glue, paint, and tissue paper to promote sensory integration all while making something festive or the whole…
We have eight senses (touch, taste, smell, sight, auditory, vestibular, interception, and proprioception). Our proprioceptive system provides feedback through our muscles and joints to figure out where our body is in space. Some proprioceptive activities are also referred as “heavy work” activities. Examples of Heavy Work Activities Heavy work activities add resistance during pulling or…
