Written by: Emily Swogger, OTR, MS

At Therapy Center of Buda we feel strongly about outdoor free play and providing our kiddos with a safe outdoor play space. Why are we so passionate about play? Because a child’s main occupation is to play. Play is how they learn new information in the most efficient manner. Yet in a world where children can spend up to 1200 per year on average in front of a screen, play time is rapidly being replaced with screen time. Time spent outside for children, research has shown, can be as little as 7 minutes per day!  Time spent in play in general can be as low as 30 minutes per day. Play-based activities are being decreased for a variety of reasons. On the early education front, a societal emphasis on increasing test scores or meeting Common Core requirements has shifted the focus of early learning and preschool from social emotional skills to building math and reading skills. After-school the amount of play time is decreased due to lack of time to engage in play between longer work hours and the nightly routines of dinner, homework, and bath time. For some, lack of a safe place to play in neighborhood playgrounds and parks is also contributing factor to a decrease in outside play time.  

So, why is the loss of unstructured play so important?

BY LAUREN DROBNJAK

This Sensory Halloween Scavenger Hunt is the perfect way to keep kids calm if they’re nervous or overwhelmed by Trick or Treating.

For some kids, Halloween is the best holiday of the year — candy, anyone? For others, it’s a night of complete sensory overload. From itchy costumes to strange new sounds, this spooky October evening can be a nightmare for kids with sensory processing concerns or even for kids who just get overwhelmed easily.

We thought it would be fun to take our popular Sensory Motor Scavenger Hunt and twist it up…Halloween style!

Whether your kiddo just needs a little distraction from the scary chainsaw house in the cul-de-sac or she needs a way to take it all in from a distance, we think this Halloween scavenger hunt will fit the bill.


Original source: https://theinspiredtreehouse.com/sensory-halloween-scavenger-hunt/

While playing with playdoh can give optimal time to address receptive language, expressive language, pragmatic language, sensory, fine motor, gross motor, and handwriting development not all kiddos are able to safely play with it. Sometimes kiddos eat the playdoh or they are gluten sensitivity.  Well, we have the solution! Follow the recipe below for some EDIBLE GLUTEN FREE PLAYDOH!

Edible Gluten Free Playdoh Recipe
Ingredients:
-Baby rice cereal
-Vegetable oil
-Cornstarch(or gluten-free cornflour if you are in the UK or Australia)
-Unsweetened Applesauce (you can substitute water if you don't have applesauce)
-Food coloring (optional)