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Toy Review: A closer look at Melissa & Doug’s pattern blocks and boards

Thursday, November 18th, 2010

 

 

PATTERN BLOCKS AND BOARDS

As the holiday season rapidly approaches, the hunt is on for fun, educational toys that will make great gifts. For those of you who have pre-schoolers who have outgrown peg puzzles, but who are not yet ready for interlocking puzzles, this toy is a great choice. A 3 or 4 year old would be an ideal candidate for the pre-made pattern boards, or create his/her own design using just the geometric shapes without the pattern board.

Therapeutically, Pattern Blocks and Boards is excellent for building visual perception skills, including shape recognition, color recognition, and visual spatial relationships. Take the opportunity to teach your child how to fit the shapes into a preexisting pattern to create a picture (i.e. bunny or butterfly, as seen below). Or create unique, one-of-a-kind designs with your child. It is so much fun that your children will not even realize how much they are learning!

The toy includes a total of 120 wooden geometric shapes, with 6 different shapes, and 5 double sided pattern boards.

Pros of the toy include the durability. The pieces and pattern boards are wooden, there are enough pieces to allow more than one child to play simultaneously. Unlike many toys that have loud music and flashing bright lights, this toy can foster creativity and quiet thought.

Cons of the toy are that there is no cover, which makes it difficult to keep all the pieces together, so consider storing them in a re-sealable bag. Also, the pieces move around the board very easily, which may be frustrating for children who tend to knock things over. Since there are no indentations to help the pieces stay put, you might want to take the time to put small pieces of Velcro on the back of the shapes.

Blog written by: Aviva Goldwasser, MS, OTR/L

                              Chaye Lamm Warburg, DPS, OTR/L, Director of POTS
This entry was posted on Thursday, November 18th, 2010 and is filed under POTS Favorite Toy Ideas.

BOOK REVIEW: Starting Sensory Integration Therapy: Fun Activities That Won’t Destroy Your Home or Classroom!

Tuesday, November 9th, 2010

This fun, creative book was written by Bonnie Arnwine, a mother whose child has sensory processing disorder (SPD). The book is full of exciting, inexpensive, sensory activities that are designed to be done in a clinic or at home because they use common household items and are easy to prepare. My favorite part is the “Extend It!” section in which ideas are offered on how to prolong a child’s interest in the activity.

This book offers a brief introduction to Sensory Integration (SI), understanding SPD, and beginning a Sensory Diet (see our glossary of terms on www.potsot.com). It is not intended to be an educationally informative book, but rather is a great resource for sensory activities. It is an excellent choice for preschool teachers, practitioners, and parents once you know what sensory system you are targeting.

Each chapter contains activities that are geared toward a particular sensory system. In the chapter on tactile (touch) activities, my favorite activity was “Hair Gel Bags”. Here’s how to do it at home:

What you need:

 Hair gel

  • Sparkly items
  • Ziploc sandwich bags
  • Duct tape

 Optional items:

 Grocery bag or large sheet of paper

  • Beads

Open a Ziploc bag and squirt about a ¼ C of hair gel inside. Place a few sparkly items, such as glitter or sequins, inside the bag as well. Close the bag securely, seal it with duct tape at the zipper end, and let your child squish the contents around.

Extend It!

Tic-Tac-Toe

Make ten hair gel bags, five each of two colors. Draw a large Tic-Tac-Toe grid on a piece of paper or grocery bag to play. Instead of x’s and o’s, one person uses bags with one color, and the other player uses the second color. Add beads to the bags for more texture.

Tracing Fun

Place a maze or design under the hair gel bag. Have your child trace his/her way through the maze or trace the design through the bag.

Check out the book for more great sensory ideas. It is available at www.amazon.com as well as www.barnesandnoble.com.

Arnwine, B. (2007). Starting Sensory Integration Therapy: Fun Activities That Won’t Destroy Your Home or Classroom! Arlington, Texas. Future Horizons Inc.

Blog written by: Aviva Goldwasser, MS, OTR

                       Chaye Lamm Warburg, DPS, OTR, Director of POTS
This entry was posted on Tuesday, November 9th, 2010 and is filed under Sensory Integration.