Motor Minutes  

October 2019 

Greetings 
We  have  attached  our  business  cards  to  this  Month’s Motor Minutes, so that you have 
our most up-to-date contact information  If you ever want a hard copy for your records, 
please do not hesitate to ask! 

What are school-based Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy?   

OT  and  PT  are  related  services,  designed  to  support  students  within  the  school  environment. 
School-based  OT  and  PT  services  can  only  address  performance  areas  and  skills  that  are 
deemed  “educationally  relevant”,  fall  within  a  student’s  curriculum  and  within  the  least 
restrictive  environment.  Unlike  the  medical  model,  school-based  related  services  are  federally 
mandated  under  IDEA,  but  are  ​NOT  stand  alone  services  like  speech.  Related  services  are 
designed  to  be  a  supplement  to  outpatient  services  and  are  ​NOT  intended to replace medically 
based OT and PT.  

● Myth:​ OT’s teach handwriting. 

● Truth:  OT’s  focus on the underlying skills that support handwriting in the classroom, such as fine 
motor  coordination,  visual  perception,  and  visual  motor  integration  skills.  Handwriting  in  and  of 
itself is a curriculum, similar to Math and Language Arts.  Unfortunately, handwriting instruction is 
no longer included in New Jersey’s core curriculum standards.   
● Myth: ​PT’s just play ball. 
● Truth:  ​The  ability  to  catch  and  throw  a  ball  works  on  so  many  aspects  required  to  participate  in 
academic  tasks.  In  order  to  engage  in  a  reciprocal  game of catch with a peer, the following skills 
are  required:  visual  tracking,  visual  attention,  motor  planning,  timing,  prediction,  gross  motor 

 
 

Motor Minutes 
coordination, bilateral coordination, fine motor coordination, object manipulation, communication, 
joint attention, and more! That’s a lot!  

Easy OT tips to facilitate a t​ ripod grasp​ during academic tasks: 

● Use small writing implements, such as broken 

chalk and crayons, mini golf pencils, mini 
markers, etc. 
● Incorporate the use of a vertical surface (i.e. wall, 
easel, etc.) to facilitate wrist extension and 
isolated finger movements and to increase upper 
extremity strength 
● Tuck a small object (e.g. pom-pom, coin, etc.) 
under the 4th and 5th fingers during 
writing/coloring tasks, to help with hand 
separation and mobility versus stability fingers 
 
 

Easy PT tips to facilitate ball skills during academic tasks: 

● During circle time or morning meeting, use a 

medium ball, stuffed animal, or bean bag to toss 
back and forth to each student as they answer 
questions.  
● Write sight words or questions all over a beach 
ball and have students answer the question 
facing them on the ball. 
● Hot topic ball pass: See how quickly students 
can pass the ball around the room to each other. 
The student holding the ball has to name 
  something related to a topic recently learned. 
(i.e. Topic is sentences; students shout “capital 
letters,” “vocabulary,” “words,” “period,” 
“pronoun,” “verb,” “subject,” etc before passing to 
the next student). 

Caroline E. Welch, OTD, MS, OTR/L Erica Huber, PT, DPT 

cwelch@burlcoschools.org ehuber@burlcoschools.org 
Educational Services Unit: 2 ​ hone: 609-702-0500  
​ 0 Pioneer Blvd., Westampton, NJ 08060 P
 

Motor Minutes 
Thank you for your time and collaboration! 

Caroline E. Welch, OTD, MS, OTR/L Erica Huber, PT, DPT 

cwelch@burlcoschools.org ehuber@burlcoschools.org 
Educational Services Unit: 2 ​ hone: 609-702-0500  
​ 0 Pioneer Blvd., Westampton, NJ 08060 P