Quercetti Filo Lacing

Quercetti Filo Lacing

Quercetti Filo Lacing seems like an awesome activity every OT should own, and yet I rarely use it and have never recommended it.

The white lacing grid (see image above) is made of a rubbery material and has 216 holes in it. It also serves as the lid for the case, which is where you store all the pieces. Inside you will find nine pattern cards, four cords, and four tubes. As you can see from the image above, there is a clip at the top that keeps the case closed.

The reason I have not used this item much is that I feel the tool is just plain awkward to work with. The cord slides through the top of the tube, so it hangs out the top. The tube is tapered and is smaller in diameter than a pencil at the bottom. It is transparent so you can see how much cord is left once you get to the end of it. The ends of the cord are tipped and the first push into the white grid anchors the cord. Pull the tube back out and leave the cord behind.

Follow the pattern card and go from hole to hole, pushing the cord into the hole and pulling it taut as you pull the tube back out and push it into the next hole. The length of the cord usually just makes it to the last hole, if I am doing it. When kids do it they don't tend to pull it taut enough and they run out of cord before they run out of picture. Of course pulling it too taut will pull it back out. It is disappointing to have two or three holes to go and run out of cord, or to have some one looking over your shoulder saying "a little tighter" over and over. And if the cord becomes lax for whatever reason, it has to be pulled back out the top to make it taut again. 

There are nine pattern cards with a different image on either side (18 images total). The pattern card sits off to the side of the grid, not on top of it, so you will have to count holes as you go. The pattern cards are about the same size as the white grid. Some of the pictures are a sailboat, a person's face, a simple tree scene, and a jack-o-lantern.

There are so many holes (18 X 12) that I find myself constantly counting across and down, up and over, etc. I have tried putting tiny colored circle stickers on each hole to push through and that was a disaster. I finally just put it away. I feel like I am setting my kids up for failure with this toy so I don't use it. May work fine for skilled or older individuals. Or you could allow a child to randomly push into holes and make his own picture to work on finger strength and dexterity and manipulating a tool. 

Try this:

• Work on visual discrimination, figure ground, spatial relations, position in space, eye-hand coordination, sequencing, manual dexterity, pincer grasp, finger strength, fine motor precision, palmar arch development, separation of two sides of hand, intrinsic muscle development, tool use, using both hands in a coordinated manner, motor planning, executive functioning skills, process skills, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 1 grid/carrying case, 4 tubes, 4 cords, 9 2-sided pattern cards (full size), 1 pattern book with additional patterns (not full size)
Ages 4+ 

Sticky Mosaic Pretty Cards

Work on precise fine motor control, in-hand manipulation, pincer, coordinated use of both hands, eye-hand coordination, tactile perception, figure ground, spatial relations, visual discrimination, play and leisure exploration and participation

In the box: 8 cards, 8 envelopes, small square stickers, gem stickers
Ages 5+

Handcrafted Mother's Day cards for about $1.50 each. Not a bad price for a card, plus you get the fun and value of personalizing it! There are no words inside the cards, so you can make them for any occasion you want. I had kids make them and give them out for Mother's Day. There will be stickers on both the inside and outside of the cards. There is a cutout on the front that lets the stickers on the inside show. There are four designs and 2 of each design - eight total. I don't have one to take a picture of because we gave them all away, but maybe this picture will help.

Each card starts out with squares with numbers. You can see this best on the card above in the middle top, the big flower. The green leaf has white boxes with black numbers in them. Find a square's number on the color key and place that color sticker on the square. The color key is bottom left front of the box and printed on a sheet inside the box. Stickers have to be oriented in different directions and they are quite small squares. If kids have trouble taking the stickers off and leaving the white backing behind, I take them off in little chunks and hand the chunks to them to pull apart and place. It makes a nice finished card that kids have been happy to give. The cards are the size of a typical greeting card and we complete one in less than a therapy session. Of course that depends on the individual. Envelopes are included. I am waiting for a Christmas version!

For more information, click on the image below.

Relax

Teach deep breathing with this simple app.

A very simple app to teach deep breathing when working on stress management, self-calming, coping, relaxation strategies. I usually start with this strategy because it is simple to learn and do, it is effective, it can be done anywhere and without attracting attention, it does not require any special tools or equipment, and once learned, it is something we can stop and do any time it is needed during a therapy session. You can set the length of time, the breathing pattern (beginner, intermediate, advanced), and breaths per minute. I simply use the beginner 1:2, which is inhale for 4 seconds, exhale for 8 seconds. I use the image of smell the flowers and blow out the candle. I hold my fist under my chin as if I am holding a bouquet of flowers and smelling as I inhale, then I switch to holding up my index finger to represent blowing out a candle as I exhale. Individuals of many levels can understand and do this. If you start your therapy session with this exercise you may also have the added benefit of everyone starting the session calm and relaxed. :)

For more information, click on the image below.

Exact Change

Exact Change

In the box: 110 cards

 

Exact Change card game is the winner of multiple awards: Dr. Toy's 100 Best, iParenting Media Award, Creative Child Magazine Seal of Excellence, The National Parenting Center Seal of Approval.

 

This is a card only game, no play money. Each card has a colored border and an image of actual money. It plays a little like UNO as you will be matching border color or money.

 

Object:

Accumulate $2 in the bank, which may or may not take more than one hand.

 

Set up:

Shuffle the cards. Deal seven cards to each player and put the rest of the deck face down on the table. Players hold their cards in their hand, not letting others see them. Turn up one card.

 

Play:

Players take turns. On a turn a player must look at the turned up card in the middle and do one of these:

• Match the color of the card (any coin value, just match the color)
• Match the coin (any color, just match the coin value)
• Play multiple cards and make exact change for the card (any color mix). For example, if a quarter is played, you can play two dimes and a nickel, or you could play a dime, two nickels, and five pennies. The Loose Change cards have odd values on them (11 cents, 56 cents, $1.01) and can be used to help you make exact change. 
• Play a specialty card:
• Wild card - Can be used for any coin value. 
• Bank withdrawal card -  Choose another player to pick one of your cards and add it to his hand
• Collect Tax card -  All players, except the one who played the card, must draw a card from the draw pile

If you cannot play, you must pick cards, and keep picking until you are able to play.When the hand is over the winner of the hand chooses one person, adds up the values of all the cards in his hand, and the winner puts that amount into his "bank" (keep score).

To see a list of games with money, click here.

Try this:

• Skip the color matching, just make exact change.
• Take out all the word cards and play without them.
• Have a pile of real change handy and after making change with the cards, make the same change with real coins.
• Work on making change, learning coins, visual discrimination, manual dexterity, shuffling/dealing/fanning cards
  

For more information, click on the image below.