OT with children in shool

Special education services at school - the part you play in your child’s education
As a parent or caregiver of a student with special education needs, you have a very important role in your child’s education. You know your child better than anybody else. A partnership between you, the school and specialists will help your child to achieve agreed goals, and respond to challenges that will help them develop their potential in all areas of learning.
If your child has special education needs, the school they attend provides support and services. This assistance may include access to:
Specially-trained teachers who work with students with moderate learning and/or behaviour difficulties, for example, Resource Teachers: Learning and Behaviour (RTLBs) and Learning Support Teachers (LSTs )
Specially-trained teachers for students with vision impairments (called Resource Teachers: Vision)
Teachers who work with children who have hearing impairments (called Resource Teachers: Deaf)
Occupational therapists and physiotherapists who are trained to provide support to students with physical impairments.

Working with occupational therapists
This webpage profiles the work of an occupational therapist. It includes information on how she works with children and young people with special education needs, and the training and qualifications she has undertaken to become an occupational therapist.

Sometimes students need their desk tops angled to suit the way they sit or are positioned. Sometimes they need a desk top fitted with Velcro or blue tack so their pencils don't roll out of reach. At other times they simply need better access to the blackboard - it really depends on their needs at the time," says Glenda





- Careers in special Education and Related Service

These specialists use purposeful activities with people who need to develop or regain skills to learn, to play, to be employed, and to care for themselves. School based occupational therapists serve children who are developmentally delayed; emotionally, mentally and physically disabled; learning disabled; or those who are considered at risk for developing problems. Like other special education professionals in the school system,
occupational therapists usually collaborate with their colleagues when working with children. They are trained to evaluate performance, identify deficit and strength areas, develop goals for each student, and
evaluate progress.
"Children spend a lot time playing".


Education Required
A bachelor's degree is the minimum requirement to
become an occupational therapist. Approximately 97
institutions offer program studies that are accredited by the
Accreditation Committee for Occupational Therapy Education,
and all programs include a supervised clinical internship for at
least 6 months. Most states and the District of Columbia
require occupational therapists to obtain a license to practice.
Graduates of accredited occupational therapy programs can
take the certification examination administered by the National
Board for the Certification of Occupational Therapy.
Candidates who pass the exam become registered occupational
therapists and may use the letters OTR after their name.
College students enrolled in occupational therapy classes
typically study anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, neurology,
psychology, human growth and development, occupational
therapy theory and techniques, and the impact of disability on
daily life and work skills.


-The perception of occupational therapy by special school teachers in Hong Kong .

perceptions of occupational therapy • special school teachers
Abstract
Teachers are the main partners of pediatric occupational therapists in special schools. Their understanding of occupational therapy influences the provision of occupational therapy programmes in schools. Two hundred and sixty-three special school teachers were surveyed about their perception of occupational therapy in four areas: definition of occupational therapy, occupational therapists' clientele, domain of concern, and treatment media. Results showed a poor understanding. The majority of respondents did not recognise the contribution of occupational therapists' in the treatment of children with mental handicap or emotional difficulties. More than half of the respondents knew neither occupational therapists domain of concern nor the treatment media. Occupational therapists were seen to work solely with children with physically disabilities in the aspects of work and home related functions. The best known role of occupational therapists was prescription of aids and equipment. The results indicated that occupational therapists should direct their effort to educate and promote occupational therapy to other professionals and to the public. Copyright © 1996 Whurr Publishers Ltd

http://www.kidshealth.org/parent/system/ill/occupational_therapy.html