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Self-esteem in children and adolescents: how can we help?

By |2021-08-05T13:46:32-04:0021 July 2021|Child Development, Other, Special Needs|

Mathieu doesn't like to do things alone - he is afraid of failing; so, he asks his parents for help with most of his daily life activities (getting dressed, making his lunch). When it comes time to construct games or drawings, he imitates what others are doing. He develops very few new ideas on his own. What is self-esteem? Having good self-esteem is knowing that you have value as a person, and it’s also having a positive self-image. It isn’t being good in all areas, but [...]

Top 5 Old School Summer Activities for Kids

By |2021-09-15T10:32:58-04:006 July 2021|Child Development, Help with Homework, Physical Activity|

We’ve passed some of the season’s key milestones – Solstice, the last day of school, St Jean Baptiste – and now we have our eyes fixed straight ahead on a fun-filled summer! With the warmer, sunnier weather comes the chance to get outside more often and take advantage of all this new season has to offer! The backyard pools will be jumped in. The kids will be barefoot. The evenings will be filled with light conversation and laughter. Staying active in the summer comes so much [...]

Supporting Skill Building, Personal Growth and Wellness through Gardening

By |2021-06-30T11:29:35-04:0030 June 2021|Child Development, Physical Activity, Special Needs|

Starting a garden is a great long-term project that has numerous benefits. Gardening can happen in a calm, quiet and relaxing natural environment. It can be taught through online learning and videos. Gardening can also be an activity that unites a group of people through a common purpose and interest. For example, when school resumes this fall, the things that were grown over the summer can be brought in to show classmates and the growing experience can be shared through journals and photos. This can also [...]

Sleep During the Summertime

By |2021-06-23T09:51:14-04:0023 June 2021|Child Development, Other, Special Needs|

Who among us doesn't experience changes in sleep during the summer? What about the sun’s influence on our little ones? Do you have a smart kid who is slow to get to bed as soon as the sun is brighter in the evening? Or maybe a little peanut that suddenly rises when the rooster crows as soon as the sun comes out? The sleep cycle in summer is quite different from the cycle we have the rest of the year. Why? The sun and the time [...]

Empathy: developing the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes

By |2021-06-15T15:11:59-04:0015 June 2021|Child Development, Special Needs|

Are you exasperated when you see your older one laughing at her little brother crying? There may be room to develop the ability to be empathetic. What is empathy? Showing empathy is having the ability to put yourself in someone else's shoes and understand the emotions that a situation makes you feel. Empathy is sometimes confused with sympathy, which, on the other hand, is more about feeling the emotions that another person is experiencing. When you are empathetic, you maintain a certain emotional distance. We don’t [...]

Back to normal

By |2021-06-30T11:36:04-04:009 June 2021|Child Development, Other, Special Needs|

For some time now, reopening announcements have been increasingly present in our minds. An aura of decompartmentalization, of returning to ‘’normal’’ and of reunion is gradually taking hold. So does the anxiety associated with this new change.   While I was getting used to this way of functioning which appeared to me inscribed in my autistic logic as a continuation of my social reserve, I must prepare to go back to how it was before. What was that? Before, I used to say no to social [...]

Attention, organization and planning: strategies to finish the school year successfully

By |2021-08-30T11:50:06-04:002 June 2021|Child Development, Help with Homework, Special Needs|

Our children are eager to finish their school year. Along with this enthusiasm, many become antsy and their attention span dwindles yielding it difficult for them to complete their school work. Those who have struggled throughout the year also find themselves having to draw on new strengths to finish off their year successfully. And there are those who have already invested everything they had, but the challenge of accrued assignments, exams, and final projects have led to feelings of having exhausted their perseverance threshold. After a [...]

Play ball with me!

By |2021-06-30T11:35:25-04:0026 May 2021|Child Development, Physical Activity, Special Needs|

Ball games have been widely used by educators and parents for many years. With different sizes, colors and even textures, balls make it possible to create diversified games that are easy to come back to again and again. Did you know that beyond play, the ball is a tool of choice for facilitating children's development? Visuomotor coordination is essential for the development of fine motor activities such as coloring, threading, and possibly reading and writing. By playing throwing and catching games with the child, they learn [...]

Nimbly Mat: loads of fun ideas!

By |2021-05-11T16:12:41-04:0011 May 2021|Child Development, Help with Homework, Special Needs|

The new Nimbly mat has its own user guide with great ideas for working with various purposes, such as recognizing capital letters, numbers, colors and geometric shapes. Our team of occupational therapists wanted to give you even more activity options to practice different skills! Are you ready? A ton of ideas! We’ll share different alternatives with you by targeting very specific skills! Gross Motor Skills: by varying movements, we’ll stimulate coordination, balance and endurance! • vary the movements of motion by jumping with both feet or [...]

Stuttering: 7 tips to help your child

By |2021-06-30T11:37:03-04:005 May 2021|Child Development, Special Needs|

Martine has a friend at school who seems to have great difficulty expressing himself. His speech often seems "blocked": he hesitates and repeats sounds. Martine wanted to know: does my friend stutter? What is stuttering? Stuttering – What is it? First, stuttering affects four times as many boys as girls and about 4-6% of children are said to have it. Stuttering is manifested by: • Word part repetitions (ha...ha…hat) • Extensions of sounds (He’s making a ssssssnake.) • Blockages (g……ift.) In addition, stuttering can be accompanied [...]