This projector creates a calming sensory environment that supports relaxation and self-regulation ā perfect for winding down before bed or during quiet time. The gentle lights also encourage imaginative play, making it both soothing and engaging.
Hannah Schultheiss, Doctor of Occupational Therapy, OTD, OTR/L
Squigz are a simple, well-loved toy made of soft silicone suction pieces that stick to almost any smooth surface. They're an excellent option for home because they encourage kids to build, explore and create while strengthening fine motor skills, hand strength and coordination.
Jaclyn Oldenburg, Occupational Therapist, OTR/L
This durable toy promotes pretend play, exposure to healthy foods, communication, hand skills and bilateral motor development.
Elise Dirkse, Occupational Therapist, OTR/L
In Space Escape, kids practice communication, planning ahead, and shared decision-making as they work as a team to collect the Mole Ratsā equipment, dodge the snakes and get to the escape pod. Cooperative Games cultivate emotional development, teamwork, creative problem-solving and a sense of community.
Lauren Hohman, Occupational Therapist MS, OTR/L CAPS
Board game of strategy with color matching, memory or counting activities. It's some fine motor fun and manipulation.
Lori Davis, Occupational Therapist, MS, OTR/L
Sloth in a Hurry is a fantastic game for building speech and language skills through silly phrases and creative storytelling. As children describe, act out, and laugh about the prompts, we can target speech sounds, expand vocabulary, strengthen comprehension, build narratives, and make meaningful connections with friends and communication partnersāall while having fun!
Libby Boot, Speech-Language Pathologist MA, CCC-SLP
Who knew ice cream could support so many language skills? Designed for preschool children, this gender-neutral toy is actually a hit for children of all ages! Who doesn't love to sit down, scoop, and serve up their favorite ice cream flavors and toppings to friends, family, or even their toys?! This toy promotes pretend play, social skills, interactive play, builds language skills such as making requests, descriptive language, and asking questions, and provides excellent visuals to support working on following simple one-step to multi-step and complex directions. Plus, it is just a ton of fun!
Greta Shires, Speech-Language Pathologist, MA, CCC-SLP
Ghost in the Attic is a great team-based game that begins with a story about 2 kids and a dog, trying to escape a haunted house before the ghost does. It targets team-building skills as players work together to help the characters escape, and fosters social language development and higher order thinking as players plan and strategize together. The ghost lights up and parts of the board glow in the dark, making it fun and just a little spooky without being too scary!
Karli Wiersma, Speech-Language Pathologist, MA, CCC-SLP
These mini barns with farm animals are great fun for early language learners! They can be used to target many different skills from production of early speech sounds, to vocabulary, to prepositions, pretend play, and more.
Megan Zielinski, Speech-Language Pathologist MA, CCC-SLP
I enjoy using this play set to target pretend play, following directions, social skills with turn taking, and describing to build vocabulary. It's great for bulding language development for kids with elementary language skills.
Carleigh Curtiss, Speech-Language Pathologist, MA, CF-SLP
This toy is a very versatile toy for multiple age groups. For younger kids, I like to use it as a cause-and-effect toy. It is helpful in reinforcing simple words such as "go, up, more, big, small, etc." For older kids, it is a fun toy to target problem-solving and inferencing. Some example questions include the following: "If we make the balloon bigger, I wonder what will happen to the car?" or "Will the astronaut go higher if the balloon is bigger?" Regardless of its use, this is a toy that kids come back to again and again.
Amy Schultz, Speech-Language Pathologist, MA, CF-SLP
The Rainbow Twirler is a quiet and simple fidget toy that is a favorite for all ages. It provides calming sensory input with gentle spinning and predictable colors. The rhythmic and repetitive movement helps with self-regulation and focus, while offering a safe outlet for sensory seeking. It can be used as a fidget or visual tool to prevent overwhelm, support transitions, and promote calm and joy.
Brooke Brouwer, LMSW
This fidget toy allows for creativity and stress relief.
Barb Schafer, LMSW
Not all 3 wheel scooters are created equal! The design of the Micro Kickboard helps kids learn to lean into their turns, creating a smoother transition to 2-wheel scooters and 2-wheel bikes down the road.
Katie DeRoo, Doctor of Physical Therapy, PT, DPT, C/NDT
Need inspiration for kid-friendly gifts? Our therapists highlight their favorite toys of the season.
Did you know that approximations of words are also words?!
Simple tips to help kids ease into new routines and start the year strong.
Try empathy, validation, and visuals for previewing and planning together.
“Letās celebrate by learning: What is Occupational Therapy, and when is it right for your child? Kate Bergsma explains.”
ā¦how, when, and why I was inspired to create and build one of the first interdisciplinary pediatric private practices in the area. Iāll start with the story of the girl in the picture.
I can tell you that there is nothing better than when we, at the Center, receive the list of the children who have received a scholarship to receive therapy at our organization.
VitalStim Therapy, a specialized type of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES), is a therapeutic intervention used to treat dysphagia.
An OT, SLP, and a PT are serving up gift recommendations for your kids this year. See what they have in store for them.
The skills a child gains in symbolic play are directly linked to how they develop certain language skills.
Stuttering is characterized by a high frequency and/or duration of involuntary stoppages in the flow of speech. Core behaviors of stuttering includeā¦
Eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE) is an allergic condition triggered by foods that causes inflammation and narrowing of the esophagus.
The outdoors provides a unique set of opportunities to describe surroundings, connect verbal output to immediate environment, and more.
Communication is a human right. AAC helps people learn to effectively communicate whatever they want, whenever they want, with whomever they want.
Shared book reading goes beyond simply pulling words off the page. This simple activity requires minimal effort for maximum rewards.
With early detection and treatment, torticollis can typically be resolved with no long-term side effects.
See who made the “Best Doctors & Health Care Pros in Grand Rapids” list.
Hannah’s job search ended when she found an environment that supported her desire for ongoing learning. Lucky for us, that was here.
An OT, a PT, and an SLP walked into a toy store. Here’s what they picked out for your kids!
If mealtimes feel like a battle, finding a skilled feeding therapist can make such a difference.
What makes The Center for Childhood Development unique? A reflection on 20 years of practice.
The medical world has varying opinions about how to evaluate a tongue tie and, if one is present, what should be done to treat it. Or not.
Picture thisā¦.you have just spent a long day at the park and now itās time to go home, but guess what?
When should we be concerned about toe walking? Katie DeRoo PT, DPT, C/NDT is here to tell us.
Four reasons your child may be asking the same questions over and over (and over)ā¦
Wendi Cuson, MS, OTR/L shares insights and tools for childrenĀ with handwriting challenges.
Imagine this: Youāre headed to a work conference and thereās no itinerary. š¬
Transport from one location to another enables participation in daily occupations (the things we want and need to do)ā¦
If a child chronically mouth breaths, the tongue sits low and forward in the mouth. This can cause long-term problems withā¦
Shopping for shoes? We have helpful guidelines and recommendations for new and experienced walkers.
V/V is a language-based program that develops and enriches a childās ability to picture a spoken or written word/sentence.
The Center has really helped me so much and I want to pay it forward to the next kid.
Supporting brain and body function with tools that can be used in the clinic and at home.
Supporting brain and body function with tools that can be used in the clinic and at home.
We are frequently contacted by concerned parents of young children when their child suddenly begins stuttering.
Our OTs and PTs spent two days learning about the assessment and treatment of motor and nervous system function.
