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Growing Hands-On Kids

Growing Hands-On Kids

Child Development Tips, Tools, and Strategies

Child Development Tips, Tools, and Strategies

Encourage your child to reach their fullest potential through hands-on play and developmentally appropriate activities.

Welcome!

My mission is to provide developmental tips, tools, and strategies to help you grow hands-on kids. Whether you are a parent, educator, therapist, or other professional, this site is for you.

Get My Free Fine Motor Checklist for Ages 0-6!

Get my FREE Fine Motor Checklist for Ages 0-6 when you subscribe to Growing Hands-On Kids. Put your email in the box below to get yours now! You'll also get my weekly child development tips newsletter. Join 50,000 others and get these free weekly tips.

Free Sensory Systems Email Series

Discover how all 8 sensory systems are connected and are the building blocks of child development. Also, get an 8 Sensory Systems Handout with signs of sensitivities and activity suggestions.

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Free Fine Motor Email Series

Not sure where to start with fine motor skills? This Fine Motor 101 email series is a great place to start. Get a Fine Motor Skills Checklist, plus activity suggestions for all ages and levels of ability.

Learn more

Free Pre-Writing & Handwriting Series

Understand the importance of pre-writing lines and strokes, how pencil grasp develops, and ways to promote handwriting success through hands-on activities.

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Basics of pre-writing skills for kids.

Why are pre-writing skills important for handwriting? In this brand new ebook, Heather takes a look at the research on why pre-writing skills are crucial for your child’s future handwriting.

You’ll discover the foundational skills needed for future handwriting like sensory processing, gross motor, fine motor, and visual-motor skills. Plus you will get specific hands-on activity ideas for each of these developmental areas, including ways to introduce pre-writing lines and shapes to your child.

This ebook is ideal for any person who has or works with a child ages 2-6.

Click to Buy Yours!

Sensory Processing Explained was written by an Occupational Therapy Assistant and mom of seven children. They use their unique experiences as a parent of children with sensory processing disorder and working in the classroom setting with children of various sensory processing challenges.

This book is three books in one so that you will get exactly what sensory processing information is right for your situation. It was written with easy to understand terms and language so that you can feel confident in explaining your child or student’s sensory processing struggles with parents, family, friends, or co-workers. 

CLick to buy yours!

“Basics of Fine Motor Skills is a comprehensive breakdown of the fine motor skills needed for development and function. Heather has provided a valuable resource that describes each underlying skill under the vast term, “fine motor skills”.  This book is a great compliment to individualized goal areas for children.  Therapists can use this resource for activity development and planning.  Parents and educators will appreciate the clear and concise breakdown of skill areas and “red flags” that provide education in an easy to understand manner. The engaging activity lists are designed to target necessary skills while supporting the healthy development of children at all levels.” – Colleen Beck, OTR/L – The OT Toolbox.

Click to buy yours!

Visit the Growing Hands-On Kids Shop

Digital products to help you create hands-on and developmentally appropriate activities for your children and students.

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Fine Motor Skills Checklist for kids ages 0-6+ free download.

get this free checklist

Fine Motor Checklists for Ages 0-6

We've all seen the news articles that state children entering Kindergarten are coming with minimal fine motor skills. Many teachers and Occupational Therapists are noticing this trend not just in Kindergarten, but all age groups and grades.

It's important as parents, educators, and therapists to realize what skills are age-appropriate and what a child really needs to be able to do when getting to school age. These fine motor skills checklists were created to help you do just that.

Get your copy
Sensory & Behavior

Handwriting
Gross MOtor

Hands-On Activities
Fine MOtor

Printables

Hi there, I'm Heather.

COTA

I’m Heather, a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant (COTA) turned homeschool mom of two. I believe that all children can reach their fullest possible potential through hands-on play and developmentally appropriate activities.

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New on the blog…

Spring-Themed Pre-Writing Activity Printable

Spring is in the air! You are looking for some fun, spring-themed activities to add to your day or therapy sessions? Today, I'm sharing a spring-themed pre-writing activity printable. This printable packet is designed for preschool through kindergarten-age children. What…

Continue Reading Spring-Themed Pre-Writing Activity Printable

26 Themed Writing Tray Ideas

Writing trays are a great way to encourage handwriting practice for reluctant writers or beginning writers. I've put together 26 themed writing tray ideas, one for each week of the school year. Because of copyright, I am not able to…

Continue Reading 26 Themed Writing Tray Ideas

Occupational Therapy Month School-Based I-Spy Printable

April is Occupational Therapy Awareness month! To celebrate, I created an Occupational Therapy month school-based i-spy printable that you can use in-person or virtually with a Google slide option. Benefits of I-Spy Pages There are some great benefits to using…

Continue Reading Occupational Therapy Month School-Based I-Spy Printable

Top of the picture is a boy spelling words with alphabet blocks on a blue surface. Blue text on a white background below the picture states "hands-on ways to practice spelling words".

11 Hands-On Ways to Practice Spelling Words

My daughter is in second grade now and has 12 spelling words per unit in our language arts curriculum. Even though she is older, she still benefits from hands-on ways to practice spelling words, not just route oral or written…

Continue Reading 11 Hands-On Ways to Practice Spelling Words

Young boy sitting on a saucer swing throwing coloring balls at a target. Blue overlay with white text that says "Resources for Creating Sensory Diets".

Resources for Creating Sensory Diets

In the last post, we looked at the basic idea behind what a sensory diet is, who can create one and who they are helpful for. Today I wanted to share some resources for creating sensory diets for therapists, parents,…

Continue Reading Resources for Creating Sensory Diets

What is a Sensory Diet?

What are sensory diets? Who are they for and who should create one? Today we will answer the question “what is a sensory diet” as well as who can develop them, use them, and who a sensory diet might benefit.…

Continue Reading What is a Sensory Diet?

CONTENT DISCLAIMER: Heather Greutman is a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant.
All information on the Website is for informational purposes only and is not a replacement for medical advice from a physician or your pediatrician. Please consult with a medical professional if you suspect any medical or developmental issues with your child. The information on the Websites does not replace the relationship between therapist and client in a one-on-one treatment session with an individualized treatment plan based on their professional evaluation. The information provided on the Website is provided “as is” without any representations or warranties, express or implied.

Do not rely on the information on the Website as an alternative to advice from your medical professional or healthcare provider. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment as a result of any information provided on the Website. All medical information on the Website is for informational purposes only.

All activities outlined on the Website are designed for completion with adult supervision. Please use your own judgment with your child and do not provide objects that could pose a choking hazard to young children. Never leave a child unattended during these activities. Please be aware of and follow all age recommendations on all products used in these activities. Growing Hands-On Kids is not liable for any injury when replicating any of the activities found on this blog.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITY The Website was developed strictly for informational purposes. You understand and agree that you are fully responsible for your use of the information provided on the Website. Growing Hands-On Kids makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees. You understand that results may vary from person to person. Growing Hands-On Kids assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions that may appear on the Website.
The 8 sensory systems printable packet.

Get This FREE 8 Sensory Systems Handout

Sign-up to receive my 9-day sensory processing email series and get this 8 sensory systems handout in English & Spanish!

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Growing Hands-On Kids

Growing Hands-On Kids, LLC 2020. All content, photos/graphics, video, printables and ebooks written or created by Heather Greutman of https://growinghandsonkids.com are copyright of the owner. You may not alter or reuse text/content, photos/graphics, or videos in any way (print or digital use) without express written consent from Heather Greutman. For more details, please read our website terms of use and policy page.


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