@youreverydayot

The journal

The why behind the toys

Practical guides from a pediatric neuro-OT on sensory needs, motor skills, and how play builds both.

Latest · Move & Climb · 8 min read Supporting Your Baby's Senses: 0 to 12 Months How babies build their brains through touch, movement, sight and sound in the first year, and simple ways (and a few well-chosen toys) to support it at home. Read the article
  1. Brain Games · 7 min read Make Reflex Work Fun: Spot It, Connect 4, UNO and More Why fun matters so much in reflex integration work, and how we use everyday games like Spot It, Connect 4, UNO and cones to keep kids engaged in the clinic.
  2. Move & Climb · 7 min read Reflex Integration Through Play: What Parents Should Know What primitive reflexes are, why movement matters so much for them, and the everyday play that supports reflex integration work at home.
  3. Sensory Room · 9 min read How to Build a Sensory Playroom (In Any Size Home) Why sensory-motor play matters so much for brain development and regulation, and exactly what I'd put in a playroom, whether you have a corner or a whole room.
  4. Move & Climb · 8 min read Why Every Kid Needs to Swing: Vestibular Input, Explained How swinging and movement shape brain development and nervous system regulation, why an indoor swing is my number-one recommendation, and how to use one safely.
  5. Sensory Regulation · 7 min read Why We Use Vibration in the Clinic (and How to Use It at Home) What vibration does for the sensory system, how we use vibration plates and handheld vibration in pediatric OT, what the research says, and how to use it safely at home.
  6. Sensory Regulation · 6 min read Heavy Work: The Everyday Secret to a More Regulated Kid What "heavy work" means, why it can calm and organize busy bodies, and simple ways to build it into your child's day.
  7. Potty Training · 6 min read An OT's Potty Training Toolkit Why potty training is a sensory and motor skill as much as a behavioral one, and the tools I recommend to make it smoother.
  8. Fine Motor · 5 min read The OT-Approved Toddler Gift Guide Gifts that are fun on the first day and still building skills months later, picked by a pediatric occupational therapist.