The Occupational Therapy course at Swabodhini, is a direct remedial approach that teaches the child the basic life skills, the ultimate goal being to give the student independent control over their daily activities. Utilizing both non-standard and standardized assessment implements, the therapist evaluates the child’s:

• Stamina and Attention Span
• Play skills
• Need for Personal Space
• Aggressive or Other Types of Behavior
• Responses to touch or other types of stimuli
• Interaction between the child and its Primary Care Givers
• Transition to new activities
• Motor skills such as posture, manipulation of small objects and balance

To treat a child with autism or special needs, there is no one perfect plan, as each child is different. Therefore, based on the information that is gathered from the evaluation, a tailored program is developed. The Individualized Occupational Therapy plan may be a combination of different strategies, which helps the beneficiary to respond positively to his / her environment. Specialized therapeutic techniques like Sensory integration, Neuro development, Behavior modification approach, are utilized to improve the performance of the child, so that he / she will function better in their daily activities. The therapist supports by introducing, maintaining and improving these skills with the ultimate goal of providing self-sufficiency and independence, in the child’s daily life.

Some of the skills fostered by the Occupational Therapy Course:

• Major motor skills used for riding or biking
• Everyday living skills
• Fine motor skills that are needed to hold objects, write with or cut using a pair of scissors
• Posture while sitting or perceptual skills, such as identifying the different colors, shapes and sizes of objects
• Self-help, coping, communication, problem-solving, play and social skills
• Visual skills for writing and reading

Through all of this, Swabodhini’s primary aim to guide and teach the student in achieving functional independence in their daily life activities.