Saturday, February 27, 2016

The Memory Game! Therapy on a Shoestring Budget


Materials: Popsicle sticks; cut sheets of paper or index cards (squares), pictures (cut in squares), staples and glue.
Construction: Glue each cut out picture on each cut out square. Glue the paper squares on the popsicle sticks and staple the ends of the paper together.  Leave one side of the card blank.
Popsicle sticks come in different sizes and colors, and they can be used for a variety of fun activities! To play the memory game, place the cards on a table with the blank side face up. The other side can have a picture or word on it.  Examples include, photo of a family member or pet, or a name of a family member, sight words, spelling words, etc. The child uses trial and error to flip each stick over one at a time and match like pictures/words with one another. Another way you could put a spin on this activity would be to have items in pairs that match up. For example, one stick could have a burger on it and the other will have fries while another set could be a basketball and a hoop. The child will have to use their short-term memory to remember which sticks have which items on them. Ways to make this activity more challenging or easier would be to either increase or decrease the number of sticks used at one time. Have fun playing the memory game!

Therapy project by Elijah Lightfoot: Posted with Permission

Friday, February 12, 2016

A Pro-Bono Student Run OT Clinic: The UTHSC Rachel Kay Stevens Therapy Center!


On February 9, 2016, the UTHSC Rachel Kay Stevens Therapy opened! The center is named after Rachel Kay Stevens, a UTHSC OT student who passed away suddenly in January of 2015.  In memory of Rachel and the amazing work she would have carried out as an occupational therapist, her family established a fund to support the establishment of a pro bono pediatric therapy center.
It has been an honor to be a part of this special project. For more information about the clinic, check out our website @ https://www.uthsc.edu/rkstc/
Here is a link to a news segment of an interview with Mr. & Mrs. Stevens: http://wreg.com/2016/02/09/rachel-kay-stevens-therapy-center-opens-today/
And the newspaper article in the Commercial Appeal of Memphis

Please help fund the clinic by making a tax-deductible donation! Just click on this link: uthscalumni.com/RKStevens