Our little school is starting to use sensory items in all the classes as we learn more about how they help many students. I will be integrating arts and crafts activities into my small group sessions as they enjoy using the art supplies I have available because it provides an additional method for expressing thoughts and feelings. The ideas that were presented in the article are ones that I have recently been introduced to and am eager to implement! I love using everyday objects to promote bilateral coordination – nuts and bolts, lacing, stringing items, etc

Toy With Buckles - Etsy UK Toy With Buckles - Etsy UK

Lacing is a great bilateral integration skill. Usually, students have not done a lot of it and it is interesting them. Beginning fastener skills are great too. Doing any repetitive activity is usually calming for students. I love to use building toys such as Junior Mechanix or Legos to work on bilateral coordination skills. Cutting, stringing beads and lacing are all great as well Bilateral coordination in functional tasks makes up much of our day! Think of all of the other areas where you are using both hands or both sides of the body at the same time: getting dressed, tying shoes, cooking, typing, holding a book while reading, pouring a glass of water…the list could go on and on! I like to have students participate in cooking activities to enhance bilateral coordination for functional tasks like holding the bowl while stirring, opening containers, etc.

Bilateral coordination toys are an occupational therapy intervention that helps children develop essential skills in bilateral integration. Toys that use both hands in a coordinated manner help children with bilateral coordination, crossing midline, and using both hands in tasks. These are essential skills that allow for an integration of both sides of the body, but more than that, bilateral coordination tells us that the brain is communicating effectively and sharing information between sides of the brain. Most recently my kids liked placing matching beads on a pipe cleaner tree. The tree wasn’t stable enough so it required a second hand to stabilize while they placed beads with dominant hand. Also love a pop tube for bilateral hand work. Even my kids who don’t like loud sounds will engage with a pop tube! A bilateral coordination lacing plate is a DIY toy and activity that can be used to work on coordinated use of both hands with a variety of themes. With all the recent holidays, we have been doing a lot of craft activities that require cutting, gluing, coloring. Great to work on fine motor, bilateral coordination, and executive function to follow the directions. Today we are cutting green paper strips and rolling them together to form a Christmas tree.

Buckle Toys - Belle Turtle - Learning Activity Toy - Develop Buckle Toys - Belle Turtle - Learning Activity Toy - Develop

Another bilateral coordination task is cutting with scissors with one hand while holding and manipulating paper with the other hand.

Popular Buckle Toys

Play dough and sensory doughs are fun ways to play while working on skills like bilateral coordination and other motor skills. I make seasonal paper plates that require clothespin- spider/legs, turkey/featers, flower, snoflake, Santa’s beard, reainbo to match paint sample colors, ice cream cone with sprinkles, etc. i also have them stand on a balance board while they complete the ideal cross midline activity- especially with lots of turkey feathers they painted with dor markers. I also have a variety a clothespins from easy plastic to plastic clamps or paper fasteners that are hard. I even had wide handled plastic one for different squeeze/grasp… Zoom ball and lacing old Christmas cards that I have laminated and hole punched are 2 of my favourites. I love using a zoomball, accordian tubes, stringing different kinds of beads, Mr. Mustache Man (tennis ball with slit cut into it; kids have to squeeze the mouth open with 1 hand & feed with other hand), different gross motor games/obstacle courses, construction toys (especially Zoobz), and many more activities. 🙂