The theme for this year’s PT Month is Developmental Awareness. Our tagline is “Physical Therapy Month Oct. 2009: Moving Children Forward!” This is reflective of the mission of the Section on Pediatrics and APTA’s new branding effort.
Our main goal is to make our communities aware of the importance of developmental follow-up for premature infants and early detection of developmental delays for all children. Our plan is for our members to visit a variety of community settings to educate families, caregivers, teachers, physicians and other professionals on the role the physical therapist plays in identifying developmental delays. We also want to instruct individuals who care for children on the early signs of developmental delay, how to incorporate developmental play activities in everyday activities, and how to get children of all ages moving.
Here are some suggested activities to consider for PT Month:
- Present a staff in-service at a preschool or childcare center.
- Give a demonstration of developmental play activities at a preschool or childcare center.
- Provide informational materials for a preschool, childcare center or pediatrician’s office.
- Set up a fun motor activity such as an obstacle course at a childcare program, church program, Mother’s Day Out, or school event such as a fall festival, open house, parents’ meetings, etc.
- Hand out informational materials at a walk, run, fall festival, or school event.
- Present information to PT students, medical students, residents, or students in other fields if you have contacts or accessibility to these groups.
- Provide information at a professional conference or state Chapter meeting through a presentation or an exhibit table or booth.
- Participate in a health and wellness event at a mall, church or school.
- Offer screenings at clinics, physician offices, childcare programs, early intervention programs, Head Start or other preschool programs, church or community events. Make sure this is legal in your state, approved by your state licensure board, or obtain physician referral if required. For screenings, use accepted screening instruments such as the Denver II or the Ages and Stages Questionnaire or simply use the Pathways Awareness materials or similar developmental checklists. (see below)
- Implement exercise activities for school-aged children.
Here is how to get started and what to do:
- Decide which age group and type of setting you would like to work with for your PT Month activity. We suggest that the setting be one that you are familiar with and therefore already have a rapport with the staff.
- Contact the facility or event director to explain our PT Month program. Give them our introduction flyer that explains PT Month and our goal.
- Ask if you can meet with teachers, parents, caregivers, etc. regarding development and developmental play activities. This can be a lecture style presentation, a developmental play time demonstration with the children or you can simply supply the facility with the materials we have provided.
- Review the materials listed. Some are specific handouts or activities; others have several links to some very useful information. Decide what will be appropriate to your activity.
- Download and print the materials you want to use. Then copy as many as you will need for your activity.
- Use your special knowledge and skills to share information with others.
- Have fun with this and be creative!
We have provided materials to help you do this. When using these materials, please credit the organization where you obtained the materials.
The materials are divided into age groups: infants, toddlers/preschoolers, and school-aged children. This was done to target development in all age ranges and allow PTs who work in any setting to be involved in PT month.
Following are the links to all the suggested materials, including general information and age specific information. Some materials can be used for more than one age group.
General Information
Infants
Toddler/Preschoolers
School-aged Children
We wanted to include something for PT Month 2009 for those of you who do not serve infants, toddlers or preschoolers and who may not have the opportunity to work with staff in childcare centers etc. So, we are making available to you some of the materials that were successful during our PT Month 2007 for school-aged children. They have been revised and the bracelets will not be available, but the materials are certainly still appropriate.
- “Let’s ALL Get Moving!” materials
We ask all participants to take pictures of your PT Month activities, but please be sure to get a copy of the Section on Pediatrics Photo Release signed for any one you photograph. Send the photo releases (scanned in an email or a hard copy) and pictures (email) to Jacqueline Gilbert at jacqueline-gilbert@hotmail.com or at 8275 E. Brushy Fork Rd., Madison, IN 47250. Please include the name with the picture so that we can pair the correct release with the photo. In the past, we have shown PT Month photos at Combined Section Meeting or used them at our booth. We hope to see your photos there in the future!
We also ask that you contact your local media to let them know what you did for PT Month. A sample news release is included here.
- News Release (Coming soon)
Following your PT Month activities, we ask that you return to this site and complete a very brief survey. We appreciate your input; your comments really help us in making future decisions.
The Section on Pediatrics of the American Physical Therapy Association credits and acknowledges the educational materials developed by Pathways Awareness Foundation, The Center on the Social and Emotional Foundation for Early Learning at Vanderbilt University, and Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers and Families that are being made available to pediatric physical therapists for educational purposes as part of Physical Therapy Month.
A very special “thank you” to each of you who are helping to ‘Move Children Forward’! |
