Under normal circumstances I would suggest using the following April Monthly Day Habilitation Activity for ideas to plan for the month, however the new normal has changed. Many school districts have created lesson plans and activities for school children that are home during these trying times including resources on speech and OT activities.
I have seen very little information for adults that receive day habilitation services. For some individuals, the new normal means staying at home in a residential setting and for others, it is staying home with family members. For people with developmental disabilities, adjusting to changes can be challenging affecting both the individual and the home.
For this month and upcoming months, I will blog articles on activities that can be used in the home to help individuals continue to work on activities and to help maintain their skills since many day habilitation programs are also closed.
For the month of April, I have included activities for National 1 Cent day, National Road Map Day, Farm Animal Day, Titanic Remembrance Day, National Earth Day and National Zoo Day. The activities focus on the following:
Following directions
Fine Motor Skills
Task Attention
Multisensory skills
Money management skills
The activities can be used by anyone of any age as well.
Learn to identify coins is one of the first steps in learning to count and understanding money management skills. The following worksheets will help to reinforce the ability to recognize the various denominations of coins.
The lesson plan below is a helpful tool to reinforce recognizing coins. Children with intellectual disabilities and special needs learn best through visual demonstrations and pictures. Remember to allow extra time to complete the task and use simple directions.
Lesson Plan: Identify Coins
Objective: the Student will successfully identify coins
Performance Criteria: The student will identify the correct coin, 3 out of 5 trials
Materials Needed:
coin worksheets
actual penny, nickle, dime and quarter
pencil
Steps:
the instructor will use real coins and identify the coin to the student
the instructor will use one coin at a time, starting with the smallest demoninator
The instructor will pick up the penny and state, “this is a penny.”
The instructor will then ask the student to pick up the penny
The instructor will aske the student to describe the penny
The instructor will ask the student the value of the penny.
Once completed, the instructor will have the student complete the worksheet
The insstructor will continue with the rest of the coins.
Memorial Day is an American holiday observed to honor the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. Military. It originated following the Civil War and became an official holiday in 1971.
Memorial Day is also an opportunity to work on fun Memorial Day activities. Children and adults with special needs lean best when using a multi-sensory approach. This helps to stimulate learning and engage individuals on various levels of learning.
The activities and lessons that I have chosen focus on visual and tactile stimulation and includes both math and reading activities. The craft activities work to improve fine motor skills.