All Things Sensory by Harkla

Matt Sloan is a certified occupational therapy assistant specializing in sensory integration therapy. Matt is also a fitness professional, coach, and has worked as a special education teacher and adaptive PE teacher. Matt has been involved in education for over 25 years working with kids and adults of all abilities in a multitude of settings. Matt now runs Sensory Fitness - a program developed to...

We got a question on instagram that we’re going to answer in today’s episode! When doing sensory activities, should I continue the challenging activities or push through them with my child when my child has adverse reactions? Such a great question! We dive into this topic and discuss the ‘just right challenge’ as well as provide some examples of what this looks like for different situations. We gi...

Today’s episode is a 1-on-2 with a fellow OT where we dive into all things primitive reflexes! We talk about a variety of challenges related to primitive reflexes as well as we really got to nerd out on all the activity ideas! If you’re a therapist working with children, this episode is GOLD! But don’t shy away from this episode if you’re not a therapist - there are some great ideas for kiddos who...

In today’s episode we dive into WHY we believe, and why research shows, that establishing hand dominance is vital to success with a variety of daily activities. We also talk about what it looks like if a child is struggling to establish hand dominance and of course, we give you our favorite tips and tricks to help! Stick around to the end to listen to us answer two listener questions! Be sure to c...

Jessica Irwin is a childhood routine expert, pediatric occupational therapist, and lover of all things child development. She has worked in pediatrics since 2014 in a variety of settings including daycares, preschools, elementary schools, private practice, and pediatric home health. She founded Rooted in Routine in 2019 to help parents learn simple, easy to implement routines for optimal child dev...

Today we break down skills necessary for handwriting, and give you our favorite OT-based strategies for improving this skill! The title says 10, but let’s be real - we give you way more! Be sure to check out the show notes on our blog at Harkla. Co/Podcast. Brought To You By HarklaPodcast listeners get 10% off their first order at Harkla with the discount code "sensory". Head to Harkla.co/sensory...

We want to give you our top tips for infants and toddlers - based on our clinical, professional experiences as well as our personal experiences! Our goal is to share information, no shame involved! Take what works for you and share with anyone you think can benefit! We also answer a couple of listener questions at the end, so stick around! Check out the links below for a bunch of our fav. products...

Lauren is a pediatric speech pathologist and has been practicing for over 13 years. She specializes in childhood stuttering and is the owner of Stutter Free Kids. Lauren takes an integrative approach to stuttering that both treats directly but also teaches how to support greater fluency through play, connection, brain care and managing high sensitivity, which is common among children who stutter....

Meeting the sensory threshold is the first step in helping a child feel more regulated. But do you know what that means?!If not, this episode will give you all the details on what, why, and how! If so, this is a great episode to refresh and send to everyone you know! We also answer 2 listener questions, so stick around to the end! Also, check out the links below for even more amazing content, arti...

Kian McBurnie is a Speech Language Therapist from Long Island, NY (SLP-CCC, PROMPT Certified). She graduated in 2012 and has experience with students 3-21 years old across settings such as homecare, a school for the Deaf, and various school districts. She is PROMPT (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Phonetic Motor Targets) Certified and passionate about all things motor. Be sure to check out the show...

You may have heard us talk about this before, but we truly believe in the power of the pause. What does that even mean? When working with children who have sensory processing challenges or other developmental disabilities, a pause can have a huge effect on a lot of things. We dive into WHY a pause can be so beneficial as well as provide some interesting articles that discuss this topic. And stay t...

Toothbrushing is a skill that every child learns - but why do some children struggle more than others when it comes to brushing their teeth? We break down the WHY behind a variety of challenges related to toothbrushing - specifically from a sensory perspective but also looking at the specific skills required. Then we give you our favorite tips and tricks to try at home! We also answer two listener...

Jenny Best, Founder and CEO of Solid StartsA mom of three, including twin toddlers, Jenny is a baby-led weaning expert and food and farming enthusiast on a mission to make it easier for parents to introduce real food to their babies. Prior to launching Solid Starts, Jenny led global communications at One Acre Fund and Slow Food USA and served many years in the NYC government. Before that she was a...

Today, we’re talking about auditory hypersensitivity. We explain the auditory system, what it is, and how it works, before moving on to discuss the various signs that might indicate that your child has auditory sensitivities, and the adverse reactions you might see. We share some helpful tips on how to support your child with auditory hypersensitivity. We also answer listener questions at the end...

The holidays can be stressful - changes in routine, lots of different sights, sounds, and activities, new and different foods, etc. So we’re here to give you our 10 favorite sensory strategies to help make your holiday season a little bit easier. We talk about visual schedules, sensory diets, and using your own sensory strategies! We also made a fun YouTube video and a Free Holiday Sensory Surviva...

This week on the All Things Sensory podcast, we bring you our very own version of Myth Busters, SPD edition! Listen in as we discuss and debunk eight common myths about Sensory Processing Disorder. Tuning in, you’ll find out what you can say to someone who might not believe that SPD even exists, or if someone criticizes your parenting style because your child is ‘overreacting’. We discuss everythi...

Since it’s the week of Thanksgiving, we are talking about all the things we’re thankful for. A few weeks ago, we asked you to share with us on Instagram what you’re grateful for, and what you love most about your sensory child, or yourself, if you’re a little on the neuro-diverse side. We got some amazing responses. We talk about how sensory kids look at the world with a different perspective, and...

Lori Benson Adams, MEd, is an educational intervention specialist and owner of Breakthrough Learning Solutions in Atlanta, Georgia. She has over 35 years of experience with students who experience sensory, learning, behavioral, and executive function challenges. Lori presents nationally to audiences of parents, therapists, and educators. She is known for her immediately practical information and w...

Motion sickness is caused when your brain can't make sense of the information sent from your eyes, ears, and body. Many of us have experienced motion sickness at some point in our lives and many of us experience it frequently. This episode is full of helpful tips and tricks related to motion sickness! We talk about using a variety of sensory strategies including olfactory strategies, oral motor an...

You don't have to be sensory sensitive to feel the effects of a lively children's party, but that amount of sensory input may not be just fun and games for your kiddo. Perhaps they might experience some dysregulation before, during, or hours or days afterward. In this episode, we dive into the huge amount of stimuli that make up the party experience (and there are a lot), and outline the variety o...

Our brain is an amazing thing and much of how it works is still being discovered. Today’s guest teaches us how using neuroplasticity, we can rewire processing for completely separate senses to overcome difficulty in sensory processing. Dr. Karen Pryor, author of Ten Fingers Ten Toes Twenty Things Everyone Needs to Know: Neuroplasticity for Children, talks to us about why she wrote this book, and h...

Having empathy in everyday life is important, but it's also crucial for creating a supportive connection with your child. What is empathy and how can we use it? We talk about the process of empathizing, and discuss the benefits for you and connecting with your loved ones, while keeping shame and anger at bay. From dealing with a sensory meltdown to other moms who aren't going through what you are,...

Something special happens when a conversation unfolds as a brainstorm between friends. That’s exactly what we do during this episode, with Nicky, a school-based OT with a background in in-patient rehabilitation. We talk about how to identify behavior and sensory related problems, and how going to the sensory room and taking a movement break can serve as useful strategies to help kiddos get back in...

Have you ever found yourself sticking your tongue out while concentrating on an activity, like cutting something or backing up your car? That’s called overflow, or overflow-associated movements. Although many of us do it, sometimes overflow can be a cause for concern. In today’s episode, we define what overflow is and give some examples of how it can present itself. You’ll hear about when this wou...

On today’s episode, our guest, Jerrod Brown, talks to us about all things trauma: why it’s imperative for everyone to understand its role, the wide range of forms it takes in children and caregivers, and how the same traumatic experiences can impact people completely differently. We discuss how experiencing trauma without the necessary support robs people of joy, energy, and creativity. You’ll als...