By Dave DeFusco
Dr. Amiya Waldman-Levi, an expert on parent-child relationships and an associate professor in the Katz Schools Occupational Therapy Doctorate, has co-authored a professional guide to help pediatric clinicians assess how parents and other caregivers support their childrens playfulness.
Published by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) last June, the is designed to help clinicians develop family-centered interventions that promote healthy filial relationships and the skills parents and caregivers need to encourage playfulness. Through play, children develop social, emotional, physical and cognitive skills that contribute to their physical and mental health and success in school.
This tool will help occupational therapists, psychologists, speech therapists, social workers and other pediatric clinicians make informed assessments of parent and caregiver support of childrens playfulness, said Dr. Waldman-Levi. It will also enable them to pinpoint the specific behaviors that either hinder or support the childs motivation, engagement, social interaction and communication during play with others.
Dr. Waldman-Levi and co-author, Dr. Anita Bundy, a professor in occupational therapy at Colorado State University and an expert in childrens risky play, will use the PC-SCP guide in two AOTA workshops on Assessing the Co-Occupation of Joint Play on , and . Both will focus on how clinicians can assess the shared involvement and engagement of parents and children in joint play.
Dr. Bundy published the first assessment of childrens playfulness in early 2000, which was the inspiration for their new manual. She has been in the forefront of creating accessible playgrounds in Europe and in Australia through the
Dr. Bundy said childrens play is indispensable for teaching the art of negotiation without an adult present, testing boundaries and developing an awareness of ones own capabilities. She said that restrictions placed by parents on their childrens play, whether out of fear of their child getting hurt or a bias toward academic instruction over physical activity, are depriving American children of invaluable life skills.
Negotiation between children isnt always pretty but if you dont have that opportunity or if an adult always does it for you, when do you learn how to barter for what you want and need?, she said. Knowing how to negotiate gives children agencythe sense that they can ask for what they need or want. It doesnt mean theyre going to get it, but at least they can feel comfortable asking.
Dr. Bundy said that because young childrens central occupation is play, occupational therapists are obligated to adopt a family perspective to provide up-to-date best practices in relation to co-occupationsa point that will be emphasized during the workshops.
Therapists who employ such a perspective when conducting interventions with young children should explore the familys values, goals and aspirations, as well as relevant environments, she said. Without fully exploring these avenues, therapists may create an intervention plan in a vacuum.
