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Four components are important
when following the
home-based program.
The primary component of a home program is "follow the
lead" Floortime,™ an endeavor
that may change hourly or daily, as it is based on an
activity that follows a child’s natural interests and
preferences. The purpose of Floortime is to use
activities a child initiates that bring him or her
pleasure to create engagement and increasingly complex
circles of communication with his or her caregiver or
adult play partner.
The second aspect of the home
program focuses on semi-structured problem-solving
interactions that also use a child’s interests to
facilitate mastery of specific cognitive, language and
motor skills. Activities may include games to aid in
imitation of new words, motor simulation games or concepts
such as “more” or “less” or “above” or “below.”
The third component of the home program consists of motor,
sensory and visual-spatial activities to improve sensory
processing, motor planning and visual-spatial abilities.
These activities may include playground activities,
jumping on a trampoline, running, chasing, hide and seek,
throwing and catching, swinging and climbing or building
with blocks.
A fourth component of the home program assists a child in socially
interacting with typical peers. “Play dates” with a peer, mediated
by an adult or paraprofessional, can provide a child with situations
to apply negotiation, communication and socialization skills learned
at Bridges. Play dates with typically developing peers are usually
encouraged as part of a child’s home program after the age of two.
The Bridges staff helps each
family develop an appropriate home program. We strongly
encourage parents to solicit assistance from nannies,
grandparents, volunteers or college and graduate students
to ensure children are actively engaged in a home-based
program. The Bridges staff will assist families to train
paraprofessionals or family members in Floortime
techniques.
 
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