The Scottish Children’s Lottery helped fund Teen Academy and Bobath Buddies this year. We were delighted that they visited the centre to see first hand what it’s all about. These groups are fun as well as providing an important space to learn new things and make friends. STV filmed the visit and this short film appeared on STV2 last night. If you missed it, you can watch here;
The Meru Bugzi is an award-winning powered indoor wheelchair for children aged one to six and we’re delighted to welcome the team back for another clinic in October this year (dates will be confirmed shortly). To apply for the Bugzi loan scheme please fill out the application form. If you’d like to speak to someone about applying for the Bugzi loan scheme please give us a call on 0141 352 5000 and one of our therapists will be happy to speak to you.
Our OT Sandra gives us her suggestions for children’s books about disability. We’d also love to hear from you if you have any recommendations of books that you or your children have enjoyed – send us an email at info@bobathscotland.org.uk to let us know!
This is a book about a boy called Chad who has Cerebral Palsy. The book is written from Chad’s perspective. It’s written really well, with Chad explaining what CP is and what that means for him for things like dressing, transport, school etc. An easy read. Beautiful graphics. Very positive. From a therapy perspective the author has muddled up therapy roles e.g. mentioning Physio where it should be Occupational Therapy or Speech Therapy (possibly due to cultural differences).
This book explores different disabilities – some which are names (Muscular Dystrophy, Autism) and others which are described but not labelled. This book carefully addresses a number of difficulties that children can have and how to respond to these, encouraging compassion and inclusion. At the end of the book there are questions and points for encouraging discussion. Written in rhyme. Lovely graphics.
This book has been written by a mum and daughter about two little girls who become friends, one of whom has cerebral palsy. It is written from the perspective of the girl who does not have CP and how she sees her friend despite her not being able to walk or talk or play easily. Beautifully written book about friendship. Lovely graphic on one page, with the writing on the opposite.
This is the story of an 8-year old girl who loves to do what all her friends do. Andie has Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy and hates to be treated differently. This book explores the issue of bullying. Beautiful graphics interspersed between lots of print.
A very simple book filled with numerous examples of things ‘it’s okay to be’ – ranging from the ordinary to the extreme (eating macaroni and cheese in the bathtub!!). Very brightly coloured, simple graphics with short simple statements.
Written from a sibling’s perspective, this book tells the story of a little girl with Down Syndrome. It very simply explains what the condition is and how it is caused, before giving examples of how it affects daily life. Another beautifully written and presented book.
I Love You Natty was written by a mum of a child with Down Syndrome, who wanted to explain the condition and its implications. The book is written from the older sister’s perspective, charting Natty’s progress from birth onwards and giving her views on all the positive things about her sister. Filled with fun photos from their family album – a very personal and endearing book.
The lovely Sandra has let us in on the must have toys for girls and boys this Christmas, with her list of the best gifts for both young and older children. With something to suit everyone, she has all of your present woes sorted!
While most OT’s love the world of arty crafty glue and paste, this OT much prefers to get stuck into construction toys and loves the challenge of adapting activities so that children can enjoy this type of play regardless of their physical ability/limitations.
For those who are able to use their hands construction play offers numerous opportunity to develop many different skills – grasps, in-hand manipulation, accurate placement, maintaining grasp against resistance to mention just a few…
For the child who cannot use their hands, or who needs assistance to do so, construction play still provides a rich experience for developing play skills for example: selecting what components to use, choosing where items are to be placed, indicating ‘GO’ to release the marble or crash something down!
Here are my all-time favourites which I am sure people have heard me wax lyrical about on previous occasions!
So SO many different ways of building the ultimate run. There are loads of versions on both the high street and online – to be honest a starter size usually provides ample fun. Just remember to count how many marbles you start with to ensure you have the same number at the end of play!
I like using our farm version but there are loads of lovely Duplo sets around and it is worth keeping your eyes peeled for the reductions in the toys section of supermarkets.
Sadly these tend to be quite expensive but I am still including it as they are so popular with a wide age-range of children and young people. The economy boxes or tubs tend to retail around £39 but it could be something a number of family members may wish to club together to purchase. I also like the ‘essentials’ packs of Popoid Bellows that can now be purchased separately. The bellows are a super fun way to encourage finger skills – kids just love the popping noise as they pull the concertina open and then push it shut again. They cost in region of £9.
I love this toy and buy it for most of my friends children at some point! There are various versions around…Sainsbury has had their Grow & Play Switchback Racer on offer for under £7 recently…
I wasn’t convinced that the magnets would be any use when my physio colleague purchased this recently….but I was wrong. This toy has been a great hit.
I can’t keep up with all the Orchard Yard games. We have a good number here at Bobath but I always tend to return to the same two as I find them easy to play and easy to adapt: Shopping List and Insey Winsey Spider.
Calling mums of Super Hero mad kids…TKMax are currently selling these fantastic Marvel Spiderman hard-books for £4.99. The main attraction of this item is that it comes with 12 mini figurines…including Spidey himself and his 11 villainous ‘friends’.
I find that a treasure chest is a great motivator and/or reward. Kids love the excitement having the chest opened to reveal what surprise items are inside……game components, super heroes, stickers, cosmetic jewellery, raisins….or good old chocolate coins!!
Older kids – boys and girls – love Fib Finder. The original version we have appears to be discontinued but a website called Games & Party appear to sell a similar item, although I cannot vouch for the site having never used it before.
Spot’s Noisy Peek-A-Boo – Sadly they seem to have replaced the lift-the-flap with a press button version – but still looks like fun.
Now for the more sensible part…surely everyone had these presents…you know, the ones that you quickly opened to get out of the way – for me, as a child, it was always the ‘soft ones’ that nearly always had new gloves, pants or socks!! So on my therapists list of ‘boring but useful’ presents I would recommend the following:
These are great for using as a surface when little ones are playing on the floor. You can often get them in sports/fit
ness shops or from numerous suppliers online – they are usually called yoga or fitness blocks. Prices vary so best to shop around. Be careful not to get the ‘brick’ version which is half the size.
Whether you opt for the original Dycem™ or one of the many variations, a placemat size of non-slip matting can help stabilise toys or yoga blocks etc.
Andrew’s trek to the Roof of Africa
We are continually amazed by all of the wonderful things our supporters get up to in order to raise funds for Bobath, but next year one of our supporters, Andrew Tomlinson, is taking on something truly special…in January he is travelling all the way to Tanzania to climb not just one, but TWO mountains! Andrew will be trekking to the summit of Mount Meru and Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for Bobath Scotland and Glasgow City Mission, and we can’t put in to words how we grateful we are to him for choosing us as one of the beneficiaries of his fundraising. But enough from us! Andrew has kindly written a blog post for us all about the exciting challenges he will face as he treks to the ‘Roof of Africa’.
On January 24th 2017 I’ll be on my way to Tanzania to trek towards the roof of Africa, up Mount Meru and Kilimanjaro. Kilimanjaro is a personal challenge both physically and symbolically. Everyone has their own mountains to climb, one of the keys to climbing any mountain is developing an understanding of who you are. A mountain is a mirror in my case – it’s about holding a mirror to myself and my relationship with cerebral palsy. Bobath Scotland was a natural choice as one of the benefactors of my fundraising from climbing Kilimanjaro. I only heard of Bobath a year ago and I’m 33! I feel the whole idea of Kilimanjaro is a symbol of life and its challenges, the highs and the lows. I grew up as the only person I knew with cerebral palsy, with no peers or role models I could relate to. Perhaps Kilimanjaro itself can be a role model of life’s possibilities.
I’m also raising money for Glasgow city Mission, as when I decided to climb Kilimanjaro I wanted to help charities in Glasgow to reach a range of various support needs. I have a close friend who volunteers for GCM and as well helping provide services like a kitchen to provide food for Glasgow’s homeless in Glasgow’s city centre they also have a family centre in Govan. I think both Bobath Scotland and GCM symbolise all the mountains Glasgow faces, whether that’s physical disability, homelessness, addiction and poverty. An example of this is 50% of poverty involves someone in the household with a disability.
As Kilimanjaro gets closer the excitement is building. The first person with cerebral palsy to climb Kilimanjaro was Bonner Paddock during 2008, with Dave Pagden the first Brit to reach the summit. He used Meru as an acclimatisation aid however decided with guides that Kilimanjaro was the main objective and so decided to bypass the chance to reach the summit.
I like the experience of different cultures and climates; Kilimanjaro has many distinct climates from rain forest, grassland, moorland, Lunar Desert, and the artic at the top. The trek will take myself physically and psychologically out of my comfort zone, although the opportunity to attempt to summit all three peaks (Little Meru, Meru and eventually Uhuru Peak) is too good to turn down. As far as I know I’ll be one of the few with cerebral palsy to climb all the associated peaks, and I have always looked towards things that are often dismissed as out of reach by society. “How can a guy with mobility problems travel and trek to the summit of Meru and Kilimanjaro?” – Again it’s about taking yourself out of your natural environment. So much of the infrastructure in modern society has not been developed with disability in mind. I find so much of what “disables” us in our everyday life is not the disability itself, but a mix of infrastructure and social ignorance, which when combined act as a real barrier.
Everyone who climbs Kilimanjaro will experience stiffness, muscle aches and fatigue, spasms and nausea at some stage of the trek, so in many ways maybe I have a head start! The most daunting aspect of climbing Meru and Kilimanjaro is the night walk to the summit where the only light you’ll see is the 25 feet of light that’s omitted from your head torch. That’s when we become exposed, as Kilimanjaro slowly chips away at the masks we wear in everyday life, even disability. On the mountain we are all equal and that’s the message I hope to share, a message that has the potential to be transformational.
