Today and Beyond Pediatric Therapy

11/21/2023

We are so grateful to all our families and all the smiles and joys we get to share with the kiddos over the year. Reminder that we will be closed Thanksgiving and the day after to rest and celebrate the season with our families.

10/10/2023

Check out this great housing being developed for neurodiverse adults. It's in New Jersey. The US is somewhat behind (in my opion) other 1st world countries in supportive housing and employment opportunities after our kids are no longer kids but adults who may need just those few extra things to live their best independent and fulfilling life. https://www.nj.com/realestate-news/2023/10/apartment-project-in-nj-town-designed-specifically-for-adults-with-autism.html?fbclid=IwAR2VfluNv3JeHICb1FzYMoUFHfyjD_rDz9xjGG6lNHIsrnVw-G4YTB3Lk-Q

The 32-unit apartment building dubbed Thrive Red Bank is scheduled to be completed in 2025.

07/26/2023

Senate Bill 819 passed addresses "shortened school days". Link to bill in comments.

Full school days
Another proposal, Senate Bill 819, would end a practice in some schools of shortening class time for students with disabilities because of a lack of special education teachers and qualified staff. It passed the House on Friday, 38-14, with bipartisan support and passed the Senate on Saturday thanks to Democratic support with a 19-6 vote.

The bill stems from the efforts of Sen. Sara Gelser Blouin, D-Corvallis, who has been pushing for the legislation since 2022 after hearing from many parents that their children had been denied full school days without their consent or a lawful reason.

“I kind of came into this session thinking this would be one of the first things that we passed,” Gelser Blouin said. It was a positive thing that we could do.”

As it turned out, she had a lot of wrangling to do. District leaders and school administrative groups, such as the Oregon School Boards Association, claimed in testimony that sometimes districts lacked the staff and resources to fully support some students with disabilities, especially with persistent staff and teacher shortages since the pandemic.

“It’s possibly one of the hardest things that I have worked on in the Legislature,” she said of the bill.

Students with disabilities are guaranteed equal class time as their peers under federal law. The bill simply reiterates those requirements, Gelser Blouin said. https://oregoncapitalchronicle.com/2023/06/25/legislators-pass-education-bills-on-reading-finance-school-days-and-more/ #:~:text=Here's%20an%20overview%3A,schools%20would%20get%20%2415.3%20billion.

05/02/2023

Our outdoor play area is coming together. We can't wait to play with all our kiddos in our mud kitchen and sand and gravel pit! We still need some finishing touches. Here's to some sunshine 🌞 and fun after a long winter!

03/01/2023

The snow is melted and we are back in the office and OPEN. 3-1-23 Happy March 1st all!

02/28/2023

We are closed today due to snow 2/28/23

02/24/2023

We've had lots of sickness in the Valley this week, but we've also had lots of success for our kiddos working on expanding their adventurous eating skills.

Some wins included:
Eating celery
Eating a sandwich with meat and cheese
Making and eating chocolate pudding
Using food to take a tricky to swallow medicine
Trying blood orange
Eating a whole container of strawberry applesauce

These are not small wins for our littles, their families and us clinicians. Hats off to all of you parents struggling and pushing through the challenge of restrictive eating. It's a hard season to move through, but here are a few wins to help you see there is a way to get to the "other side".

Happy weekend and enjoy this winter weather!
-Angela and Mya

02/20/2023

Spring is not quite sprung, but spring fever is definitely in the air! Are you struggling to entertain your little ones after a long winter? In Feb we are going to talk all about games… Yes Games!!!

How do you know your child is ready to try simple board games
How do you teach turn taking
What do you do, the games you have are too tricky
How do you help your child learn to lose sometimes

Don’t worry we’ve got you covered here at Today and Beyond Pediatric Therapy. Stay tuned for learning all about teaching game skills and so much more.

Each month we’ll focus on a new topic, so if you have a challenging area you are looking for tips on be sure to comment “Topic Idea” and share your idea with us.

11/14/2022

THANKSGIVING WEEK
We will be open Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Please be sure to come to your appointments. Thursday and Friday we are closed and all appointments for Thursday and Friday are cancelled.

We would be happy to try and reschedule anyone who has a Thursday/Friday appointment to earlier in the week, so please reach out if you would like to do that.

09/08/2022

Times are changing!!! Our clinic space and staff is growing. Help me welcome our new clinician Mya. Mya is a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant or COTA for short.

Let's get to know her: Hi, I'm Mya Britton and I am so excited to be joining Angela at Today and Beyond Pediatric Therapy! I was born and raised in Medford Oregon and love this state I call home. Outside of work I enjoy picking up a good book and photography! I decided to work within the field of Occupational Therapy because of the ability for us to help individuals identify their full potential, and support those in improving their everyday lives in a way that benefits and motivates them. Being able to make a difference and positively impact a child and their family is my biggest goal in this profession and as a part of this team. I hope to always put a smile on your and your child's face and make your family's day a little brighter! I am looking forward to seeing you all at the clinic this week!

08/26/2022

Changes are coming to Today And Beyond... all good ones...so stay tuned!