OT led playgroups in early intervention.

How can group process impact children? This is a question I was hoping to find the answer to. The group process that I have been learning about in school involves a strict structure of events that occur during each session. The group starts with an introduction, moves to and activity that usually includes sharing, then processing, generalizing, and application take place before finally ending with a summary of the group. So how does this translate to children, especially those receiving early intervention services? Play. A child's occupation is to play. Play contributes to a child's growth, socialization, communication, and development. A child who is unable to play, may be affected in any of the previously mention categories. I found an article in The American Journal of Occupational Therapy that looks at play in children with special needs. The objective of the study was to investigate the effects of a community playgroup on playfulness in children with special needs ages 15 months to 3 years and the responsiveness of their caregivers. I like that the study looked at caregivers too. A caregiver is a child's first playmate. This partnership supports a child's play, playfulness, well-being, and participation.

The study used two assessment tools, one for children and one for adults. The Test of Playfulness is a standardized observational assessment for children. It looks at intrinsic motivation, internal control, freedom to suspend reality, and framing. This assessment has been proved to yield valid and reliable results in developing children. The other assessment looked at caregivers. Qualitative Ratings for Caregiver Sensitivity and Responsiveness is an observation scale to measure sensitivity and responsiveness. The study took place over eight weeks with eight participants with varying diagnosis'. Video recordings of free play between caregiver and child were used to score the assessments at baseline, pre-community playgroup, post community playgroup, and sustainability. Statistics were used to compare the scores.

The results showed that all the participants benefited regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, or diagnosis. This implies that all children receiving early intervention services should be offered the opportunity to participate in a community play group. Observed changes after the community playgroup are increased active participation , persistence, and pretending. Strong positive changes wee seen in the children, while smaller observed changes were noticed in the caregivers. Caregivers did seek out other opportunities for engagement outside the playgroup. Examples include birthday parties, outings to the park, and horseback riding. The study did find that caregivers who are sensitive and responsive are likely to seek out opportunities for their child to play. So playgroups can help families transition from play at home to social play in community.

What I take away from this study is that community playgroups are beneficial. Community playgroups can help children, who are lacking in play skills, develop play skills. This aids in the development of a child's growth, socialization, communication, and overall development. Even though the group process steps may look a little different for children and adults, they are accomplishing the same principle.  That is to use a group to assist an individual in developing an area of dysfunction.

Fabrizi, S. E., Ito, M. A., & Winston, K. (2016). Effect of occupational therapy-led playgroups in early intervention on child playfulness and caregiver responsiveness: a repeated-measures design. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 70(2), 1-9.