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PODCAST

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast

Michele Alaniz & Lacy Wright

Welcome to Ideas at Play, the go-to podcast for busy pediatric occupational therapy professionals! Whether you"re in school-based settings, early intervention, or outpatient practice, we bring you evidence-based strategies, practical tips, and engaging discussions to support your OT practice with children, teens, and young adults.Each episode features:A deep dive into recent pediatric OT research and how to apply it."Nailed It or Failed It," where we share what’s working—and what isn’t—in our

education courses

All Episodes

40:45

Ep. 31 Zones of Regulation: the Good, the Bad, and...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/09/17

What happens when one of occupational therapy's most beloved programs gets put under the research microscope? Turns out Zones of Regulation—despite being wildly popular—has a shaky evidence base. BUT don’t panic and throw out all your materials, we've got some promising news. A new study shows what happens when you take Zones and actually do it the occupational therapy way: with OT scaffolding techniques, play-based activities, positive reinforcement, and environmental modifications. We explo...

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35:54

Ep. 30 Making Hospitals Sensory-Friendly

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/09/10

70% of autistic individuals have at least one mental health condition, but here's the kicker—the very hospitals meant to help them might be making everything worse. Picture this: you're already in crisis, then you're hit with buzzing fluorescent lights, scratchy bedsheets, and the smell of industrial cleaning solutions. For autistic teens, it's a recipe for prolonged stays and increased meltdowns. But what if we actually asked them what would help? That's exactly what UK researchers did, and ...

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36:30

Ep. 29 A Sleep Intervention with Dreamy Outcomes

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/09/03

95% of kids with neurodevelopmental disorders struggle with sleep—but there's an OT intervention that gives families an extra hour of sleep per night! In this episode, we discuss an occupational therapy study from Argentina that used telehealth and coaching to transform bedtime battles. This isn't the typical "try melatonin" approach—it's a comprehensive 5-step program addressing everything from parent self-care to zeitgeber (yes - that’s a real term and it’s amazing). Michele breaks down thi...

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35:01

Ep. 28 Responsive Feeding (and how OTPs are using...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/08/27

Many of our families know that sinking feeling when mealtime becomes a battlefield—tears, tantrums, and the stress of watching a child refuse meal after meal. But what is the best way to help? This week, we dive into a brand-new scoping review on responsive feeding for pediatric feeding disorders—an approach that's finally putting words to what many OTPs have been doing intuitively. We'll break down the two key pillars: environmental supports (consistent meal schedules, intentional positionin...

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34:03

Ep. 27 Group vs. Individual OT for Autistic Toddlers

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/08/20

Drowning in long therapy wait lists? Researchers found that group DIR Floortime (4 kids, 2 therapists) produced the same outcomes as individual occupational therapy sessions for autistic toddlers—AND slashed wait times from 108 to 52 days! We break down what worked, the challenges (parent participation was tricky), and what the therapists thought about it. Plus Michele's epic "Failed It" moment with bleeding lips and Lacy's activity up & down-grading breakthrough. If you're looking to ser...

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31:54

Ep. 26 Have Impostor Syndrome? (Here’s what to do)

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/08/13

Ever feel like you are in over your head? You're not alone—new research shows 84% of occupational therapy practitioners and students secretly battle impostor syndrome. From OT students to seasoned therapists, despite being well qualified, we're all wondering if we actually know what we're doing! In this episode, we break down the study that puts numbers to what we feel and reveal who may be hit hardest by these "Am I good enough?" thoughts. Then, Michele & Lacy share their strategies to m...

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24:37

Ep. 25 Hand Strengthening for Handwriting

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/08/06

Michele presents research that offers a completely different perspective on OT handwriting intervention. While previous episodes emphasized task-specific training (doing writing to improve writing), this study suggests that students receiving specialized resistance exercises—putty, rubber bands, clips—significantly outperformed control groups on handwriting legibility. We discuss the mechanisms behind these results and share practical strengthening activities OTPs can use in their sessions or...

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28:14

Summer of Play Series: Play Personalities

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/07/30

Ep 24 - In our final Summer of Play episode, we're uncovering the rich history and complex science that makes play genuinely unique in pediatric OT practice. Journey from Piaget and Vygotsky's foundational theories to Mary Reilly's revolutionary work for occupational therapy. We'll break down the National Institute of Play's eight distinct categories - from attunement and rough-and-tumble play to imaginative storytelling - revealing why recognizing these differences can shape your pediatric o...

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31:35

Summer of Play Series: Interventions for Play

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/07/23

Ep 23 - Ready to turn your occupational therapy sessions into playgrounds of learning? In this episode of our Summer of Play Series, we explore using play as both the vehicle AND the destination in pediatric OT. We'll discuss 5 manualized occupational therapy interventions that facilitate play for kids (and OTPs!) and 6 other evidence-based strategies for many diagnoses and practice settings. Discover how LEGO bricks build friendships, why getting down on the floor is a powerful OT clinical t...

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28:50

Summer of Play Series: Assessing Play

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/07/16

Ep 22 - Think you know how to assess play? We break down the surprising gap between how important play is for EVERY PART of child development and how this occupation is often overlooked in OT/OTA education programs and practice. You'll discover Bundy’s 4-part definition of play, the top 3 play assessments every pediatric occupational therapy practitioner should know, and learn simple ways to incorporate play observation into your OT evaluations. 🌞 Grab the free Summer of Play...

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27:56

Summer of Play Series: 10 Fun Summer Therapy Ideas

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/07/09

Ep 21 - Summer just got a whole lot more fun! 🌞 Michele and Lacy kick off their Summer of Play series with 10 fun, evidence-based therapy activities. From DIY food trucks and table tennis for executive function to water balloons for social play to messy mud & shaving cream toy washes, these aren't just fun activities—they're strategic summertime interventions that your therapy kids will want to do again. Build your toolkit of seasonal strategies that work across all pediatric

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48:22

Ep. 20 Green Light Interventions for CP: Do What...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/07/02

Stop guessing and start knowing which occupational therapy interventions actually work. World-renowned OT researcher Professor Iona Novak discusses her revolutionary Traffic Light System that rates occupational therapy interventions with simple green, yellow, and red color coding. Learn why starting with client goals (not assessments) delivers faster outcomes, discover which interventions are moving from yellow to green (including stem cell research!), and discover her READ framework for evid...

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35:12

Ep. 19 Pictures vs. Videos: Choosing the Right...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/06/25

You've heard that a picture is worth a thousand words, but what about a thousand prompts? When it comes to helping autistic kids master daily living skills like brushing teeth, washing hands, and tying shoes, the visual support debate is real: static pictures or dynamic videos? Occupational therapists Michele and Lacy discuss research that puts these two visual strategies head-to-head, revealing insights about which kids thrive with which approach. Spoiler alert: it's not a simple winner! Plu...

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37:09

Ep. 18 Aquatic Therapy: Using the Pool for More Than...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/06/18

When you think of therapy in the swimming pool, swim lessons probably come to mind. However, occupational therapy practitioners use water for so many life skills! This week, Michele dives into research from Spain that reveals how aquatic therapy can be beneficial for autistic children in OT settings. The results? Better school performance, improved social competence, and happier kids overall. Plus, Michele shares her own terrifying pool story of a little girl who loved staying under the water...

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37:22

Ep. 17 Time Management Treatment Ideas for ADHD

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/06/11

Ready for an ADHD intervention that tackles the root problem of time management? This Swedish research hands occupational therapy practitioners a comprehensive protocol that includes both remediation and compensation strategies for time processing difficulties. We unpack the three core components of time processing ability and explore a manualized program blending environmental modifications with daily skill-building sessions. Plus, Lacy shares a Failed It story about shoes that went missing,...

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44:26

Ep. 16 From Student Projects to Group Therapy: How...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/06/04

As occupational therapy practitioners, we spend our careers working in teams—yet most of us learned to hate group work in OT/OTA school. Sound familiar? We're breaking down brand-new research from the Journal of OT Education that studied how to build better teams to avoid group disasters. Whether you're an OT/OTA student dreading your next group project, an educator trying to build the best groups for an assignment, a new grad navigating clinic dynamics, or an experienced occupational therapy...

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36:28

Ep. 15 Accept, Adapt & Advocate: Autistic Adults...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/05/28

Ever wonder what your pediatric OT clients will say about you when they grow up? In this episode, Lacy & Michele explore qualitative research where autistic adults share what they wish their childhood occupational therapists had known. Their insights challenge us to embrace neurodiversity by accepting (rather than “fixing”) autism, adapting environments instead of forcing compliance, and prioritizing client autonomy. These perspectives offer occupational therapy practitioners a roadmap to...

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43:19

Ep. 14 Role of OT and Co-Occupation in the NICU (and...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/05/21

Step into the NICU where beeping monitors meet tiny fighters and discover how sensory connections are changing the game for premature infants. We unpack the SENSE program that's putting occupational therapists at the forefront of preemie care, revealing why those first touches, sounds, and movements matter more than you think. Join Lacy and Michele as they take a deep dive into co-occupation. Whether you're a clinician seeking evidence-based strategies or simply fascinated by early developmen...

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39:47

Ep. 13 The Ultimate Evidence Guide: What 52...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/05/14

Tired of Googling for interventions that actually work? We dive into the mother of all systematic reviews covering 129 studies and 52 occupational therapy interventions across nine decades of pediatric OT research. Discover which interventions landed in the green zone (do these!), which fell into the red (avoid!), and why parent collaboration and occupation-based approaches consistently outperform bottom-up methods. Michele and Lacy discuss this evidence-based, color-coded roadmap that you ca...

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38:24

Ep. 12 Shooting for Better Sleep: How Playing...

Ideas at Play: An Occupational Therapy (OT) Podcast ·

2025/05/07

Could better sleep for autistic children be as simple as shooting some hoops? In this episode, occupational therapists, Michele Alaniz and Lacy Wright, dive into fascinating research showing how a structured basketball intervention significantly improves sleep quality and executive function in children with autism. Learn how this intervention increases melatonin and boosts BDNF, enhancing neuroplasticity while being incredibly fun. Perfect for OT practitioners looking for innovative, effectiv...

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