PLAY IS A CHILD'S WORK...
...CRAEFT IS A CHILD'S CALLING
Children are Makers, Naturally
A stick and a string become a fishing pole
A pile of rocks in a creek bed becomes a sculpture
Natural Strengths + "Just Right Challenge" + Nature
Improving Sensory & Motor Skills
Confidence-Building
Becoming Calmer
Getting More Connected
WITH FRIENDS, FAMILY, AND NATUREÂ
doing, being, becoming, belonging...
...Make the Doing MAtter!
-Wilcock, A. A. (1998)
In EVERY SESSION:
Making Moves
Nature Exploration & Hikes
Nature offers endless opportunities for sensory experiences & movement challenges...to improve strength, coordination, balance.
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Reaching for that branch to use in a weaving project
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Scanning the wood-scape for that perfect color to make natural inks and dyes
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Climbing up that hill to pick the fern or flower for eco-printing (and then rolling down that hill...of course!)
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And some fun Circus-Arts in Nature...acro-balance, juggling, hulahoop, yoyo, etc.
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Fun, purposeful, energetic
A great way to meet those sensory needs
Making craefts
Traditional Skills &
Heritage Crafts
for 21st Century Skills ​
​What are Traditional Skills & Heritage Crafts?​
Meaningful & Real-Life activities
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Natural materials
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Open-ended, creative
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Flexible process
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Why Traditional Skills &
Heritage Crafts?
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Hand-eye coordination, postural skills, motor planning
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Problem-solving, planning, organizing, competence-building, flexible thinking, & creativity
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The Maker Mindset
Making Tea
Tea Time
​A traditional social experience across cultures for centuries
A natural opportunity to work on
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Social skills, emotional regulation & the executive skills needed for school and home life
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Sharing, turn-taking, pacing, and cooperation, & effective communication
The teas offered are herbal, caffeine-free, organic,
and grown & harvested in the Wildcraeft garden.
Water is offered as an alternative
OUR SPECIALIZED APPROACH IS INSPIRED BY:
Traditional Occupational Therapy Perspectives
Current Evidence-Based Practice
Sloyd and The Froebel Kindergarten
Charlotte Mason, Montessori, Waldorf
The Arts & Crafts Movement
The Maker Movement
"the hand is
the instrument
of intelligence"
...Maria Montessori
"when making crafts,
people progress through
a cycle of emotions from uncertainty to satisfaction,
pride, and a sense of efficacy
by the end."
...Emma Harris, BHScOT (Hons)
Acknowledgements and References Found on Essential Reading Page
Occupational Therapy Services
Enrichment camps designed for
Elementary and Middle School-aged children. Each day of our week-long day camp is guided by a specific traditional craeft/skill theme.
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Sign up for one week...or more! Each week's theme is unique, crafting a summer full of fun experiences of craefting and moving in nature!
Intensive, week-long, OT day camp sessions, Monday-Friday, 9-2:00, with a low 1:2 ratio, adult to child, and a maximum group size of 4 children. Groups are designed for children 7-12 years of age.
Each week-long camp is guided by a specific traditional craeft/skill theme.
OT Intensive Summer Camps are conducted by an experienced pediatric Occupational Therapist, accompanied by qualified
pre-OT/OT college student volunteers.
Our weekly small group OT service packages offer opportunities for your child to receive OT intervention within nature.
Following the same structure as our
OT Intensive Summer Camps, our Weekly Small Group OT sessions offers the convenience of once per week sessions.
Sessions are 2.5 hours in length.
Saturday options are available.
Need a plan for when School's Out?
School Holidays and Holiday/Spring Breaks" don't need to be stressful or boring!
Or "School's Out" Mini OT Camps are fun and unique...while supporting therapy goals.
This is a great option for children who have attended our camps previously.
For new families, a pre-mini camp session is necessary to establish a relationship and review/develop therapy goals.
Our individual OT services packages offers an opportunity for your child to receive 1:1 therapy intervention within nature. Our Wildcraeft Works approach will be implemented with the parent/caregiver and nature as co-facilitators. Sessions are 90 minutes in length.
Afterschool and Saturday options are available.
A modern take on the traditional knitting circle.
Designed to support your child with expertly curated craeft experiences at-home with our monthly Widcraeft Work activity boxes
...along with monthly gatherings of the
Wildcraeft Works Makers in our virtual Makerspace
for friendship, connection, and community
COMING SOON!
Want to add therapeutic crafting to your programming?
Designed to support your journey in exploring therapeutic crafting and its applications across a variety of settings. Consultation services are flexible and can be crafted to meet your needs.
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“Man, through the use of his hands,
as they are energized by mind and will,
can influence the state of his own health.”
ABOUT
Registered Occupational Therapist
Founder of Wildcraeft Works
Stay Connected
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