Article by Stephanie Hobby

Occupational therapists are experts in helping people overcome mental and physical limitations to reach their potential. Aimee Roberts, founder and director of Blue Skies Pediatric Therapy, has been practicing in Billings since 2005, providing care for hundreds of clients and their families. Occupational therapy, or OT, focuses on areas such as motor skills, emotional regulation, executive function, and sensory processing.

ROBERTS OUTLINES 10 TIPS TO HELP STUDENTS ACHIEVE THEIR ACADEMIC AND EXTRACURRICULAR GOALS.

1. Establish a routine. Ideally, families would start implementing their back-to-school routine in early August, so it’s not such a shock when school starts. But no matter when you establish a routine, the key is to set bedtimes and morning routines and stick to them.
2. Adequate sleep. “I can’t emphasize that enough. If you have a child who is sleep deprived for more than a day or two, it affects everything, their behavior, their academic learning, and their attention,” Roberts said. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends 9-12 hours of sleep per night for children aged 6-12 years old, and 8-10 hours for children aged 13-18 years old.
3. Realize that October is a transition. September is a honeymoon period: the material is typically review, and students are focused on learning the routine. By October, they’re expected to have mastered their schedules and are learning new material. “The expectations are higher because they should know the routine, so that’s when we’ll start to see kids who struggle start having some behaviors, and it usually comes out at home first,” Roberts said. If you are seeing more outbursts at home, it’s a good idea to contact the child’s teacher to get their input and partner with the school for creative solutions.
4. Give students time after school to reset. Roberts emphasizes that students need time away from chores and homework to reset. That often looks like reducing your own verbal interactions when you first see your child at the end of the day. Parents typically want to know right away how a student’s day was, but kids might be overloaded and need some quiet time before engaging in conversation.
5. Snacks as sensory tools. During that downtime, offer your child snacks that provide sensory stimulation, like crunchy or chewy snacks, or something with a straw (a squeezable pouch does not offer the same benefit as a straw) that activates the trigeminal nerve and vestibular system. “It can be very calming or alerting, but those crunchy and chewy snacks do the same thing. It helps them reset, slow down, and feel better.” Consider packing such snacks in their backpack or lunchbox to help them regulate during the school day.
6. Music. Not every child likes music, but if yours does, consider playing music in the car on the way to and from school. “If they’re a kid who likes music, playing classical (or whatever they love) can soothe their brain and reduce some of that stimulation.”
7. Movement. Roberts says physical activity is vital for kids to stay focused and regulated. Reams of research support this, but in the classroom, the importance of movement has traditionally been overlooked. Roberts says taking recess away to correct misbehavior is counterproductive; many children need physical activity to focus and be still. “It can take a lot of effort for them to sit, and it’s very cognitively draining, so going out to recess helps them reset and rejuvenate, and be more focused and ready to learn.” Having recess also offers the valuable opportunity to develop social skills, independent learning, and focus.
8. Independence and resilience. Roberts says one of the most important things parents can do is to get their kids outside and let them explore on their own. “That non-structured play actually increases learning and independence,” she said, adding that movement helps with more than just getting their wiggles out. “Kids who are up and moving tend to have better resilience. Say they’re learning to ride a bike and they fall, and they’ll get back up and keep trying it. Kids who are not trying those activities tend to have less resilience in general, and that goes back to their frustration tolerance,” Roberts said.
9. Offer choices. Children don’t have a lot of say over their lives, so it’s important to give them opportunities to exercise their autonomy in developmentally appropriate ways. That can mean sharing the weather report and letting them choose their clothes the night before, or providing a set of options for breakfast and having them help pack their lunches.
10. Seeking additional help. If your child is struggling to stay on top of their schoolwork and traditional methods aren’t helping, Roberts advises contacting your pediatrician, who has a wealth of knowledge to help your family get started on the appropriate interventions.

For more information visit blueskiesped.org

Originally printed in the October 2025 issue of Simply Local Magazine

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