Think Tank Therapy

● Happy Earth Day ●

Today we taught our kiddos about recycling, and keeping our oceans clean. The loved the tangible sensory experience! Remember to do something good for our planet today, and everyday day 💙

"Do your little bit of good where you are; its those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world."~ Desmond Tutu

"We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children." ~ Native American Proverb

We are hiring! We are looking for experienced, energetic, fun, and deeply passionate educators to join our team as a Social Skills Specialist!

View job posting: https://indeedhi.re/3v6343j

Please share this post to help us reach the right people to join us at Think Tank in supporting and teaching our amazing kiddos! 💜

With Earth Day coming up this Friday, the theme this week is about our Earth and making it a better place. With focus on recycling and the importance of nature, we are teaching the kids their role in keeping the planet clean and healthy.

“I have learned you are never too small to make a difference”
Greta Thunberg

“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.”
Dr Seuss

We hope all the kids had an amazing Easter weekend!

Check out this super fun potato stamp craft from last week. Find the instructions in the link below:

https://www.practicallyfunctional.com/potato-stamp-easter-eggs/ #:~:text=Once%20you%20have%20your%20potato,have%20a%20stamped%20Easter%20egg!

We love switching up our toys at the centre! The change in toys keeps things interesting and fun for our kiddos. Switching up our toys, as well as themes, also keeps things from feeling rigid and helps the kids learn about changes in routine.

The kids had an amazing time picking surprise gross motor activities from our Spring time flower bouquet! This was a great opportunity to get the kids up and moving and learning skills such as turn taking and following instructions.

Looking for a use for your leftover Easter grass and plastic eggs? Put them together for a perfect, and easy, sensory bin! So many different variations for this bin: have your kids find hidden eggs, colour matching with pompoms and the eggs, and (my personal favourite) hide a bunny in one of the eggs! The possibilities are endless with this sensory activity!

Autism Ontario is offering a special discounted rate for the Toronto zoo for the weekend of April 30/May 1. Details, and registration, can be found in the original post on the Autism Ontario Central East Region page!

Autism Ontario Weekend at The Toronto Zoo


***Registration opens Wednesday, April 13, 2022 at 12:00PM (NOON)***

Autism Ontario weekend at the Toronto Zoo is April 30/May 1, 2022. The tickets will be good for Saturday and Sunday BUT you may only use your tickets for one of the days.


The Toronto Zoo will designate a two-hour window (each day) where our families (with tickets) will have a special gate to enter.


In addition, Autism Ontario families will have exclusive use of one of the Zoo picnic areas and we will have access to two “Animal Encounters” both days, at 11am and 1pm. We won’t know which animal will be featured until the day of.


COST: $10/person (plus fees) children 2 and under free. Each family will receive a free caregiver ticket.

Register here: https://www.autismontario.com/civicrm/event/info?id=7146&reset=1

The beautiful weather today was a perfect way to finish off our Spring Week! This clouds and rain experiment is always a favourite of the kids; his face says it all! To learn how to do it at home, follow the link below.

https://www.primroseschools.com/blog/rain-cloud-activity/

We embrace the saying, "If you've met one person with autism, you've met ONE person with autism." We that's found in Autism Spectrum Disorder.

It's also true that autism is underdiagnosed in girls and often presents very differently in girls than in boys. Autism BC has a great blog post where they have compiled articles and information about exactly that. It starts out by saying, "Girls are less likely to be diagnosed with autism than boys (the rate is about 1:4), but this isn’t because fewer girls are autistic. This is because the diagnostics are still catching up to the gender biases that once dictated that autism only occurred in boys."

Autistic girls exhibit less repetitive behaviour than boys do, camouflage or mask more effectively (especially as they get older), and where autism is often marked by an absence of pretend play, this seems to be less true for girls.

You can check out the whole blog post here: https://www.autismbc.ca/blog/girls-are-autistic-too/

From Ellieanah's mom, Shelby: "This is our Ellieanah; she was diagnosed with autism just before she turned six (she's a few months away from turning seven now). If you've ever met her, you know Ellieanah is affectionate, has a huge heart and can be hilariously literal. Some of the things that are seen as 'typical' traits in autistic kids do apply to her, but some definitely don't apply to her - she loves talking to people and being social, she's never lined up her toys in a row, and is an adventurous eater.

Bike riding has been a tougher skill for her to master so far. So we met her where she's at and recently tried a three-wheeled scooter instead. Her smile says it all - she got the hang of it pretty quickly and her confidence soared! When she's ready, we'll try bike riding again. And with her extra confidence and joy gained from scootering, it might give her the boost she needs to persevere to continue working on bike riding."

Our Social Skills Program is a curriculum based program, and runs very similar to a typical school day. This helps with school readiness for our younger friends, and keeps routines consistent for our older friends who are already in school. Our day always starts with morning circle, and then we move into classroom work, big room play time, snack, craft, and so much more!

As one block ends, another begins.... Welcome to the Spring Block 2022!

To find out more information about our Social Skills Program, or to book a tour, email us at [email protected] or call the office at 905-442-8265

The month of April is all about celebrating autism awareness and acceptance. Today is World Autism Day. At Think Tank, these amazing kiddos are celebrated every day. Celebrated for what makes them unique, celebrated for their achievements, and celebrated for being their awesome and amazing selves. We give these children a safe place to be themselves, and to learn and grow in a way that they chose.

That is the greatest lesson we can learn from today, and always; accept all people for who they are. We hope all our amazing kiddos celebrate and have pride in who they are today, and everyday ❤

This craft was done in a style that is mess free, and sensory friendly! Ziplock bag finger painting! Tape off the design you want, place the canvas in a ziplock bag, add paint to the bag and let the fun begin! Once it's dry, remove the tape to reveal your masterpiece!

It was an amazing African Safari week!

There is nothing we love more than seeing these kids reach their goals!

Here at the centre, every week has its own theme. This keeps everything new and exciting for the kids. We plan everything around this theme; Big Room games, craft, sensory bins, circle time, and all the way down the the work sheets for classroom time! We ensure there are activities for all ages and stages. Here are a few examples of our table work for the week!

This week is all about safari animals! We started the week with an African Safari adventure around the centre. This gave the kids the opportunity to use their matching and recognition skills. It was also a great opportunity to work on communication. The kids loved it!

Here at Think Tank, our teaching is done in a way that is play-based and child-led. What this means is a typical day will always include the child's interests, and plans can be changed depending on how they are feeling that day. The child is always put first.

Interested in learning more about our Social Skills Program? Email [email protected] to book a tour!

One Fish
Two Fish
Red Fish
Blue Fish sensory bin! The kids had so much fun this week reading all the funny Dr. Seuss books. The highlight of the week was all the fun (and mess) that was had with our sensory bin.

"And now good night. It is time to sleep.
So we will sleep with our pet Zeep.
Today is gone. Today was fun.
Tomorrow is another one.
Everyday from here to there, funny things are everywhere."

Here at Think Tank Therapy, our practices are based on child-led learning. We believe every child is unique, and their goals and teaching style should reflect that. We incorporate their interests, feelings, and needs to create their individualized plans. We believe they are all born to stand out, and be amazing.

This week is all about Dr. Seuss! There are so many important lessons and learning opportunities in Dr. Seuss books, as well as a whole lot of fun! Today's fine motor activities focused on The Lorex. This is our take on the beautiful Truffula Trees.

"...one morning, I came to this glorious place. And I first saw the trees! The Truffula Trees! The bright-colored tufts of the Truffula Trees! Mile after mile in the fresh morning breeze"

Today is World Down Syndrome Day! Today we wear mismatched socks to celebrate our friends rocking an extra chromosome. We shout your worth from the rooftops today, and everyday. We are all better for knowing you. We hope you know how loved you truly are.

Today may be a little difficult for some of your kiddos. The end of March Break, and a return to school, means a change in routine and a change of expectations. Validate how they are feeling, and support them through it. You are their best support system. We hope all our kiddos returning to school have an amazing day!

Our staff wants to thank all your kiddos for an amazing March Break, and wish them all a great first week back to school!

What an amazing week we have had, with our Olympic Day closing ceremony being the perfect way to finish it off. The kids were so happy, and proud, to walk up the green carpet and receive their gold medal from our Olympic events today.

Thank you all so much for a fun filled week!

The luck of the Irish was with the kids today! We went on a hunt for the leprechaun who left leprechaun dust around the centre, found the pot of gold at the rainbow, decorated lucky charms cookies, and made shamrock sun catchers!

This week has been so much fun, and we are looking forward to finishing it off with our Think Tank Olympics tomorrow!

Our pirates had an amazing day! We dug for treasure in our sensory bins, made our own pirate hats, and the highlight was our treasure hunt around the centre! They worked together to solve the clues, and X marked the spot for tasty gold coins in our treasure box!

Pet adoption day for March Break Camp was so fun! We got to choose and name our stuffy pets, search for dog bones in the sensory bin and have a duck race! Ellieanah and Zanaleigh introduced their new pets to their real dog, Rosie, when they got home today.

Learning about pets and how to care for them is a meaningful skill for everyone. Share a pic of your pet in the comments!

First (offical) day of the March Break Camp was all about the Human Body! The kids did crafts to learn about the insides of their body, and played games like Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes to learn about our body parts. Our jello sensory activity, where the kids learned about their blood and white blood cells, was the highlight of the day!

The first day of our March Break program was a huge success! We had an amazing time making friendship bracelets, playing games, and learning about how to be a good friend. Looking forward to a fun filled week with all our friends!

Shaving cream rain cloud experiment! The kids had a blast with this one! In this experiment, the shaving cream represents a cloud, and the water represents the atmosphere. When you add food colouring to the shaving cream, the weight of it will push through the surface of the shaving cream, just like rain pushes through the clouds and falls to the earth! Want to do it at home? Click the link to learn how!

https://amothershipdown.com/shaving-cream-rain-clouds-science-experiment/

Couldn't make it to the Open House and still wanting to learn more about our programming? We would love to meet you and chat! You can book a tour through the link below, or reach out to us at [email protected] or give us a call at 905-442-8265

https://www.thinktanktherapy.ca/contact-us

These kids can change the world ❤

Today is the last day to enter our giveaway to win a free spot in our March Break Camp! Make sure to click on the original post below and leave your tag comment there to enter (full rules are on that post). Giveaway closes at 5:00 pm tonight.

*GIVEAWAY!* We are giving away one FREE spot in our March Break Camp!

To enter: Like our page and tag a friend in the comments who might also want to enter! All comments/tags must be made on this original post to be counted.

Our March Break Camp is best suited for children ages 3-8. Children under 3.5 must have an adult attend with them. While Think Tank's focus is on neuro-diverse children, all are welcome for the March Break Camp Programming! We invite you to share the giveaway with friends and family as we would love to see many kids come make connections and enjoy the centre.

To learn more about our March Break Camp, visit: https://www.thinktanktherapy.ca/marchbreak

Rules/Additional Info:
• One entry per person.
• Giveaway closes March 6, 2022 at 5:00 pm EST
• Winner will be notified on this post and will have 24 hours to contact us to claim their prize.
• Prize is a spot for one child in our March Break camp ($500 value), taking place March 14-18, 2022 at Think Tank Therapy, located in Bowmanville, Ontario. Add-on day of March 11 not included. No substitutions or cash value.
• Families that have already registered for March Break Camp are welcome to enter. If you are chosen as the winner, we will refund your payment for one spot.
• Giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook.