PediatricDigest: circle time, a fallen log, & the kids who sat in the back 🪵

September 2026 Newsletter

Hi read,

Before I started OKOT, I spent years as an OT in schools, and one thing didn't sit well with me. Kids who "misbehaved" in class would get their recess taken away... which meant the kids who needed to move their bodies the MOST were the ones losing that time.

I thought about that when I saw this photo from Ola's group in the East Bay:

Therapists often share that circle time is one of the hardest parts of group for a lot of our kids. Sitting still in one spot while everyone takes turns talking is a BIG ask for a body that's craving movement… or for a brain that's still building executive functioning skills.

Ola shared with me that when a few kids from her group found a log a bit away from the circle, she let them stay there. And that's what you see in the photo. Kids perched on a log, still listening, still following along, still part of the group... just from their own spot, with a little room for their bodies and a little say in how they joined in.

Sometimes our job as adults is to let go of what we think things should look like.

💚 OKOT Resource of the Month:

Balanced and Barefoot, by Angela Hanscom is a book I often recommend to other parents. Angela is a pediatric OT too, and her book hits the same nerve as that recess story.

Her big idea is that most kids today move a lot less than their bodies need... and that plenty of the fidgeting, falling out of chairs, and trouble paying attention we see at school comes from that. Less movement means a harder time sitting still, not an easier one.

What I love about it is that it's well-researched and written for parents, not therapists. If your kid is the one who can't sit still at circle time, at dinner, or in class, this one is worth your time. (And maybe worth passing along to their teacher!)

🌳 OKOT Service Updates:

Fall Groups are filling up! Here are the remaining spots available:

East Bay
Tuesday Tilden, ages 7-9 (1 spot)
Wednesday Joaquin Miller, ages 4-6 (2 spots)
Thursday Tilden, ages 8-10 (2 spots)
Thursday Tilden, ages 7-9 (1 spot)
Friday Joaquin Miller, ages 6-8 (1 spot)
Saturday Joaquin Miller, ages 6-8 (3 spots)

San Francisco
Tuesday Presidio, ages 4-5 (1 spot)

Wisconsin
Tuesday Glen Oak Hills, ages 4-6 (2 spots)

We're also enrolling for a few last individual OT spots at all three locations.

You can APPLY HERE for any of our groups or individual OT services.

Cheers,
Laura Park Figueroa

Founder, OKOT

P.S. Know a family who needs this? Forward this email to them to share it.