Building Strong Partnerships Between OTs and Educators
Occupational Therapy Helping Children
Children's occupational therapy practice | We help children thrive!
Collaboration between occupational therapists (OTs) and educators is essential to ensuring children receive the support they need in all aspects of their daily lives. When we work together, we create a more inclusive and supportive learning environment that enables children to thrive both in and out of the classroom.
Why Collaboration Matters
A child’s capacity is not defined solely by their time in an OT clinic. In fact, most of their learning, growth, and social interactions happen in natural environments like school. By fostering strong relationships with educators, OTs can better understand how children function in different settings and provide tailored strategies to enhance participation and learning.
Shared Expertise: Educators nurture learning and development, while OTs bring unique insights into sensory processing, motor skills, and self-regulation. By combining our knowledge, we create well-rounded support systems that empower every child to succeed.
Enhancing School Participation: By recognising a child’s strengths and needs in both structured and unstructured school activities, we can develop strategies that encourage active participation in learning, play, and social connections.
More Effective Strategies: Through collaboration, we create practical, inclusive strategies that seamlessly integrate into the classroom environment, making learning more accessible and enjoyable for all students.
How OTs and Educators Can Work Together
2. Co-Create Meaningful Goals: By setting shared goals, OTs and educators ensure that strategies align with classroom routines and individual learning needs. Collaborative decision-making leads to practical, achievable outcomes that benefit both students and educators.
3. Integrate Strategies into Classroom Settings: Rather than adding extra tasks, OTs can enhance existing classroom routines with small, impactful adjustments. Whole-class approaches, such as movement breaks, support all students while fostering a more inclusive and engaging learning environment.
4. Champion Inclusive Learning Spaces: Simple yet intentional changes such as flexible seating, alternative ways to engage with content, or sensory-friendly supports, can create learning environments where every child feels comfortable, understood, and empowered to succeed.
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5. Provide Support & Knowledge: OTs and educators thrive when they work side by side. By modelling strategies, co-developing tools, and offering ongoing guidance, OTs help educators feel confident in implementing approaches that enhance student participation and success.
Overcoming Challenges in Collaboration
We recognise that both OTs and educators have busy workloads, and collaboration can sometimes feel like an added task. However, by being flexible in how we communicate—whether through quick check-ins, scheduled meetings, or email updates—we can ensure meaningful collaboration without adding unnecessary pressure.
Working Together to Support Children’s Success
Collaboration between OTs and educators is about co-creating solutions that enhance children’s learning, participation, and well-being. By working together, we can ensure that every child has the opportunity to thrive in school and beyond.
If you’d like to learn more about effective collaboration strategies, check out our podcast episode, Working with Educators: Strategies to Foster Collaboration, where we discuss practical ways to build stronger partnerships.
Listen to the podcast here: https://occupationaltherapy.com.au/podcasts/strategies-to-foster-collaboration/
Let’s keep working together to create inclusive, supportive learning environments!
Warm regards,
Lisa Hughes
Founding Director & Therapy Manager at OTHC