Physical Therapy

Physical Therapy at Pathways Children's School consists of assisting students to develop their gross motor skills. The physical therapists increase a student’s ability to access and participate in various educational activities and routines in natural learning environments by preventing, remediating, or compensating for a variety of orthopedic and neuromotor impairments. They target skills including, but not limited to, coordination, balance, strength, flexibility, joint and tendon flexibility, endurance, posture, and gait. The students' gross motor skills are developed and addressed through interventions such as therapeutic exercise programs, mobility training, manual and power wheelchair mobility training, gait training, adaptive seating and positioning, and functional skills training (e.g., transfers).

The physical therapists at Pathways Children's School are highly trained in the implementation of adaptive equipment for optimal positioning and mobility of students. The physical therapists conduct therapy both in and out of the classroom utilizing push in and pull-out methods of treatment. They conduct therapy in the classroom, in hallways, and in the community (in playgrounds, sidewalks, field trips). The implementation of sessions outside of the therapy room is crucial in promoting carry-over of developed skills into other environments.