The Session Ends. The Real Work Begins at Home.

What happens when a great therapy session ends and a family goes home wondering how they’re supposed to do this on their own? That’s the question Jourdan Saunders, MS, CCC-SLP, opened with on her show Interconnected, in a conversation with Elaine Wiener, OTR/L, Clinical Business Development Manager at Cognishine.

Elaine spent nearly 30 years as a pediatric occupational therapist in schools. She brought both lenses to the conversation: the therapist who knows how much practice matters, and the parent who knows how hard it is to fit in.

Therapy time is limited, so carryover matters

Throughout her years in practice, Elaine would tell teachers and parents the same thing: therapists see a child for maybe two half-hour sessions a week. What happens in between is the carryover. She came to realize that what therapists do in the room is simply not enough if it isn’t practiced and repeated between sessions.

Why home practice slips

When home practice doesn’t happen, it’s easy to assume a family didn’t follow through. Elaine sees it differently, as a parent herself. Kids are overscheduled. They come home from school exhausted and don’t want to do their regular homework, never mind extra assignments. Evenings are hectic, and weekends are supposed to be fun.

Asking a parent or caregiver to sit down for one more task at the end of a long day is a real challenge. It’s not a lack of caring. It’s real life.

From a paper in a folder to practice on a screen

Elaine saw the difference firsthand during COVID, when she switched to teletherapy. Digital homework came with more accountability than the paper she used to send home in a folder, which too often came back the next day untouched.

The feedback she now hears from therapists using Cognishine’s self-practice boards points the same way. Families can open the link and see exactly what to do. And for kids, a tablet or computer is a lot more inviting than another worksheet.

Start with one goal

For therapists wondering how to make home practice fit each client without adding to their workload, Elaine recommends starting small. Think of three goals, or even just one, that you’re working on with a client. Then find activities by skill, or add a theme the child enjoys to make it more engaging.

Add the activities to a board, a digital folder you can send home or use to plan ahead. Some therapists set up boards on a Sunday for the week ahead, with a folder for each client labeled by week or by theme.

Realistic expectations, real feedback

Every board can go home with a short note to the parent. Elaine’s advice is to keep it realistic. Nobody is assigning ten activities a night. A note like “try to complete at least three of these activities this week” sets a goal a family can actually meet.

In the client workspace, therapists can see whether the self-practice activities were opened, how much time was spent on them, and whether they were completed. As Jourdan pointed out, this isn’t about policing families. It’s about keeping the whole team on the same page. If practice didn’t happen, the therapist can ask why: was the board unclear, or was it hard to get in?

No logins, no getting lost

Access is one of the most common barriers, and Cognishine removes it. Therapists share a board by link, QR code, or email. Families don’t need a username or password. They open the link and see only the activities their therapist assigned, with the settings chosen for their child. They can’t wander off into the rest of the library.

The board is linked to the client’s account, so the therapist gets the data, and Cognishine doesn’t store the family’s email address. Therapists can also send boards to a classroom teacher or assistant, so practice continues during the school day too.

Elaine also sees the boards as a way to keep the conversation with parents going between meetings, so the first real conversation doesn’t happen at an IEP meeting.

A message for parents

Jourdan asked what Elaine wants a parent to hear if they already feel guilty about missed exercises. Her answer was simple: “We’re not judging.”

The activities are designed to be easy for parents to share with their children, because therapy is a partnership. Therapists and families are working toward the same goals for the child, and it takes both of them to help that child reach their full potential.

Try it this week

Jourdan closed with a challenge for listeners: choose one family, create an activity board around a goal you’re working on, and share the link. Make sure the parent knows how to open it and use it.

Therapists who want to try it can start with the free seven-day trial on the Cognishine pricing page.

Thank you to Jourdan for a thoughtful conversation, and for looking at home practice through both the therapist’s and the parent’s eyes.