Are you still relying on the Peabody or BOT as your go-to assessment? You're not alone, but you might be missing something critical. In this episode, we dive deep into occupation-based assessment with Dr. Alysha Skuthan and Dr. Erin Gaby, who recently published groundbreaking research on the occupational profile in school-based practice.

This conversation is for every school-based OT who has ever wondered: What actually makes an assessment occupation-based? Why does the occupational profile matter? And how can I fit it into my already overwhelming workload?

The research reveals surprising findings from their research showing that 35% of school-based OTs don't complete occupational profiles, despite it being a formal requirement in the Occupational Therapy Practice Framework.

You'll hear practical strategies for collecting occupational profiles, honest talk about barriers like time constraints and parent communication, and compelling reasons why using occupational language in your reports matters for advocacy. Plus, they discuss occupation-based alternatives to common standardized tests and share their favorite tools like the School Function Assessment.

Listen to learn how shifting to occupation-based practice can transform not just your assessments, but your entire intervention approach.

Learning Objectives

— Learners will identify the key characteristics that distinguish occupation-based assessments from skill-based assessments

— Learners will recognize why the occupational profile is an important component of every SBOT evaluation

— Learners will identify the importance of using occupational language in evaluation reports for professional advocacy

Click here to register & get the best deal on the 2026 Back to School Conference! 

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

When a student refuses to eat at school, it affects everything—academic performance, regulation, social interactions, and the afternoon meltdown that follows.

In this episode, @Jayson Davies sits down with Alisha Grogan, MOT, OTR/L, founder of Your Kid's Table, to talk about feeding challenges in school-based OT. Alisha brings over 20 years of experience working with extreme picky eaters and shares what school-based practitioners need to know about supporting students who struggle with lunch and snacks.

You'll learn how to identify when picky eating crosses into extreme territory, why the cafeteria environment can be so overwhelming for sensory-sensitive students, and what accommodations actually help. Alisha also clarifies the often-confusing scope question: what can school-based OTs reasonably address versus what requires outside support?

Whether you're freezing up when feeding comes up in an IEP or wondering how to support a student who won't eat at school, this conversation offers practical, realistic guidance grounded in both clinical expertise and respect for the school setting.

Listen now to learn how to make lunchtime less stressful and more successful for the students on your caseload.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this episode, learners will be able to:

1. Learners will identify the clinical indicators that distinguish extreme picky eating from typical developmental selectivity, including the 20-food threshold and sensory-behavioral red flags (Remember/Understand)
2. Learners will identify and address environmental barriers in the cafeteria that prevent students from eating at school—including sensory overwhelm from noise, lighting, smells, and peer interactions—and implement appropriate accommodations such as quiet eating spaces, noise-canceling headphones, weighted lap pads, and regulation strategies
3. Learners will identify scope of practice for feeding intervention in schools by understanding what is appropriate for school-based OT (supporting participation in lunch/snack routines, environmental modifications, family education) versus what requires outside clinic-based or medical feeding therapy (expanding food repertoire, intensive feeding protocols, home mealtime culture changes)

Click here to register & get the best deal on the 2026 Back to School Conference! 

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

This course explores the evolving landscape of school-aged mental health in a post-COVID world and the expanding role of occupational therapy in supporting students’ emotional, behavioral, and functional participation.

Dr. Monica Keen examines current mental-health trends, trauma-informed care, behavior changes following the pandemic, and evidence-aligned OT strategies for school settings.

Participants will learn practical, occupation-based approaches for addressing emotional regulation, engagement, and school participation within a tiered model of support.

This course is part of the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community, where school-based practitioners come together to deepen clinical reasoning, explore meaningful topics, and translate evidence into real-world practice.

If you’re looking to earn CEU’s for this course and access a full library of professional development opportunities, you can join the community here 👉 https://www.otschoolhouse.com/collab

Learning Objectives

—Learners will identify three mental illness diagnoses of school-aged children.

—Learners will identify reasons/events for childhood mental illness and how it impacts occupational engagement.

—Learners will recognize the role of OT in addressing these mental health issues in the school setting

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

Transitioning from OT student to practicing clinician isn’t always a straight path—and in this episode, Chandler Sarkozi shares her real, unfiltered journey into school-based practice. From taking the NBCOT multiple times to navigating job options and ultimately choosing a travel-based school position, this conversation highlights the challenges many new grads face but don’t often talk about.

Chandler dives into what it actually looks like to start mid-year as a contract OT, including figuring out housing, building rapport with students and staff, and working through imposter syndrome. She also shares practical insights on the interview process, key questions to ask employers, and how a strong support system can make all the difference.

Whether you're a new grad, exploring school-based OT, or curious about travel therapy, this episode offers honest guidance and reassurance. 🎙️ Press play to hear how Chandler learned to trust herself, stay flexible, and grow into her role.

Listen now to learn the following objectives:

Learners will identify…

• Identify strategies for transitioning from OT student to school-based practitioner
• Learners will identify key considerations when choosing between contract and district school-based OT roles
• Determine essential interview questions to assess support, caseload, and job expectations

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

In this episode, Jayson discusses the often-overlooked but critical role that state and national occupational therapy associations play in protecting and advancing the profession. He highlights major advocacy wins from the past year, including AOTA's successful defense of Section 504, California's groundbreaking administrative credential legislation, Nevada's prevention of ABA encroachment on ADL services, and Nebraska's modernized OT Practice Act.

Whether you're already a member or considering joining your state or national association, this episode offers compelling reasons to get involved—from joining and volunteering to simply sharing advocacy updates with colleagues. Listen now to discover how your support can secure the future of school-based occupational therapy and ensure OT continues thriving in education settings.

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

In this episode of the OT Schoolhouse Podcast, host Jayson Davies is joined by Aimee Piller and Dr. Sultan Alfawaz to explore a powerful shift in school-based occupational therapy practice. Together, they break down how aligning OT services with academic standards can transform both student outcomes and how practitioners advocate for their role in schools.

You’ll learn practical strategies for linking evaluation data and sensory processing patterns to educational goals, including how to connect assessments like the EASI, SOCM, and BOT-3 to specific academic standards. The episode also unpacks proximal vs. distal outcomes and helps you confidently determine when to use Ayres Sensory Integration® versus sensory-based interventions in school settings.

Whether you're looking to strengthen your evaluations, improve collaboration with teachers, or better justify your services in IEP meetings, this episode provides a clear, actionable framework you can start using right away.

🎧 Listen now to learn how to connect your OT services to what matters most in schools—student participation and academic success.

Learning Objectives

— Learners will identify how to link occupational therapy interventions to academic or state standards to improve educational relevance and advocacy in school settings.

— Learners will differentiate between proximal (sensory processing) and distal (participation/academic) outcomes to strengthen clinical reasoning and goal writing.

— Learners will identify how to integrate state standards into the referral and evaluation process.

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

Artificial intelligence is quickly entering healthcare and education, and occupational therapists are asking an important question: How can we use AI responsibly without losing the clinical reasoning that defines our profession? In this episode, Jayson Davies sits down with OT educator and researcher Tara Mansour to explore practical, ethical ways school-based OT practitioners can begin using AI tools.

Tara shares how she teaches future occupational therapists to use AI as a “first draft partner” while still prioritizing evidence-based practice, professional judgment, and student-centered care. They also discuss privacy considerations, prompt strategies, treatment planning ideas, and how AI can support data collection, documentation, and intervention development.

If you're curious about how AI might fit into your school-based OT workflow—or concerned about how it could impact clinical reasoning—this episode provides a thoughtful and practical perspective. Tune in to learn how AI can support occupational therapy while keeping the human clinician firmly in the loop.

Listen now to learn the following objectives:

— Learners will describe appropriate ways AI tools can support school-based OT practice, including treatment planning, documentation drafting, and intervention idea generation.

— Learners will explain ethical and privacy considerations when using AI, including FERPA and HIPAA concerns and strategies for de-identifying student information.

— Learners will identify the "human-in-the-loop" approach to AI-assisted practice, distinguishing between AI-generated versus AI-assisted work and the role of critical clinical reasoning in evaluating AI outputs.

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

Join us in this episode where Nicole Dahl shares her powerful journey as a parent navigating occupational therapy services for her son on the autism spectrum. She opens up about the challenges of understanding the "why" behind therapy activities and the frustration of disconnected communication between providers, teachers, and home.

Through Nicole's story, school-based OT practitioners gain invaluable insight into what parents truly need: clear explanations in plain language, collaborative communication between all team members, and practical strategies they can implement at home. She emphasizes that while the journey wasn't always smooth, consistent OT support—combined with strong parent education—transformed her son's trajectory from struggling in isolation to thriving as a high school senior and water polo team captain.

Ready to hear how better communication and parent partnership can make all the difference in a child's IEP journey? Listen now to gain perspective that will transform how you work with families and create lasting impact beyond the therapy session.

Learning Objectives

• Understand the critical importance of communicating the "why" behind OT interventions to parents in accessible, non-clinical language to increase understanding and home carryover
• Recognize the value of collaborative communication between school-based OT, outpatient providers, teachers, and parents to create cohesive support systems for students
• Identify practical strategies for empowering parents as active IEP team members through education, consistent feedback loops, and actionable recommendations they can implement at home

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

Supporting teachers can be one of the most powerful ways to create lasting change for students—but it requires a shift in how we view our role as school-based OTs. In this episode, Dr. Ellen Cullen shares her groundbreaking doctoral capstone work on occupation-based coaching, where she treated teachers as clients and used MOHO to support their self-efficacy and align their practices with their professional values.

Ellen reveals how experienced teachers often don't lack competence—they lack alignment between what they value and what the system demands of them. By becoming co-designers rather than experts, OTs can empower teachers to reclaim their autonomy, reduce burnout, and implement sustainable strategies that truly benefit students.

Whether you're struggling to make time for consultation or wondering how to make your impact last beyond the therapy session, this episode offers practical, immediately actionable strategies. Listen now to discover how supporting teachers isn't just good practice—it's essential to creating meaningful change for the students we serve.

Listen now to learn the following objectives:

• Learners will understand the power dynamics in classroom consultation and how to approach teachers as occupational beings

• Learners will identify how to apply occupation-based coaching models (using frameworks like MOHO and IRM) to support teacher self-efficacy

• Learners will understand practical strategies for integrating teacher support into existing service delivery models

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode! 

Walking into a classroom filled with visual clutter, constant noise, and lingering smells from an air fryer might leave you wondering how any student can focus—let alone those with sensory processing challenges. In this episode, Dr. Heather Kuhaneck joins school-based OT practitioners Linda Kinkade and Dana Hawkins to introduce the Classroom Sensory Environment Assessment (C-SEA), a tool designed to help teachers assess and modify their classroom environments to better support students with sensory needs.

Unlike traditional assessments that focus on individual students, the C-SEA evaluates the entire classroom across five sensory domains: visual, sound, movement, touch, and smell. Dr. Kuhaneck explains how the tool provides teachers with a visual map of their classroom's sensory profile—without labeling it as "good" or "bad"—making it easier to gain buy-in for meaningful changes. Linda and Dana share real-world examples of how they've used the C-SEA to uncover hidden sensory triggers, like the surprising impact of an air fryer on student behavior.

Whether you're struggling to help teachers understand sensory processing or looking for a collaborative approach to classroom modifications, this episode offers practical strategies you can implement immediately. Tune in to discover how the C-SEA can transform your practice and create more sensory-friendly learning environments for all students.

Listen now to learn the following objectives:

• Identify the purpose of the Classroom Sensory Environment Assessment (C-SEA) and describe how it differs from student-centered sensory assessments such as the SPM-2 or Sensory Profile.

• Identify the five sensory domains addressed within the C-SEA and describe common classroom-based sensory considerations.

• Describe how the C-SEA can be used to support conversations with teachers about sensory-friendly classroom environments.

Thanks for tuning in!

Thanks for tuning into the OT Schoolhouse Podcast brought to you by the OT Schoolhouse Collaborative Community for school-based OTPs. In OTS Collab, we use community-powered professional development to learn together and implement strategies together.

Don't forget to subscribe to the show and check out the show notes for every episode at OTSchoolhouse.com

See you in the next episode!