I am a pediatric occupational therapist with over 25 years experience, serving private clients in the Tampa Bay area. I received a Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy in 1994, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology in 1992. My OT career has included working in a variety of settings and with many age groups and types of disabilities. These include skilled nursing rehabilitation, home health care, acute care trauma center rehab, and serving school-based therapy needs in the homeschool community and a pediatric therapy clinic. I am also recently retired from homeschooling my 3 children for 11 years. I was drawn to the world of pediatric OT and sensory processing 19 years ago when my first child was born.
I created A+ Handwriting to help students improve their handwriting ability for success in schoolwork activities and life. In many school settings, teachers are no longer able to focus on proper handwriting technique nor the underlying physical and sensory skills required for success. My A+ Handwriting program provides individualized assessment and one-on-one treatments aimed at preparing children for “handwriting readiness” by the time they enter school (K), and to help older kids who persist with handwriting difficulties. Many typical children can develop improper handwriting postures, which become reinforced motor patterns over time, and can create muscle fatigue, unnatural stress on finger joints, illegible handwriting, frustration, and even an unwillingness to perform writing activities. Other kids may have sensory-motor based, muscle tone, dysgraphia, or primitive reflex integration issues, which can be detrimental to the timely development of many aspects of handwriting, which are important during the school years and throughout life. A+ OT Evaluations include all of the above areas, plus an analysis of each student’s Learning Style, Dominance Profile, Sensory Processing matrix, and Executive Skills.
Research-based OT interventions are an important component in the process of reversing or preventing handwriting difficulties. An individualized A+ Plan of Treatment targets the core areas of Visual Motor Integration, Fine and Gross Motor Skills, Reflex Integration, Visual Perception, Sensory Processing (including visual, vestibular, attention/focus, and auditory processing), Trunk Control, Shoulder Stability, and Functional Grasp patterns necessary for handwriting via a multi-sensory and one-on-one approach.
I am a registered and licensed Occupational Therapist in the states of Florida and Virginia, with a specialty and advanced training in handwriting remediation for school aged children, grades Pre-K through 12. Often, before a child is able to participate in the complex skill of handwriting, there are various modalities to help children calm & regulate themselves for improved self-control, focus, and sensory processing. I am a certified iLS Practitioner, and trained in the SSP protocol for students with more challenging auditory processing and behavioral issues. What is iLS? Check it out, here: http://integratedlistening.com/the-science-of-how-ils-works/
What is SSP? https://integratedlistening.com/ssp-safe-sound-protocol/
I am passionate about helping kids discover their unique God-given talents while growing their self-confidence and ability to be successful in the sensory world we live in.
When not working, I try to keep a healthy life balance by spending time with my family, biking, cooking, and beaching in sunny Florida.
I see clients in my office near Tampa, FL, and via teletherapy for all other locations in FL or VA. Please call or email me to schedule an OT Evaluation.
813-245-3671
marlasca39@gmail.com
~ Yours in OT,
Marla Scaglione, MS, OTR/L
while learning to read and doing handwriting, we were at a loss.After listening carefully to our concerns, Marla gave her an evaluation and we were amazed at how thorough it was! She discovered midline issues we didn’t even know existed and continued by helping us understand visual loss, auditory processing disorder and disgraphia. She handled our numerous questions with ease and even recommended some books to help us.
Rose has been in session with Marla for a few months and she loves it. She can’t wait to do her “homework” during the week and constantly tells us how much fun OT is! We have seen a huge improvement in such a short time. Rose has gained control of her visual loss and the consequences for her reading and handwriting have been tremendous. Marla is very kid oriented and we have seen her challenge Rose but is always encouraging and supportive. We are very grateful for her knowledge and experience as our daughter’s occupational therapist.
