DIY Scooter Board for OT

This weeks project for us was making Maddy a scooter board for her OT at home.  Not only did this save money instead of buying one, but Maddy got to personalise it by choosing her own fabric cover so it became more ‘hers’ and the chance of her actually wanting to use it increased straight away!!!

First step was a trip to Bunnings (or any other hardware shop!) to get the castors and handles (these are optional, we didn’t end up using them) We used some wood that we already had at home but if not get some while you are there!

Next was Maddy's favorite part, going to Spotlight to choose her fabric.  Make sure its thick as it will cop a beating over time! Darker colours would also work better as you will only be able to spot clean it when it is dirty.

Then swing past Clark rubber and collect your foam cut to measure and your foam adhesive spray.  We chose foam that was a few inches thick and quite firm to support Maddy’s weight.  Our foam cost around $15.

Once you have prepped the wood, drill the castors on, spray the adhesive and attach the foam, we left it to dry for several hours then.  Cute the fabric to size then use a staple gun to attach it to the under sides.

A scooter board purchased from a store is usually made from plastic.  They also don’t have a foam layer.  We thought to make this as user friendly as possibly for Maddy that we should make it as comfortable as possible so there wont be complaints (since the scooter boards are typically ridden on their belly's!) 

We got the tick of approval from Maddy, she absolutely loves it and the bright neon fabric she chose really suits her :)

For some scooter board activity ideas, here are some great activities online: 

http://therapyfunzone.com/blog/2011/07/10-activities-to-do-on-a-scooter-board/ 

http://missmancy.com/scooter-board-rainbow-game/

http://goldenreflectionsblog.com/2013/02/ot-tip-scooter-board-activity.html

Down the track I will hopefully be able to blog about some of the activities that we use the scooter board for.  One tip to remember is to make sure your little ones 'boobies' are off the edge of the scooter board, that's how you know that are on it properly when they are using it on their tummy.  

*Make sure if your child has long hair that they tie it up before using the board! hair + wheels = not good!