PraxisWorks!™: Clinical Assessment and Practical Interventions for Praxis – From Ideation to Execution 19.8.-21.8.2026 in Helsinki or online
PraxisWorks!™: Clinical Assessment and Practical Interventions for Praxis – From Ideation to Execution
Presenter: Teresa A. May-Benson, ScD, OTR/L, FAOTA
Description: This exciting course offers a clinically focused, practice-ready overview of praxis, utilizing the PraxisWorks!™ model, a sensory integration frame of reference, to support assessment and intervention for children with praxis-related challenges. Designed for practicing clinicians, the course emphasizes how disruptions in ideation, motor planning, sequencing, bilateral coordination, and projected action sequences directly impact functional performance and participation.
Participants will learn about the neurological and conceptual foundations of praxis, a structured framework for skilled observation, assessment, and clinical reasoning to accurately identify specific praxis problems within a sensory integration treatment model. An observation-based clinical assessment will be introduced and applied to strengthen therapists’ ability to interpret praxis observations, guide decision-making, and individualize intervention.
Through video review, case examples, and lecture-based instruction, the course translates theory into practice by highlighting effective intervention strategies using both bottom-up and top-down approaches. Participants will leave with practical tools and strategies they can immediately integrate into evaluation and treatment sessions to improve functional outcomes for children with praxis difficulties.
Level: This course would be appropriate for intermediate to advanced level OT, PT, OT aides/ assts, PT aides/ assts. A previous knowledge of sensory integration theory would be recommended.
Objectives: By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Analyze the neural and sensory mechanisms contributing to different types of praxis dysfunctions.
- Differentiate and interpret praxis challenges across the continuum from ideation through motor execution using clinical observation and assessment.
- Apply clinical reasoning to select and implement appropriate top-down and bottom-up intervention approaches for specific praxis problems.
- Evaluate the impact of various praxis difficulties on functional performance and participation in daily activities.
- Develop and justify targeted intervention strategies and treatment plans to support improved praxis-related functional outcomes.
Course Credit/ Continuing Education Units: This course qualifies for 12 clock hours as required by many national, state and local licensing boards and professional organizations.
Schedule
Day One:
8:00 – 8:30 Registration
8:30 – 10:00 Introduction and Clinical Reasoning for Praxis and Dyspraxia
Praxis in Normal Development
10:00 – 10:30 Break
10:30 – 12:00 Introduction to Top-Down Approaches and Cognitive Learning Theory
Brief Neurology of Praxis
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 Models for Looking at Praxis
Applying a New Clinical Reasoning Model for Praxis
2:30 – 3:00 Break
3:00 – 4:30 New Model for Assessment and Clinical Reasoning for Intervention in Praxis
Praxis Model and Clinical Reasoning Lab
Day Two
8:30 – 10:00 Intervention Strategies for Arousal, Rhythmicity and Sequencing
Case Study and Treatment Planning
10:00 – 10:30 Break
10:30 – 12:00 Assessment and Intervention Strategies for Ideation
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 Assessment and Intervention Strategies for Motor Planning
2:30 – 3:00 Break
3:00 – 4:30 Assessment and Intervention Strategies for Bilateral Coordination
Assessment and Intervention Strategies for Projected Action Sequences
Day three:
Advanced Ideational Praxis: The Test of Ideational Praxis© and the Think*Move*Draw™ Intervention Program
Course Description:
Generating ideas, organizing actions, and engaging meaningfully with objects are foundational skills for participation in play and daily life. When these abilities are impaired—known as challenges in ideational praxis—children may struggle to initiate activities, use objects purposefully, or demonstrate flexible, creative problem-solving. These difficulties are commonly seen in children with sensory integration challenges, including those with autism spectrum disorder, yet they are often subtle and easily overlooked in clinical practice.
This course is designed to help therapists confidently identify and address ideational praxis challenges. Participants will learn to administer and interpret the Test of Ideational Praxis© (TIP) and deepen their understanding of how deficits in recognizing object affordances and in representational thought affect functional performance. Evidence-informed intervention strategies using the Think*Move*Draw™ program will be explored to support ideation, symbolic thinking, and purposeful action within a sensory-integrative framework.
Through engaging lectures, video demonstrations, and real-world case studies, participants will develop practical skills for assessment, clinical reasoning, and intervention planning. Interactive discussion will encourage reflection and application, empowering clinicians to translate course concepts directly into effective, targeted therapy sessions
Learning Objectives:
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Critically analyze the theoretical underpinnings of ideational praxis within Ayres Sensory Integration® and related models, and articulate how disruptions in ideation impact functional participation, play, and learning.
- Administer, score, and interpret the Test of Ideational Praxis (TIP) with precision, integrating quantitative results and qualitative observations to distinguish ideational praxis challenges from other forms of praxis or motor planning difficulties.
- Evaluate and apply evidence-informed intervention strategies targeting object affordance recognition, ideation, and representational thought using the Think*Move*Draw™ program.
- Design and adapt intervention activities that intentionally support ideational praxis while maintaining fidelity to sensory integration principles and individual client needs.
- Integrate video-based case analysis to refine clinical reasoning, justify intervention choices, and predict therapeutic outcomes related to ideational growth.
Agenda:
8:00-8:30 Registration
8:30 – 10:00 Introduction to Assessment and Intervention for Ideation
The Test of Ideational Praxis – Psychometrics and Administration
10:00 – 10:30 Break
1:30 – 12:00 The Test of Ideational Praxis – Scoring, Interpretation and Practice
12:00 – 1:00 Lunch
1:00 – 2:30 Introduction to the Think*Move*Draw™ Program for Ideational Praxis Intervention
2:30 – 3:00 Break
3:00 – 4:30 Continued Think*Move*Draw™ Program
Appropriate for: OT, OTA
Level: Introductory – Intermediate
Hours: 6 contact hours
Boutique hotelli Hobo, Kluuvikatu 4, Helsinki or online.
Three day course: 520 euros, Sity ry members: 450 euros
Registration: remote (online) participation
Registration: present in Helsinki