Occupations are all the things we want, need, and must do in our life. Occupations form parts of our daily and seasonal lives. Occupations mark our waking, sleeping and all of our activities in between. Occupations bring our hearts, hands, and minds together in work, learning rest, and play. Occupations are done with others or on our own, indoors and outdoors, in rain or shine. Occupations are important as they help us to live life well.
Our activities and occupations describe our various life roles in action and are ever-changing as we grow, learn and mature from babyhood to adult life. A child's occupations include communicating their needs, caring for themselves as they gain independence, playing, exploring & learning. .
Developing abilities for everyday occupations at our skill level, we can experience more flow in our everyday lives. Wellbeing is supported when our occupations hold purpose and meaning and when our environment supports our participation. Daily occupations can be challenging at times for children, young adults and adults alike. Performing our everyday occupations consistently can help us develop inner confidence, creativity, problem-solving, resilience, attention & memory, focus and clear thinking. We all need help from time to time especially when it comes to managing daily life tasks, emotions, communication and learning new things; when life becomes challenging we appreciate understanding so that we can step back, pause and consider what our next action will be to move through our day.
Occupations include:
play: helps us to concentrate, enjoy, socialise and integrate new learning
productive activities: studying, practising new skills, volunteering or paid work
social activities: attending; school, family get togethers, leisure or community groups
rest and restorative activities: sleep, walking in a park, reading a book, drawing, noticing bird-life
self-care activities: showering and dressing, cooking, communicating our needs effectively, managing our feelings and emotions and many other interesting things
Occupations require us to be:
on time, ready and calm to participate - we know how stressful this can be to achieve!
organised with our belongings, equipment - sometimes it's hard to remember everything and plan our day or study
social - greeting others, asking questions, joining in conversations, team work and play, family or group activities
ready with all we need - to take a shower, dress appropriately for our bodies and the weather, go shopping and cook a meal
Occupations require us to understand:
our needs, values and motivation - inner knowledge
our preferred environment - for participation in daily, seasonal occupations
our bodies, feelings and emotions - for effective self-regulation and co-regulation
our social communication style - our and other's perspective, ways to connect with others well, differences in communication styles and abilities
our unique attention, focus, memory, planning and creative problem-solving - executive functioning skills
our sensory interface experience with the world around us - individual, parent, family and caring and collective sensory integration skills
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