The therapist will collect some initial information from you beforehand. Using this information, they will decide whether the testing will be a standardized assessment or a play-based assessment, depending on the child's age and developmental level.

Occupational therapists are trained in the detailed mechanics of hand function and all aspects related to handwriting. Effective handwriting requires several foundational skills, including body and spatial awareness, laterality, directionality, visual perception, visual-motor integration, postural stability, in-hand manipulation, hand separation, hand strength, movement and position awareness, motor planning, ocular motor control, bilateral integration, eye-hand coordination, sensory integration, tactile discrimination, memory, attention, orientation to letters, and sequencing. Identifying the root cause of a handwriting problem requires a thorough assessment by an occupational therapist.

Some signs of sensory processing diculties include:
i. Being overly sensitive or underreactive to sights, sounds, movement, or touch.
ii. Seeking excessive sensory input through moving, bouncing, squeezing, or mouthing objects.
iii. Struggling with behavioral and/or emotional regulation, becoming easily overwhelmed, leading to overexcitement, meltdowns, or shutting down.
iv. Having poor muscle tone, tiring easily, leaning on people, or slumping in a chair, and using inappropriate force when handling objects, coloring, writing, or interacting with siblings or pets.
v. Being clumsy, frequently falling, bumping into furniture or people, and having trouble judging the position of their body in relation to surrounding space.
vi. Experiencing diculty learning new motor tasks and frustration when trying to follow instructions or sequence steps for an activity.
vii. Avoiding playground activities, physical education classes, and/or sports.
viii. Struggling to learn how to play or get along with other children.
ix. Having diculty with everyday activities like eating, sleeping, brushing teeth, or getting dressed.
x. Facing problems learning to color, cut, draw, or write.
xi. Having diculty transitioning from one activity or place to another.
xii. Experiencing challenges in school, including attention, organization, perception, and listening skills.

For children and youth, occupations are activities that enable them to learn and develop life skills (school activities), be creative and enjoy themselves (play), and thrive (self-care and caring for others). Occupational therapists often use play as a medium for treatment because it significantly influences a child's development. The primary goals of childhood are to grow, learn, and play, and it is through play that children learn to understand the world around them. Playing is a child’s "job" or "occupation," helping them develop physical coordination, emotional maturity, social skills for interacting with others, and self-condence to try new experiences and explore new environments. Recommended interventions are based on a comprehensive understanding of typical development and the effects of disability, illness, and impairment on an individual child's development, play, learning, and overall occupational performance