Designing an effective treatment programs to improve strength, endurance and function in children with disabilities and chronic conditions can be enormously challenging. This course will help clinicians set realistic goals, prioritize the treatment and implement successful programs for children with a variety of diagnoses including cerebral palsy, hypotonia, autism, developmental coordination disorder, and obesity.

An evidence based approach to examination
procedures, outcome measurement, and intervention design including determination of training intensity, duration, frequency, and mode will be presented. Participants will practice some of these techniques in lab sessions. Specific treatment activities such as progressive resistive exercises, resistance bands, treadmill training, therapeutic ball exercises, aquatic exercise, structured play and yoga will be presented as mechanisms to enhance strength, flexibility, endurance and function.

Discussion of evidence on the effectiveness of existing community-based programs and resources to improve physical activity, strength and endurance in children will be highlighted. Community based programs and resources that will facilitate improvement and maintenance of fitness will be discussed.