How Weekly Themes Can Transform Your OT Session Planning (& Save Your Sanity)

Be honest... How many times have you sat down at the end of a long day, stared at your planner, and thought: “What in the world am I going to do with these kids tomorrow?” 

Between IEPs, evaluations, progress notes, and juggling caseloads, coming up with fresh, engaging activities can feel like running on a hamster wheel. The struggle is real, and it's never-ending!

When I first got started with OT in the schools, I felt an immense amount of pressure to plan engaging and exciting therapy sessions for all 65 of my students every week. I was scrolling through my disorganized library of resources lying in bed each night, standing in the copy room at 7 a.m. in the mornings, and still left feeling equal parts stressed for the week ahead of me and defeated from the week behind me on the weekends when I was faced with yet another challenge to plan all over again.

But what if there were a way to make planning simpler, more efficient, and (dare I say it) more fun?

My Secret Weapon: Themed Planning

Switching to themed session planning was a total game-changer for me. Instead of reinventing the wheel every week, I started anchoring my sessions to a single theme. Suddenly, the planning fog lifted and sessions became more engaging, structured, and easy to adapt.

Here’s why themes work so well:

• Built-In Structure: Kids thrive on predictability. Themes provide a familiar rhythm that helps with buy-in and smooth transitions.

• Limitless Flexibility: One theme can be leveled up or down to meet diverse goals and abilities without the need to come up with tons of different activities.

• Stress-Free Efficiency: No more blank-page panic. Themes give you a clear direction to start from.

• Student Excitement: A fun theme adds novelty without requiring you to scramble for brand-new ideas every time.

Take a simple “zoo animals” theme for example:

🦁 Fine Motor: animal clip cards with clothespins

🐵 Visual Motor: zoo-animal mazes

🐘 Executive Function: designing the “perfect zoo” on paper

🐼 Sensory: animal walks for movement breaks

One theme. Four goals. Zero planning stress.

Your Therapy Year, Done-for-You

Of course, even with themes, the brainstorming and resource-hunting can eat up your time. That’s why I created something I wish I had from day one: the 52-Week Themed Intervention Hub!

It’s not just a list of ideas... it’s an interactive, hyperlinked website toolkit packed with inspiration and resources to carry you through the entire year, and the best part? It's FREE!

Inside you’ll get:

✔️ 52 different themes (one for every week of the year)

✔️ Goal-based activity ideas for each theme

✔️ Links to free printables, online games, and videos

✔️ A clickable, easy-to-navigate design

Think of it as your session-planning sidekick: always ready with ideas, activities, and links you can use instantly.

Bookmark Your FREE Copy

Ready to make therapy planning easier, more creative, and way less stressful? Access the 52-Week Themed Intervention Hub today: hub.noteworthyresources.com.

Whether you use it as your year-long backbone or just when you’re feeling stuck, it’s built to save you time and spark creativity.

No more staring at a blank planner. No more last-minute scramble. Just engaging, structured, goal-based sessions all year long.