WiseLeaf Occupational Therapy

By bridging the gap between the art of nature and the science of life, therapeutic transformation can occur.

From evidence-based research and years of shared experience, to ideas compounded around a campfire within the team at Ambroise Farm, heart-driven science has ultimately unlocked a nature occupational therapy model into practice; referred to as WiseLeaf. 

Using the Person-Environment-Occupation paradigm for therapy, WiseLeaf was written by Miriam Hollely-Barik and is an acronym for...

“where the wilderness meets the senses, we learn and are energised through adventure and freedom.”
The WiseLeaf occupational therapy approach is based on the philosophy that the wildness of nature provides the ultimate sensory rich environment for children to play, learn and thrive. The freedom that green outdoor space offers means emotional barriers can be better broken down and the senses more naturally stimulated in order to therapeutically tackle every day physical, emotional and social challenges. By inspiring a child’s imagination with simple raw materials from the earth, woodland and plants, problem solving skills are enhanced and creative adventures developed. It is here where occupational focused goals become attainable in a truly unique way. The ‘glow’ from a child’s sense of self when over-coming fears, taking healthy risks and discovering one’s potential is at the heart of the WiseLeaf occupational therapy ethos.
The WiseLeaf Model
Wilderness
 
The wilderness came first and provides all the resources for innate survival in its rawest form. From food foraging to building a shelter, when connecting with the great outdoors we can explore healthy risks and develop instinctive survival mechanisms so that we feel safe within it.  

Respecting one’s place and equally understanding what nature can bring to us is at the forefront of what makes outdoor therapies so effective. It is a lifelong relationship that quickly reveals a child’s persona, continuously adapting and growing in time. For example, if a child is initially fearful of every smell, insect and gust of wind or if a child is over excitable in open green spaces to the point of taking unhealthy risks, the therapeutic foundation on which to build is automatically apparent. It is because we cannot control the weather, the behaviour of wildlife and various sensory rich stimuli that makes the outdoors the perfect place to tackle sensory challenges. 

The natural world offers each individual child the opportunity to develop adaptive responses and manage emotions within a somewhat unpredictable environment. 
Senses

Our sensory journey throughout life began before we were born. From the rhythm and sound of our mother’s heartbeat, taking our first steps, riding a bike, all the way to learning to drive a car and beyond, our nervous system collects and re-organises information continuously to understand ourselves and our surroundings. Touch, sound, sight, smell, taste, feedback from muscles/joints and the effects of gravity are all sensory input that our nervous system uses to develop, learn and function. 

As our nervous system matures, confidence, healthy risk taking, and exploration are enhanced to learn more and more. We use our senses to regulate from calm to alert, for comfort, to communicate and ultimately to survive, feel safe and thrive. No one’s sensory journey has grown without its own set of obstacles. It could be that a child was always hypersensitive and fearful or grew to become so, or that a child seeks so much movement and stimulation that she gets frustrated with social expectations, or it could be a complex entangled mix of fifty different things. 

However big or small, addressing emotional and sensory processing challenges in the natural outdoors has shown to bring out the most positive of connections to our nervous system. For some, it may be going right back to basics and creating a peaceful safe space in order to grow securely and later reach out from. 
For others, it may be tailoring raw materials and task break-down to achieve a ‘just right’ challenge, or simply providing a freer environment to functionally channel all their sensory energy. 

Whatever the sensory presentation, the WiseLeaf model places the individual sensory profile at the forefront of a person’s occupational therapy direction through comprehensive and continuous assessment and evaluation of needs. ​
Learning

The educational principles of traditional forest school are embedded into the WiseLeaf model to anchor one of its core missions for nature preservation and life skills. We directly teach these principles to build knowledge and skills of the natural environment, plants, local wildlife and woodland. Life skills include organisation of one’s self, body awareness, emotional regulation, social-communication skills, self-care (washing, dressing, personal hygiene), fire safety, cooking, tool use and problem solving. By teaching these necessities required to facilitate healthy physical, emotional and cognitive development, the child is more ready to excel in other areas of their academic or otherwise educational world. 

Discovering and harnessing one’s strengths and talents is just as much a focus in sessions as addressing difficulties. This approach enables each individual to aspire to find their potential as well as teaching how to negotiate through their obstacles; equipping them with the tools to lead balanced, independent and fulfilling lives. 
Energising

Physical fitness, motivation and tapping into an individual’s inner drive are paramount to the therapeutic process, which remains central to all outdoor sessions. However, this ‘energising’ principle means even more here. By teaching healthy eating and self-sufficiency through food foraging, growing, harvesting and cooking organic fruit and vegetables we are nurturing the best kind of biological energy to maximise engagement. What we put in our mouths is well recognised to impact on attention, health, mood and energy levels. 

Our relationship with food also reflects coping strategies, our emotions, sensory preferences and our link to internal mechanisms such as registering hunger and thirst, all which impact on engagement and well-being. There is no pressure or expectation to eat the food we gather and cook. Instead, we foster a deeper relationship with food, which begins with the growing and food foraging, followed by the gathering and preparing. Prior to the actual tasting, we encourage exploration of the food through its appearance, temperature, smell, blend and texture.
Adventure

A sensory integration approach full of problem solving is core to the ‘adventure’ aspect of the WiseLeaf model. This stage tends to be where the confidence built is revealed and where the most risk taking occurs. Motor skills, multi-tasking and coordination are challenged, and creativity and imagination set free.

​The social dynamics of a group session are closely monitored by the adult facilitators, where guidance for conflict resolution and cohesive teamwork underpins the most rewarding of adventures. Respect for one another, identifying strengths and ensuring inclusion makes this stage one of the most exciting. 

Our child-centred and child-led approach means that when a child is ready to move from one to one to a paired or group session, this accomplishment and sense of achievement are even greater.
Freedom

Taking away the four walls already breaks down many barriers found in children with or without special needs, whether it be the physical environment or the social context. That being said, the goal to equip an individual with the means to cope in the constraints of the world is key. Whether they choose to live freer lives or not into adult hood, children are constantly surrounded by rules. 

Our approach to freedom isn’t just about creating a ‘get away from it all’ space, as much as it may feel like that to begin with. It is about experiencing the reward and therapeutic benefits of nature as part of you, so that you take nature with you wherever you go.

​The rules and social demands of life become more manageable and understood when your journey to self-discovery has seen a clearer and more grounded view. Not only does such a transformation and sense of freedom mean you know how or where to de-stress, but it enables you to share and even teach others what the nature connection does to our health and well-being.
Structure Summary

At Ambroise Farm, the WiseLeaf approach is used to integrate therapeutic goals for children with developmental or other special needs. The fields of health, neuroscience and education research inform our therapeutic approaches and are constantly under review considering new findings. We strive to contribute directly to research evidence in our work to support access for more children to gain a nature-based approach to therapies. 

Sessions are assessed and led by specialist occupational therapists who are highly experienced in child development, childhood disability and complex neurodevelopment conditions. These include, but are not limited to, autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD), dyspraxia (DCD / developmental coordination disorder) and other learning, social-emotional, physical or mental health difficulties.

​Children do not require a diagnosis to meet requirements and children without specified challenges are included within groups as part of our socially inclusive framework.