A family navigates their daughter's first school year with cerebral palsy — and discovers that participation is within reach.
Introduction
Mia is five years old and about to start school. She has cerebral palsy — specifically, right-sided hemiplegia, meaning her right arm and leg move differently from her left. She can walk, talks constantly, loves dogs, and has a favourite colour (orange, firmly). Her parents, Priya and David, want school to go well. They are not sure exactly what that means yet.
The Challenge
Priya and David are worried about a few things. Will Mia be able to keep up in the classroom? What happens during recess — can she join in the running games, the climbing? How will other children see her? And practically: writing, cutting, managing her own bag and lunchbox. The list felt long in those weeks before school started.
Assessment
Before school began, Mia's parents brought her to Soul Movers for an assessment. The physiotherapist and occupational therapist worked together — watching Mia move, play, and try different tasks. Mia found the balance beam immediately and wanted to walk it. The OT watched carefully. So did Mia's mum. Nobody used the word can't.
Findings
The assessment gave the family a clear and honest picture. Mia's gross motor function — her walking, running, and balance — was strong for her GMFCS level. Her right hand needed attention: fine motor tasks like using scissors and fastening buttons would take practice and some adapted strategies. Most importantly, there was no reason Mia could not participate fully in school life. The goal was to make sure participation actually happened, not just in theory.
The Plan
The plan was built around Mia's school year, not around a therapy schedule. Occupational therapy focused on fine motor skills and the specific tasks she would meet in the classroom — pencil grip, scissors, opening her lunchbox. Physiotherapy focused on keeping her active at recess, building her confidence on uneven terrain and playground equipment. The therapists also wrote a brief report for Mia's teacher — practical, not diagnostic.
Progress
By Term 2, the lunchbox was no longer a problem. Mia had worked out a way to open it herself — not the method the OT had shown her, but one she had figured out on her own. Her therapist called that a win. She was joining in at recess, usually at the edge of the running games but moving closer each week. Her writing was slow but legible. Her teacher said she was settling in well.
Outcome
Mia finished her first school year. She had a best friend (also interested in dogs), had performed in the end-of-year concert, and had strong opinions about which playground equipment was actually good. Her parents described it as a better year than they had hoped for. Therapy continued into Year 2 with new goals — but the question of whether Mia could participate in school had been answered. She could, and she did.
Key Lesson
The biggest shift for Mia's family was not in her motor skills — it was in the question they started asking. In the beginning the question was: what can she not do? By the end of the year the question had become: what does she want to do next? Participation-focused therapy changes the frame. Not fixing what is different, but removing the barriers between a child and the life they want to live.
Related Resources
These resources were written for families supporting children with cerebral palsy through participation, school, and everyday life.
Every child's story is different. If you would like to understand what support might look like for your child, the Soul Movers Learning Center is a good place to start.
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