It's beginning to look a lot like Parent Teacher Conferences!" As you schedule your evening to meet face to face with your child's teacher, don't forget your child's speech language pathologist (SLP)! We want to talk with you.  You have great information that can help us provide better therapy and help your child make better progress.  Let's work together!!

Hey, parents, we know it can be super frustrating to try to teach, reason with, or explain things to a child who is out of control.

It's exhausting!

If you add a speech and/or language delay into the mix...things get even trickier, fast.  


Want to help your kid?  Here's What To Do First:

Trying to get a handle on our own behavior is tough enough.  When you can't figure out your child's behavior it can be overwhelming! A great place to start is to try to find what your kid is trying to communicate with their behavior.  The behavior is functioning to tell you something.

Last fall a new research article came out.  This article reviewed all of the data its authors could find on when kids learn certain speech sounds.  The authors then were able to make some connections about what ages most kids can say sounds.  By its nature, this study applies to all kids generally and not really to any one child specifically.  When you look at the graphic I posted above it seems pretty clear, when my child is 3 I should be listening for him to start saying p, b, m, d, n, h, k....  BUT learning to speak clearly involves a lot more than just making a checklist of sounds!!!  

What are good ways to check and see if my child's speech and language is ok?

Intelligibility - can you understand what your child is saying?

• 18 months - Parents should understand 25% of what their child says
• 24 months - Parents should understand 50-75% of what their child says
• 36 months - Parents should understand 75-100% of what their child says
• After age 4 - most adults should understand what your child says

Bowen, C. (2011). Table1: Intelligibility. Retrieved from http://www.speech-language-therapy.com/ on [1/24/2019].

Language - can your child tell you what he is thinking about?

• around 1 year old - your child should start using some words
• around 2 years old - your child should start combining 2 words into a phrase that makes sense, "Daddy home"
• around 3 years old - your child should be talking in nice long phrases, and you should understand most of them
• around 4 years old - your child should be talking in complete sentences that combine ideas, he can tell you stories about his day!

Grammar - do your child's sentences make sense?

• at age 2 your child should be able to combine different word types, like an adjective + a noun (blue cup)
• at age 3 your child should be using pronouns like he, she, or they.  He may not always use them correctly and that is ok
• at age 4 your child should be using correct grammar in most of his sentences, he should be able to put a "ed" on past tense words (like played) and a plural "s" on words (like cats)

Social Interaction - does your child seem to notice others?

• infant - does your child watch your facial expressions?
• 12 months - does your child imitate your actions?
• 24 months - does your child notice others and play along side them?
• 3 years - does your child enjoy playing pretend?
  
• 4 years - does your child play games and pretend with other kids?

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These are all just examples of ways your child grows and develops the skills needed to talk clearly to others.  If you want more information about what development might look like for a specific age please check out my Development Charts: 
Birth to 3 Development
​Preschool Development
Elementary Development

In my work with pre-teens and teenagers I have found working on complex sentences sounds scary, is possible, and makes a HUGE difference.

What are complex sentences?  Complex sentences tell us more; they connect two ideas together.  These students use linking words called subordinating conjunctions.  Some examples of these linking words are:  although, before, while, and because.

WHY use complex sentences? When speaking and writing, complex sentences help to add depth and maturity to your communication.  Understanding complex sentences is vital to navigating a school day.

Teachers and text books use complex sentences ALL the TIME. 
"After you finish with your work, please begin quiet reading."   
"I need all tests turned in before you head out to recess."
"Even though all cells have a cell membrane, only plant cells have a cell wall."
"It couldn't compete with the transcontinental railroad although the pony express was effective at delivering mail,."

Do you see how each of these sentences connects two different ideas?  The key to understanding HOW the sentences are connected is understanding that bold linking word.

How can we work on these kinds of sentences with our kids?  I love to use topics kids are learning about in school, talking about what they are learning, prepping for assignments, working on projects, and studying for tests are all great times to pull in linking words.

Learning about the water cycle?  Use words like: first, after, because, and until.
"After the water evaporates, water droplets condense into clouds."

Comparing two characters in a book?  Use words like: whereas, even though, however, and similarly.  "Harry does well in Defense Against the Dark Arts, whereas Hermione excels in all her classes."

Here is a list of words you can be thinking of when talking and studying with your kids.  My biggest suggestion, pick two related ideas and connect them together with a linking word.

*Image is from: Mrs. Samaddar's Website

This information comes from the Irish Association of Speech Language Therapists DLD Position Paper published in 2017

This year I have been completing several courses regarding specialized literacy intervention.  I have mostly been focusing on how a child's knowledge of speech sounds (phonology) and how a child's understanding of word parts (morphology) impacts their reading.

Did you know that our brains are not really wired to learn to read?  We come pre-programmed to eat, breath, walk, and even talk BUT there is no "reading center" in our brains.

Luckily, we as human beings are uniquely designed to communicate.  We are born seeking patterns in sounds, movements, and facial expressions.  We are experts in assigning meaning to those patterns.  READING builds on this innate ability to SEEK PATTERNS and COMMUNICATE!

If we can't learn to read just by developing and growing...then how does it happen?

​VOCABULARY
1.  We build our spoken language.  We learn as many words as we can.  We watch for patterns when speaking.  Kids listen and learn from hearing stories, exploring their environment, and talking with you!

LETTER SOUNDS
​2. We learn how letters sound individually and when they are in words.  We seek out the patterns associated with these sounds. Kids love nursery rhymes and sound games for a reason!  I love to "A"te "A"te "A"te "A"pples and Ban"A"n"A"s!

LETTER SHAPES
3.  We learn what letters look like, what words look like, how to tell if a sentence is a statement or a question, we become familiar with what our language looks like when it's written down.

I have been lucky enough to be learning Structured Literacy instruction through SMARTER Intervention. "Structured Literacy is the umbrella term used by the International Dyslexia Association (IDA) to unify and encompass evidence-based programs and approaches that are aligned to the Knowledge and Practice Standards and are effective for students identified with SLD/Dyslexia. This approach is beneficial for all children learning to read but is essential for students with SLD/Dyslexia."

SMARTER Intervention was created because there was a need for a more approachable, realistic, research based structured literacy program.  I have been very impressed with the quality of their training modules and materials.  As I begin utilizing their products I will write a more complete review about my experience with structures literacy instruction!

Check out this fantastic graphic created to help us understand the most recent data about when kids learn specific speech sounds!

Take it from me, these ages are a lot younger than most SLPs (myself included) are used to.  I LOVE that research is showing kids are ready to tackle sounds earlier than we thought.  If your kid is struggling with a sound and you are concerned, talk with your local SLP (you can get info from your pediatrician or school district).

It may take the SLP world a while to catch up to this most recent study compiling data regarding speech acquisition.  BUT at least now we have a starting point.

start around 40 s.     I always felt bad for Dopey, think of all of the fabulous things he might say if someone got him some kind of AAC device and taught him how to use it.  This is why SLPs are amazing!

I was reading "Oh Say Can You Say" by Dr. Seuss to my 6 year old tonight and came across the poem above.  I thought, "Hey, that is a perfect example of how using visual cues can help with sound placement!".  So here I am blogging about Dr. Seuss's great idea.

One of the very best ways to get kids saying new sound or new sound combinations is to have them watch you as you say those sounds.  Pulling out a mirror so they can see their own oral motor movements is also an excellent idea, especially for these kinds of sounds:  b, m, p, th, f, v, l, and s.  This kind of activity works best when your child already knows how to make their new sound and needs a reminder to use it in their target words.  

Here is an example:  child can say the "s" sound but he often replaces it with a "th" if he is not paying attention.

Get in the bathroom in front of a mirror big enough to see you both.

Mom:  Sssam, see how my tongue stayed behind my teeth!  Now watch it will slip out this time:  "tham", oops, how do I fix it?

Child:  Pull it back behind your teeth!

Mom:  Okay, Sam.  How was that?  Awesome!  Your turn:

Child:  Sam

Mom:  I noticed that your tongue was behind your teeth!

If your child is having a hard time getting the right sound out at all, this activity might not be as successful.  That is when a knowledgeable expert (aka Speech-Language Pathologist) is super useful!

It's summertime and your child may be taking a break from his direct speech therapy services (particularly if he is receiving services through his school SLP).  What can you do to help him maintain his awesome skills over the break?  How can you help him keep progressing without the homework sheets he brought home all school year?

Never fear!  There are some amazing websites and apps that are perfect for filling the summer break therapy gap.

Mommy Speech Therapy: http://mommyspeechtherapy.com/?page_id=55 
This site has SO many free worksheets!  My advice, print off a few for sounds your child can make but isn't using in his daily conversation yet and practice them for about 5 minutes a day.  You might need an SLP to teach sounds your child can't say at all yet BUT these worksheets are perfect for practicing sounds your child knows and just isn't using all of the time.  Don't stress on words he is missing, practice, practice, practice the words he can do.  For now, just mark the especially difficult words and let his SLP know when school starts back up again.

Word Vault: Get home-speech-home.com's World Vault app, it's FREE on the apple market!!  This is my #1 go to to practice sounds with kids who can read (the free app has no pictures, just word lists). Play around with it, you can change where the sound is at in the words (beginning, middle, and end) you can also change how difficult the words are and put them into sentences or paragraphs.

All of these activities may not work for your child, but this summer try them out.  If you are looking for activities tailored more specifically to your child's needs and interests...talk with your SLP, we are the experts when it comes to designing speech and language programs!