When Kate Moore, a current student and aspiring occupational therapist, received an email and learned she was nominated, she was stunned. Kate was nominated and later selected for the Most Promising Pediatric Clinician Award, or MPPCA for short. “I was so surprised to be nominated for such a prestigious award,” Moore said. “I put a lot of effort into my …
Helpful Information about DIR/Floortime
Clinician-Directed Therapy vs. Child-Directed Therapy Child-directed therapy (what is used during Floortime) ensures that the child is partaking in activities that interest him or her. The child will not view therapy as “work” because he or she will enjoy whatever he or she is working on. Clinician-directed therapy methods are often not easily transferrable to real life situations. Children sometimes …
How to Administer DIR or Floortime Therapy (DIR/Floortime)
For your child of any age, there are three steps you should take while practicing Floortime. Floortime may be used in the home, but it is helpful to have assistance from a clinician (such as a speech-language pathologist), especially at the beginning of the program. 1. The first step you will want to take should involve you acknowledging and exciting …
Karen George, Speech Pathologist in Chicago, Recommends Speech Buddies for Use During Speech Therapy!
I’d like to share a fun and useful tool I recent discovered that help children master sounds in a fun way. The tool is called Speech Buddies! Speech Buddies are a clinically-tested way for parents and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to help children learn correct and consistent tongue positioning for five of the most difficult-to-learn problem sounds – R, S, L, …
Karen George, Chicago Speech Therapist, recommends Bumblebee Touchbook – An Entertaining and Educational App for Your Toddler
As a parent, you can transform your iPhone into a powerful resource for your children simply by downloading a few great apps to have handy for those situations at the grocery store, restaurant, or doctor’s office when a picture book or a stuffed animal just can’t keep your toddler’s attention as well as you would like. A great way to …
Articulation Station App for Ipad is recommended by Karen George and Chicago Speech Therapy
While there are several articulation apps available for speech-language pathologists to use on their iPhones or iPads, the new app Articulation Station is the clear choice for children’s speech therapists. I love this app and so does our team of speech-language pathologists at Chicago Speech Therapy. If you download and use this app – you will not be disappointed! Articulation …
How to Teach the P Sound by Chicago Speech Therapy
The /p/ sound is a bilabial sound, meaning that it involves both lips being pressed together to create. Air is then released through the lips and slightly open teeth, creating the /p/ sound. Unlike the /b/ sound, which is made with the same mouth position, the /p/ sound is an unvoiced sound. The sound you hear comes from the pressure …
How to Teach the M Sound by Chicago Speech Therapy
The /m/ sound is a nasal sound, which means that all passage through the mouth is blocked and air instead has to travel through the nose. It is also a voiced (vs. unvoiced) sound, which requires the vibration of vocal cords. Closing your mouth and lips and using your voice to make a sound creates the /m/ sound. The lips are important for …
How to Teach the H Sound by Chicago Speech Therapy
The /h/ sound is one of the easier sounds to articulate. It does not involve any special arrangement of the lips or tongue or complicated movements. In order to produce the sound, simply open your mouth and breathe. The sound is unvoiced, which means that what you hear comes from the movement of the air through your throat and mouth. Since the sound …
How to Teach the N Sound by Chicago Speech Therapy
Like the /m/ sound, the /n/ sound is a voiced, nasal sound. This means that the sound is created by the speaker vibrating their vocal cords while pushing air through their nose, or nasal cavity. The /n/ sound is distinguished from the /m/ sound by the placement of the speaker’s tongue. To make the /n/ sound, place the tip of your tongue just …