Category: language stimulation

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Thematic Language Intervention with Language Impaired Children Using Nonfiction Texts

FullSizeRender (3)In the past a number of my SLP colleague bloggers (Communication Station, Twin Sisters SLPs, Practical AAC, etc.) wrote posts regarding the use of thematic texts for language intervention purposes. They discussed implementation of fictional texts such as the use of children’s books and fairy tales to target linguistic goals such as vocabulary knowledge in use, sentence formulation, answering WH questions, as well as story recall and production.

Today I would like to supplement those posts with information regarding the implementation of intervention based on thematic nonfiction texts to further improve language abilities of children with language difficulties.

First, here’s why the use of nonfiction texts in language intervention is important. While narrative texts have high familiarity for children due to preexisting, background knowledge, familiar vocabulary, repetitive themes, etc. nonfiction texts are far more difficult to comprehend. It typically contains unknown concepts and vocabulary, which is then used in the text multiple times. Therefore lack of knowledge of these concepts and related vocabulary will result in lack of text comprehension. According to Duke (2013) half of all the primary read-alouds should be informational text. It will allow students to build up knowledge and the necessary academic vocabulary to effectively participate and partake from the curriculum.

So what type of nonfiction materials can be used for language intervention purposes. While there is a rich variety of sources available, I have had great success using Let’s Read and Find Out Stage 1 and 2 Science Series with clients with varying degrees of language impairment.

Here’s are just a few reasons why I like to use this series.

  • They can be implemented by parents and professionals alike for different purposes with equal effectiveness.
  • They can be implemented with children fairly early beginning with preschool on-wards 
  • The can be used with the following pediatric populations:
    • Language Disordered Children
    • Children with learning disabilities and low IQ
    • Children with developmental disorders and genetic syndromes (Fragile X, Down Syndrome, Autism, etc.)
    • Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
    • Internationally adopted children with language impairment
    • Bilingual children with language impairment
    • Children with dyslexia and reading disabilities
    • Children with psychiatric Impairments
  • The books are readily available online (Barnes & Noble, Amazon, etc.) and in stores.
  • They are relatively inexpensive (individual books cost about $5-6).
  • Parents or professionals who want to continuously use them seasonally can purchase them in bulk at a significantly cheaper price from select distributors (Source: rainbowresource.com)
  • They are highly thematic, contain terrific visual support, and are surprisingly versatile, with information on topics ranging from animal habitats and life cycles to natural disasters and space.
  • They contain subject-relevant vocabulary words that the students are likely to use in the future over and over again (Stahl & Fairbanks, 1986).
  • The words are already pre-grouped in semantic clusters which create schemes (mental representations) for the students (Marzano & Marzano, 1988).

For example, the above books on weather and seasons contain information  on:

1. Front Formations
2. Water Cycle
3. High & Low Pressure Systems

Let’s look at the vocabulary words from Flash, Crash, Rumble, and Roll  (see detailed lesson plan HERE). (Source: ReadWorks):

Word: water vapor
Context: Steam from a hot soup is water vapor.

Word: expands
Context: The hot air expands and pops the balloon.

Word: atmosphere
Context:  The atmosphere is the air that covers the Earth.

Word: forecast
Context: The forecast had a lot to tell us about the storm.

Word: condense
Context: steam in the air condenses to form water drops.

These books are not just great for increasing academic vocabulary knowledge and use. They are great for teaching sequencing skills (e.g., life cycles), critical thinking skills (e.g., What do animals need to do in the winter to survive?), compare and contrast skills (e.g., what is the difference between hatching and molting?) and much, much, more!

So why is use of nonfiction texts important for strengthening vocabulary knowledge and words in language impaired children?

As I noted in my previous post on effective vocabulary instruction (HERE): “teachers with many struggling children often significantly reduce the quality of their own vocabulary unconsciously to ensure understanding” (Excerpts from Anita Archer’s Interview with Advance for SLPs).  

The same goes for SLPs and parents. Many of them are under misperception that if they teach complex subject-related words like “metamorphosis” or “vaporization” to children with significant language impairments or developmental disabilities that these students will not understand them and will not benefit from learning them.

However, that is not the case! These students will still significantly benefit from learning these words, it will simply take them longer periods of practice to retain them!

By simplifying our explanations, minimizing verbiage and emphasizing the visuals, the books can be successfully adapted for use with children with severe language impairments.  I have had parents observe my intervention sessions using these books and then successfully use them in the home with their children by reviewing the information and reinforcing newly learned vocabulary knowledge.

Here are just a few examples of prompts I use in treatment with more severely affected language-impaired children:

  • —What do you see in this picture?
  • —This is a _____ Can you say _____
  • What do you know about _____?
  • —What do you think is happening? Why?
  • What do you think they are doing? Why?
  • —Let’s make up a sentence with __________ (this word)
  • —You can say ____ or you can say ______ (teaching synonyms)
  • —What would be the opposite of _______? (teaching antonyms)
  • — Do you know that _____(this word) has 2 meanings
    • —1st meaning
    • —2nd meaning
  • How do ____ and _____ go together?

Here are the questions related to Sequencing of Processes (Life Cycle, Water Cycle, etc.)

  • —What happened first?
  • —What happened second?
  • —What happened next?
  • —What happened after that?
  • —What happened last?

As the child advances his/her skills I attempt to engage them in more complex book interactions—

  • —Compare and contrast items
  • — (e.g. objects/people/animals)
  • —Make predictions and inferences about will happen next?
  • Why is this book important?

“Picture walks” (flipping through the pages) of these books are also surprisingly effective for activation of the student’s background knowledge (what a student already knows about a subject). This is an important prerequisite skill needed for continued acquisition of new knowledge. It is important because  “students who lack sufficient background knowledge or are unable to activate it may struggle to access, participate, and progress through the general curriculum” (Stangman, Hall & Meyer, 2004).

These book allow for :

1.Learning vocabulary words in context embedded texts with high interest visuals

2.Teaching specific content related vocabulary words directly to comprehend classroom-specific work

3.Providing multiple and repetitive exposures of vocabulary words in texts

4. Maximizing multisensory intervention when learning vocabulary to maximize gains (visual, auditory, tactile via related projects, etc.)

To summarize, children with significant language impairment often suffer from the Matthew Effect (—“rich get richer, poor get poorer”), or interactions with the environment exaggerate individual differences over time

Children with good vocabulary knowledge learn more words and gain further knowledge by building of these words

Children with poor vocabulary knowledge learn less words and widen the gap between self and peers over time due to their inability to effectively meet the ever increasing academic effects of the classroom. The vocabulary problems of students who enter school with poorer limited vocabularies only worsen over time (White, Graves & Slater, 1990). We need to provide these children with all the feasible opportunities to narrow this gap and partake from the curriculum in a more similar fashion as typically developing peers. 

Helpful Smart Speech Therapy Resources:

References:

Duke, N. K. (2013). Starting out: Practices to Use in K-3. Educational Leadership, 71, 40-44.

Marzano, R. J., & Marzano, J. (1988). Toward a cognitive theory of commitment and its implications for therapy. Psychotherapy in Private Practice 6(4), 69–81.

Stahl, S. A. & Fairbanks, M. M. “The Effects of Vocabulary Instruction: A Model-based Metaanalysis.” Review of Educational Research 56 (1986): 72-110.

Strangman, N., Hall, T., & Meyer, A. (2004). Background knowledge with UDL. Wakefield, MA: National Center on Accessing the General Curriculum.

White, T. G., Graves, M. F., & Slater W. H. (1990). Growth of reading vocabulary in diverse elementary schools: Decoding and word meaning. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 281–290.

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Tips Corner: Creating Opportunities for Spontaneous and Functional Communication

In today’s guest post,  Natalie Romanchukevich advises readers on how to create opportunities to expand children’s spontaneous communication skills.

Helping young children build speech- language skills is an exciting job that both caregivers and educators try to do every second of the day.  We spend so much time giving our children directions to follow, asking them a ton of questions, and modeling words and phrases to shape them into eloquent communicators.

What I find we do NOT do enough, sometimes, is hold back on our never ending “models” of what or how to say things, questions, and directions, instead of allowing our children initiate and engage with us.  Greenspan refers to these initiations as opening circles of communication (Weirder & Greenspan “Engaging Autism”, 2006).

Speech- language development can be thought of as having three interacting and equally important domains- Form ,Content, and Use (Lahey, 1988).

Form refers to the grammatical correctness of our words and sentences (eat vs. eat+ ing).

Content is what the we are essentially communicating- the meaning of our words and sentences.

Use (also known as pragmatics) refers to the function of our words or for what purpose we are using them.

The communicative functions that slowly emerge and characterize communication over the course of language acquisition in vary in typically developing young children.  Children communicate to greet others, comment on objects/actions, request desired objects, request assistance, protest, deny (a statement), ask questions, regulate others (e.g. “blow!”, “open!”), entertain, and narrate events.

In order for children to be able to express these functions, aside from the intent to communicate, there must also be opportunities to express ideas, wants, needs.  For example, why would Timmy request for an object (nonverbally or verbally) if the caregiver hands everything to the child at the slightest sign of a tantrum.  Why ask a “where?” question if every toy or beloved object is comfortably in sight?  Why ask for help if the caregiver readily assists the child with all activities.  The educators describe it as assuming the child’s needs.

Of course we do it out of love and care for the child, and, let’s be honest, sometimes, to save time.  However, it is important with both typical and delayed children to be mindful of what (form, content, use) we model, when (timing is crucial in teaching) we model it, how (facial expression, tone of voice, etc) we model it, and why (is it developmentally important to teach it now?) we model it at this very moment.

Just as it is important for kids to comprehend concepts, follow directions, and understand the different wh- questions, it is also paramount that your child is able to initiate communication.  After all, communication is the ability to express ideas, thoughts, and wants, not just understand those expressed by others.  Answering questions and following commands is not initiating.  Language that is elicited by us- is not spontaneous.

To use language spontaneously, effortlessly and creatively, children need opportunities to practice the skill, to experience taking the lead.  In order for our children to get there, we must first offer models of how to initiate communication and do so appropriately.  We can then create opportunities for the child to speak up.

The most basic strategies you can use to encourage spontaneous initiations (whether nonverbal or verbal) may seem seem initially as counterintuitive.  I mean what is the point to introducing attractive new toys or displaying a yummy snack and then putting it away? Yet it is exactly that action which may very much encourage your child to run after you with gestures or words.  Even then, you may still choose to play “dumb” and be “unsure” as to what it is your child wants.  Does s/he want that bag with new toy or snack “opened?” and “out?”

If the child is nonverbal, his use of gestures to regulate your actions to get the desired item out and open may be the child’s initial step toward sound imitation.  If you are working on getting the child to request help (not just objects), here is your opportunity to model “help” if the child can’t open the item independently.  On a side note, I often hear educators model “help me please!” when the child is clearly at a single word level.  This is not a developmental way of teaching.   Yes, it is nice to hear a full sentence but your child may not be ready for it.

While playing with your child and actively commenting on your joint play, you may find it productive to suddenly become quiet and cease all attempts to ask questions.   This often works beautifully in my therapy sessions; usually, after I have engaged the child into some sort of cooperative and enjoyable play! But it takes a conscious effort and self-control on the part of the adult, since we are so used to engaging in this adult- directed (telling the child what to do as opposed to letting him/her lead and you follow) approach to teaching.

However, once you are able to contain your speech and actions (I promise you it is possible), you may be surprised to hear some immediate or delayed imitations of words/ phrases as well as spontaneous meaningful language.  The language produced, to me, is an indication that the child wants more of the experience- more language enriched play.  Use this opportunity to expand on what s/he is already saying.

Here, timing is really important as you want to imitate back everything your child is doing.  This is another way to communicate with your child.  Build on your child’s language to further describe the objects or people in play without using long sentences.  So, allowing nothing to happen for a few minutes at a time may just be the push to help your child come out with some form of communication.

In addition, stopping a novel activity or toy exploration at the very height of your child’s excitement also works well with many children.  You don’t have to be  confrontational about it, “if you don’t imitate my word/ phrase I just won’t give it back to  you”.  make sure to create these “obstructions”, as Greenspan refers to them, in a friendly, playful and positive manner.  Obstructions or fabricated “problems” are also a big part of social-cognitive and constructivist theories of language learning.

The idea behind these “obstructions” is that the children are forced to problem solve and use resources (language being one of them!) so they can get what they want.  Allowing your child to problem solve is critical to overall cognitive development that affects and shapes speech and language. Presenting your child with developmentally appropriate activities that involve thinking and figuring out of how to get X is an invaluable strategy that I always use with all of my children.

In sum, stop access to items that are already loved, tape up containers, close boxes and jars with favorite snack and toys, give your child all but ONE important item that is needed to complete an activity (glue, scissors), give your child the “wrong” item, or offer the “wrong” solution to the problem.  All of these “problems” will push the kid to think and figure out what to do next.  This, in turn, facilitates spontaneous language use.

Letting go of control and just allowing for things to spill, break, or simply not follow the predictable comfortable routine, too, elicits a ton of speech- language and fun communication.  These are the most teachable moments as our children experience all the new words and concepts first hand.  Perhaps, this is why many children learn “dirty” or “wet” attributes before they learn their colors.  These concepts are more easily learned because they are experiential and bring about relevant words to describe these personally relevant and emotional experiences.  Cleaning up and taking turns arranging things back in place is super educational too as our children need to learn responsibility and helping others.

Moreover, exposing children to objects that are completely novel and foreign (but safe!) may help elicit an attempt to ask a question “what this?” because the child wants to know.  The motivation is there.  Now s/he needs language to get the answer from you.  Some children may use a word with a rising intonation, which too is a question form, just not grammatically mature one.  For example, “Hat?” is as much of a question as “Is that a hat?!”.  If all your child is capable of verbalizing is “wow”, then you can go ahead and model “what IS that?” question a few times.  Of course, you want to pair it up with an exaggerated expression of surprise and excitement in your voice.

To sum up, do not be afraid to experiment, get “messy”, stay silent, entice, intrigue and just wait for a few minutes to see what your child will do.  Yes, we want to teach our children to attend, sit down for a structured activity, and identify objects, shapes, colors, and actions; but these adult- directed activities do not allow for self- expression or spontaneous language use.  You also want to follow your child’s natural interests and inclinations as this is frequently a way into their world.  If you show interest in your friend’s ideas and you let him/her speak, will they not want to bond with you even more? Will they not want to communicate with you?

Creative and talented teachers are those who can use unconventional materials presented in unexpected ways while targeting all the skills that must be learned!  Learning to manipulate the environment to get the most out of your child’s skills can be difficult but indescribably rewarding.

References:

  1. Lahey, M. (1988). Language disorders and Language Development.
  2. Greenspan, S. & Weider, S. (2006). Engaging Autism: Using the Floortime approach to help children related, communicate, and think.
  3. Wetherby, A. & Prizant, B. (1990). Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales. ChicagoIL: Applied Symblix. 

nrslp

Natalie Romanchukevich has a MS in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Long Island University (LIU) as well as Bilingual (Russian/English) Certification, which allows her to practice speech- language pathology in both Russian and English. Following graduation, Natalie has been working with both monolingual and bilingual 0- 5 population in New York City, and has been an active advocate for preschoolers with disabilities in her present setting.  Natalie’s clinical interests and experience have been focused on  early childhood speech- language delays and disorders including speech disorders (e.g., Articulation, Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS), Pervasive Developmental Disorders, Autistic Spectrum Disorders,  Auditory Processing Disorders, Specific Language Impairment (SLI), as well as Feeding Disorders. Presently she is working on developing her private practice in Brooklyn, NY.

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DI or SP: Why it’s important to know who is treating your child in Early Intervention

Recently on the American Speech Language Hearing Association Early Intervention forum there was a discussion about the shift in several states pertaining to provision of language services to children in the early intervention system.  Latest trend seems to be that a developmental interventionists (DI) or early childhood educators are now taking over in providing language intervention services instead of speech language pathologists.

A number of parents reported to SLPs that they were told by select DIs  that “they work on same goals as speech therapists”.  One parent, whose child received speech therapy privately with me and via EI kept referring to a DI’s as an SLP, during our conversation. This really confused me during my coordination of services phone call with the DI, since I was using terminology the DI was unfamiliar with.

Consequently, since a number of parents have asked me about the difference between DIs and SLPs I decided to write a post on this topic.

So what is the difference between DI and an SLP?

DI or a developmental interventionist is an early childhood education teacher.  In order to provide EI services a DI needs to have an undergraduate bachelor’s degree in a related health, human service, or education field. They also need a certificate in Early Childhood Education OR at least six (6) credits in infant or early childhood development and/or special education coursework.

A DI’s job is to create learning activities that promote the child’s acquisition of skills in a variety of developmental areas. DI therapists do not address one specific area of functioning but instead try to promote all skills including: cognition, language and communication, social-emotional functioning and behavior, gross and fine motor skills as well as self-help skills via play based interactions as well as environmental modifications. In other words a DIs are a bit like a jacks of all trades and they focus on a little bit of everything.

SLP or a Speech Language Pathologist is an ancillary health professional. In order to provide EI services, in the state of NJ for example, an SLP needs to have a Masters Degree in Speech Language Pathology or Communication Disorders as well as a State License (and in most cases a certification from ASHA, our national association).

Unlike DIs, pediatric SLPs focus on and have an in-depth specialization in improving children’s communication skills (e.g., speech, language, alternative augmentative communication, etc.). SLPs undergo rigorous training including multiple internships at both undergraduate (BA) and graduate (MA) levels as well as complete a clinical fellowship year prior to receiving relevant licenses and certifications. SLPs are also required to obtain a certain number of professional education hours every year after graduation in order to maintain their license and certifications.  Many of them undergo highly specialized trainings and take courses on specialized techniques of speech and language elicitation in order to work with children with severe speech language disorders secondary to a variety of complex medical, neurological and/or genetic diagnoses.

As you can see from the above, even though at first glance it may look like DIs and SLPs do similar work, DIs DON’T have nearly the same level of expertise and training possessed by the SLPs, needed to address TRUE speech-language delays and disorders in children.

What does this all mean to parents?

That depends on why parents/caregivers are seeking early intervention services in the first place. If they are concerned about their child’s speech language development then they definitely want to ensure the following:

  1. The child undergoes a speech language assessment with a qualified speech language pathologist and
  2. If speech language therapy is recommended, the child receives it from a qualified speech language pathologist

So if a professional other than an SLP assesses the child than it cannot be called a speech language assessment.

Similarly, if a related professional (e.g., DI) is providing services, they are NOT providing “speech language therapy” services.

They are also NOT providing the ‘SAME‘ level of services as a speech-language pathologist does.

Consequently, if speech language services are recommended for the child and those recommendations are documented in the child’s Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) then these services MUST be provided by a speech language pathologist, otherwise it is a direct violation of the child’s IFSP under the IDEA: Part C.

So how can parents ensure their child receives appropriate services from the get-go?

  • Find out in advance before the assessment who are the professionals (from which disciplines) coming to evaluate your child
    • If you have requested a speech-language evaluation due to concerns over your child’s speech language abilities and the SLP is not scheduled to assess, find out the reason for it and determine whether that reason makes sense to you
  • Ask questions during the assessment regarding the child’s performance/future recommendations
  • Make sure that an IFSP meeting is scheduled 45 days after the initial referral if the child is found eligible
  • Find out in advance which professionals will be attending your child’s IFSP meeting
  • Find out if any reports will be available to you prior to the meeting
    • If yes, carefully review the assessment report to ensure that you understand and agree with the findings
    • If no, make sure you have an adequate period of time to review all documentation prior to signing it and if need to request time to review reports
  • If an SLP assessed your child but therapy services are not recommended find out the reason for services denial in order to determine whether you have grounds for appeal (child’s delay was not substantial enough to merit services. vs. lack of SLP availability to provide intervention services)
  • If speech-language therapy services are recommended ensure that therapy initiation occurs in a timely manner after the initial IFSP meeting and that all missed sessions (by an SLP) are made-up in a timely manner as well

EI Service Provision in the State of New Jersey: DI vs. SLP 

(from  Service Guidelines for Speech Therapy in Early Intervention)   

The following are the circumstances in which a DI will be assigned to work with the child instead of an SLP (vs. in conjunction with) in the state of NJ (rules are similar in many other states)

  • If a child, under 28 months of age, presents with a “late-talker profile” (pg 27)
  • If child with speech-language delays  also has delayed prelinguistic skills (e.g., joint attention, turn-taking, etc), the DI will work with the child first to establish them  (pg 29)
  • If a child under 28 months has expressive language delay only and has intact cognition, receptive language, and motor skills
  • If the child has a cognitive delay commensurate with a receptive and expressive delay (p 30)
  • If a child has a hearing impairment and no other developmental delays, DI services will be provided while  information is being obtained and medical intervention is being provided (pg 31)

Understanding who is providing services and the rationale behind why these services are being provided is the first important step in quality early intervention service provision for young children with language delays and disorders.  So make sure that you know, who is treating your child!

Useful Resources:

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Guest Post: Simple Activities to Help Your Child with Language Impairment

If your child has been identified as having a language impairment, there are simple activities you can do at home that facilitate language development. These activities work in conjunction with your child’s formal therapy sessions and the activities he or she may participate in at school, either in the classroom or in an adjunct therapy session.

Such activities have three characteristics:

  • They are fun.

Therapy is almost always more effective for small children if it’s fun. Observe the therapist and note that almost all of the activities during the session are based around something that your child already likes to do.

  • They are part of “ordinary” interactions.

While formal therapy sessions are important, the activities at home don’t need to resemble therapy. Instead, they should be built into the normal course of everyday interactions to facilitate language skills naturally.

  • They build receptive language and vocabulary.

As you help your child develop language at home, the process becomes a natural part of your day together. Instead of being singled out as “language impaired,” your child is a loved and “normal” part of your family, and building his or her language skills becomes something that you do with your child just as you would with anyone. In addition, the interaction as you work together to strengthens your bond as you communicate.

Some simple activities to help your child include:

  • Reading aloud

Every child loves to be read a bedtime story; it’s a special time to snuggle with Mom or Dad and to hear a favorite story, again and again. Children find this repetition comforting; it also helps build both receptive and communicative language because as they learn the familiar words – both what they mean and how to say them – they can repeat them as you read the story together. This is perhaps the most perfect activity to help your child because you can do it every day. In fact, your child will look forward to it and probably even demand that it be done.

  • Telling stories, repeating rhymes, and asking your child to “complete the sentence”

Nursery rhymes and familiar stories are additional fun ways to expose your child to both communicative and receptive language. These activities develop language skills in a playful and non-stressful manner. For example, as your child develops familiarity with a rhyme, story, etc., simply pause at the end of a phrase and have him or her complete it.

  • Singing and listening to songs

Music is a wonderful facilitator of language too, and great to include in activities to help your child with language impairment issues. Spend some time each day singing together or listening to songs while driving, for example.

  • Playing the game, “What comes next?”

The “alphabet song” is a good example of how to play the game, “What comes next?” with your child. Since this song helps most children learn the alphabet, begin by singing the song together, and then as your child learns the alphabet, drop out so he or she sings the next letters alone.

“What comes next?” can also be played with days of the week, months of the year, counting, and more. The beauty of “What comes next?” is its applicability to anything language-based. Customize it to suit your child’s likes and dislikes, and it never gets boring.

  • Providing appropriate language modeling

Among the best activities to help your child is modeling correct language during conversations. Your child will watch, learn, and ultimately respond correctly, with gentle prompting at first.

About the author:

Erica L. Fener, Ph.D., is Vice President, Strategic Growth at Progressus Therapy, a leading provider of school-based therapy and early intervention services.

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It’s all about RtI!

Today I am excited to review one of the latest products from Busy Bee Speech “Common Core Standards-Based RtI Packet for Language“.

So what is RtI or Response to Intervention?

Developed as an alternative to the ability–achievement “discrepancy model,” which requires children to show a discrepancy between their IQ and standardized tests/grades, RtI is a method of academic intervention aimed to provide early, systematic assistance to children who are having difficulty learning in order to prevent academic failure via the provision of early school based intervention, frequent progress measurement, and increasingly intensive research-based instructional interventions for children who continue to have difficulty learning.

In contrast to a number of schools in my state (New Jersey), RTI or Response to Intervention is currently not utilized in my unique setting (outpatient specialized school in a psychiatric hospital). Continue reading It’s all about RtI!

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Recognizing the Warning Signs of Social Emotional Difficulties in Language Impaired Toddlers and Preschoolers

emd toddlersToday I am exited to tell you about the new product I created in honor of Better Speech and Hearing Month. 

It is a 45 slide presentation created for speech language pathologists to explain the connection between late language development and the risk of social emotional disturbances in young children 18 months- 6 years of age.

Learning Objectives:

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In case you missed it: Integrating aspects of multiculturalism into group language therapy sessions

Last week I did a guest post for The Practically Speeching Blog on the topic of multiculturalism. In case you missed it,  below I offer some suggestions on how to integrate multiculturalism into your group therapy sessions.

I don’t know about you but I have a number of multicultural students on my caseload who exhibit language deficits in both their birth language as well as English. Even though I am unable to speak their languages (e.g., Spanish, Hindu) I still like to integrate various aspects of multiculturalism into my sessions in order to support their first language as well as educate them about their culture and other cultures around the world as much as possible.   Why? Because among other benefits (e.g., cognitive, linguistic, academic, just to name a few) studies have also found a connection between bilingualism/multiculturalism and higher self-esteem in children (Verkuyten, 2009).  For me the latter definitely plays a huge part, since children with language impairments already recognize that they are different from their peers when it comes to their abilities and accomplishments in the classroom, which is why I try to support them in any way that I can in this area. Believe it or not it’s not as complicated as it sounds, and with a little ingenuity you can make it happen as well.  Below are some suggestions of what you can do in sessions. Continue reading In case you missed it: Integrating aspects of multiculturalism into group language therapy sessions

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In case you missed it: Therapy Fun with Ready Made Spring Related Bingo

Back in late February I did a guest post for Teach Speech 365. In case you missed it I am running it again on my blog since spring is now in full bloom!

Spring is here and there are many fun therapy activities you can do with your preschool and school aged clients during this time of year.  Now, while many of my colleagues are great at creating their own therapy materials, I am personally not that handy.  If you are like me, it’s perfectly okay since there are plenty of free materials that you can find online and adopt for your speech language purposes.

Making Friends, an online craft store, and Boggles World, an online ESL teacher resource, are two such websites, which have a number of ready-made materials, crafts, flashcards, and worksheets that can be adapted for speech language therapy purposes.  One of my personal favorites from both sites is bingo. I actually find it to be a pretty versatile activity, which can be used in a number of different ways in the speech room.

Let’s start with “Spring” bingo from the Making Friends Website, since its well suited for preschool aged children.  The game comes with both call-out cards and 12-4×4 card printable boards that can be printed out on card stock or just laminated. Continue reading In case you missed it: Therapy Fun with Ready Made Spring Related Bingo

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Book Review and Giveaway: My Toddler Talks

 Today it is my pleasure to review a book written by a NJ based, fellow SLP, Kimberly Scanlon of Scanlon Speech Therapy LLC entitled “My Toddler Talks“.

What it’s NOT! As Kimberly points out this book is definitely NOT a replacement for speech language therapy. If you are a parent and are concerned with your child’s speech language abilities you should certainly seek appropriate consultation with a qualified speech language pathologist.

What it is! A nice and functional collection of suggestions on how caregivers and related professionals can facilitate language development in children between 18-36 months of age (give or take). Continue reading Book Review and Giveaway: My Toddler Talks

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“Appdapting” Flashcard Apps to Address Social Skills

I have to admit, I don’t really like flashcards. I especially don’t like it when parents or SLPs use flashcards to drill vocabulary in toddlers and preschoolers, much less school aged children. I feel that it produces very limited learnability and generalization. I am personally a proponent of thematic language learning, since it allows me to take a handful of words/concepts and reinforce them in a number of different ways. The clients still get the benefit of information repetition, much like one would get during a typical flashcard drill.  However, they are also getting much more.  Thematic language learning allows the client to increase word comprehension, make connections to real life scenarios,  develop abstract thinking skills, as well as to transfer and generalize knowledge (Morrow, Pressley, Smith, &  Smith, 1997; Ramey, 1995).

However, even though I dislike flashcards, I still don’t necessarily want to give up using them completely, especially because nowadays many different type of image based language flashcards can be found for free as both printables as well as Iphone/Ipad apps.  Consequently, I decided to pick a free flashcard app and adapt it or rather  “appdapt” it (coined by “The Speech Guy”, Jeremy Legaspi, the “Appdapt Guru”) in a meaningful and functional way for my students.

After looking over and rejecting a number of contenders, without a clear plan of action in mind,  I stumbled upon a free app, ABA Flash Cards – Actions by kindergarten.com, which is designed to target verb labeling in ASD children.   When I saw this app, I immediately knew how I wanted to appdapt it.  I especially liked the fact that the app is made for both Ipad and Iphone. Here’s why.

My primary setting is an out of district day school inside a partial psychiatric hospital.  So in my line of work I  frequently do therapy with students just coming out from  “chill out rooms” and “calm down areas”.  This is definitely not the time when I want to bring or use a lot of materials in the session, since in a moment’s notice the session’s atmosphere can change from calm and productive into volatile and complicated.  I also didn’t  want to use a bulky Ipad in sessions with relatively new children on the caseload, since it usually takes a few sessions of careful observations and interaction to learn what makes them “tick”. Consequently, I was looking for an app which could ideally be downloaded onto not just the Ipad but also the Iphone. I reasoned that in unexpected  situations I could simply put the phone into my pocket, unlike the Ipad, which in crisis situations can easily become a target or a missile.

Given the fact that many children with psychiatric disorders present with significant social pragmatic language deficits (Hyter, 2003; Hyter et al 2001; Cohen et al., 1998; Bryan, 1991; Goldman, 1987 ), which is certainly the case for the children on my caseload, I planned on adapting this app to target my students’ pragmatic language development, social problem solving skills as well as perspective taking abilities.

So here are just a few examples of how I appdapted the cards.  First, I turned off the sound, since the visual images were what I was going after.  Then I separated the cards into several categories and formulated some sample questions and scenarios that I was going to ask/pose to the students:

Making Inferences (re: People, Locations and Actions)

iPhone Screenshot 2

What do you think the girl is thinking about?

How do you know what she is thinking?

How do you think she is feeling?

How can you tell?

Where do you think she is?

How do you know?

 

Multiple Interpretations of Actions and Settings: 

iPhone Screenshot 3

 

What do you think the girl is doing?

What else could she be doing?

 

 

 

 

 

boyflowerHow does the boy feel about the flower?

Give me a different explanation of how else can he possibly feel?

 

 

 

 

Who are the boys in the picture? (relationship)

Who else could they be?

What do you think the boy in a blue shirt is whispering to the boy in a red shirt?

What else could he be saying?

How do you know?

 

Supporting Empathy/Sympathy and Developing Peer Relatedness:

How does this child feel?

Why do you think he is crying?

What can you ask him/tell him to make things better?

 

 

 

 

The girl is laughing because someone did something nice for her?

What do you think they did?

 

 

 

 

 

Interpreting Ambiguous Situations:

girlrunning

 

What is the girl doing?

Who do you think is the woman in the picture?

How do you know?

How does she feel about what the girl is doing?

How do you know?

My goal was to help the students how to correctly interpret facial features, body language, and context clues in order to teach them how to appropriately justify their responses. I also wanted to demonstrate to them that many times the situations in which we find ourselves in or the scenes that we are confronted with on daily basis  could be interpreted in multiple ways. Moreover, I wanted to teach how appropriately speak to, console, praise, or compliment others in order to improve their ability to relate to peers. Finally, I wanted to provide them with an opportunity to improve their perspective taking abilities so they could comprehend and verbally demonstrate  that other people could have feelings, beliefs and desires different from theirs.

Since I knew that many of my students had significant difficulties with even such simple tasks as labeling and identifying feelings, I also wanted to make sure that the students got multiple opportunities to describe a variety of emotions that they saw in the images, beyond offering the rudimentary labels of “happy”, “mad”, “sad”, so I took pictures of Emotions Word Bank as well as Emotion Color Wheel courtesy of the Do2Learn website, to store in my phone, in order to provide them with extra support.

                

The above allowed me not only to provide them with visual and written illustrations but also to teach them synonyms and antonyms of relevant words.  Finally, per my psychotherapist colleagues request,  I also compiled a list of vocabulary terms reflecting additional internal states besides emotions (happy, mad) and emotional behaviors (laughing, crying, frowning). These included words related to:  Cognition (know, think, remember, guess), Perception (see, hear, watch, feel), and Desire (want, need, wish), (Dodd, 2012) so my students could optimally benefit not just from language related therapy services but also their individual psychotherapy sessions as well.

I’ve only just began trialing the usage of this app with the students but I have to admit, even though its still the early days, so far things have been working pretty well. Looks like there’s hope for flashcards after all!

References:

———Bryan, T. (1991). Social problems and learning disabilities. In B. Y. L. Wong (Ed.), Learning about learning disabilities (pp. 195-229). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.

—Cohen, N. & Barwick, M. (1996) Comorbidity of Language and Social-Emotional Disorders: Comparison of Psychiatric Outpatients and Their Siblings. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 25(2), 192-200.

Goldman, L. G. (1987). Social implications of learning disorders. Reading, Writing and Learning Disabilities, 3, 119-130.

—Hyter, Y. D., et al (2001). Pragmatic language intervention for children with language and emotional/behavioral disorders. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 23(1), 4–16.

Hyter, Y. D. (2003). Language intervention  for children with emotional or behavioral disorders. Behavioral  Disorders, 29, 65–76.

Morrow, L. M., Pressley, M., Smith, J.K., & Smith, M. (1997). The effect of a literature-based program integrated into literacy and science instruction with children from diverse background. Reading Research Quarterly, 32(1), 54-76.

Petersen, D. B., Dodd, J & Finestack, L. H (2012, Oct 9) Narrative Assessment and Intervention: Live Chat. Sponsored by SIG 1: Language Learning and Education. http://www.asha.org/events/live/10-09-2012-narrative-assessment-and-intervention/

Ramey, E. K. (1995). An integrated approach to language arts instruction. The Reading Teacher, 48(5), 418-419.