In a few weeks the school semester will begin and many speech language pathologists will be heading back to school to resume their duties. Seasoned professionals, newly minted clinical fellows, and eager graduate students will embark on assessment and treatment of children with a variety of communication disorders. In the course of the next school year they will encounter, assess, and treat children with a number of diagnoses which result in accompanying speech language deficits. Many of these diagnoses will be familiar, a number will be new, some complex, yet others will be less known or controversial. Continue reading Introduction to the “Need to Know” Disorders in Speech Language Pathology
Category: social pragmatic language
New Product: Social Pragmatic Deficits Checklist for School Aged Children
Need a quick way to figure out if a child is presenting with a social pragmatic skills deficits?
Then check out my Social Pragmatic Deficits Checklist for School Aged Children
This checklist was created to assist speech language pathologists (SLPs) with figuring out whether the student presents with social pragmatic language deficits which require further follow up (e.g., assessment). The SLP should provide this form to both teacher and caregiver/s to fill out to ensure that the deficit areas are consistent across all settings and people.
Checklist Categories:
- Listening/Processing
- Verbal Expression
- Problem Solving
- Pragmatic Language Skills
- Social Emotional Development
- Behavior
- Supplemental* Caregiver/Teacher Data Collection Form
- Select assessments sensitive to Social Pragmatic Deficits
You can find it in my online store HERE:
New Product: Speech Language Assessment of Older Internationally Adopted Children
Today I am very excited to introduce to you my brand new product which has been long in the making. “Speech Language Assessment of Older Internationally Adopted Children”. In the past I have written a number of articles and blog posts as well as done a number of presentations on related topics. I finally decided that it’s a great time to put it all together and created this 65 slide presentation which succinctly explains how to assess speech language abilities of older Internationally Adopted (IA) Children.
Presentation Summary
Institutionalization affects every child’s speech-language development. Signs of delay can be obvious or obscure; show immediately or years later. This presentation will review the latest literature regarding the language abilities of post-institutionalized children adopted at older ages. It will discuss language development of older children post-adoption, explain the difference between conversational and cognitive language competencies, offer pre-adoption recommendations, address select pre-assessment preparations as well as to provide recommendations on best assessment practices for these children. Continue reading New Product: Speech Language Assessment of Older Internationally Adopted Children
Introduction to Social Pragmatic Language Disorders
I have been making a lot of materials lately in order to disseminate information on a variety of helpful topics including insurance coverage for speech language services, improving feeding abilities in picky eaters, the importance of oro-facial observations during speech- language assessments and so on. I’ve also created an “introduction” series, which offers handouts on popular topics of interest, most recently on the topic of Auditory Processing Disorders (APD), which can be currently found in my online store HERE. Continue reading Introduction to Social Pragmatic Language Disorders
Recognizing the Warning Signs of Social Emotional Difficulties in Language Impaired Toddlers and Preschoolers
Today 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:
- Explain the connection between late language development and social emotional functioning
- Describe manifestations of emotional behavioral difficulties in young children with language deficits
- List formal and informal assessments relevant to toddlers and preschoolers
- Explain why the warning signs of significant emotional behavioral manifestations in young children warrant a referral to related professionals
Materials Corner: Multiple Interpretations Social Language Freebie
I don’t about you but I am always looking for visually based social language materials for my clients. Luckily, even with a non-existent budget social skills materials are fairly easy to create. All you need is to locate a few relevant photos with faintly ambiguous scenarios and punctuate them by relevant to the scenarios questions.
Voilà! Your materials are ready for use. It really is that easy. Want to take a look at a one such material in action? Then check out the Multiple Interpretations Social Language Freebie I created specially for you. Click on the image below to get to my Facebook Page. There click on the Free Downloads Tab located on the top right corner and check it out for yourself.
SPEECH LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT CHECKLIST FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
Today I am excited to tell you about another product in my assessment referral series: SPEECH LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT CHECKLIST FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
I created this 9 page guide to assist speech language pathologists in the decision making process of how to select assessment instruments and prioritize assessment for preschool children. In doing that you are eliminating the administration of irrelevant tests and focusing on the administration of instruments directly targeting the areas of difficulty that the child presents with. Continue reading SPEECH LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT CHECKLIST FOR PRESCHOOL CHILDREN
In case you missed it: The importance of targeted assessments for school aged children
Last week I did a guest post for The Simply Speech Blog. In case you missed it, below I offer an explanation why targeted speech language assessments are so important, as well as list helpful resources that will aid you in speech language assessment preparation.
In both my hospital based job and in private practice I do a lot of testing. During staff/caregiver interviews I used to get a laundry list of both specific and non-specific problems by the parents and teachers, which did not always accurately reflect the students true deficits. Experience quickly taught me that administering general comprehensive language testing to every student simply did not work. Oftentimes the administration of such testing revealed one of two things: Continue reading In case you missed it: The importance of targeted assessments for school aged children
App Review and Giveaway: Verbal Reasoning by Virtual Speech Center
Today I am reviewing a great app, which targets verbal reasoning skills in children and adults. Verbal Reasoning by Virtual Speech Center was created to target the following:
Adults with cognitive deficits caused by TBI, stroke, or other brain injuries as well as with Aphasia
Children with autism
Children with language disorders
It is intended for individuals ages 12 and up and includes such activities as: Continue reading App Review and Giveaway: Verbal Reasoning by Virtual Speech Center
Social Quest App Review by Smarty Ears
I’ve recently got an opportunity to use the Social Quest App by Smarty Ears with my clients. After using the app for a while I decided to write a review because I really like what the app has to offer, especially because there aren’t that many apps targeting social pragmatic skills in upper elementary, middle school and high-school aged students.
What I like about this app:
Social Quest uses photographs with real life situations. Essentially students go on social problem-solving quests in various locations such as community, home, and school and earn up to 70 “rewards” linked to social competencies.
You start with the main screen offering you several choices: Settings, Select Students, Report Card, Help Continue reading Social Quest App Review by Smarty Ears