Creating a Language Filled Summer!

 Here are a few suggestions to help on days when 

you just can't think of what to do this summer..... 

Some Helpful Strategies for Successful Inclusion

Tips for Successful Inclusion in Your Classroom

It may be difficult to meet the needs of everyone in the classroom; especially students with a wide variety of abilities and challenges.

Try these strategies to see if it will help.......

1. Reduce Sensory Overload

(watch your sound, smell, sights, remove distractions)

2. Provide a Structured Routine. Use a Schedule

(visual or written schedules)

3. Warn Your Students of any Changes in the Schedule

4. Use Visual Teaching Strategies

(provide pictures, write instructions on the board)

5. Talk Less, Show More

(instructions should be short and to the point)

6. Use Concrete, Simple wording

(avoid idioms, sarcasm, innuendo)

7. Give Choices; Not Open-Ended Questions

(stick to only 2-3 choices)

8. Have Direct, Explicit Rules and Expectations

(write them, post them, show them)

9.Provide Breaks

(5 minutes can recharge students)

10. Teach Social Skills Directly

(teach specific skills and all the steps involved)

11. Use Special Interest To Motivate Your Student

(if the students loves dogs, the try adding/subtracting with dogs)

12.Finally!!!!... DON"T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF!

Break the work into chunks.... and CELEBRATE each success!!!!!

Set your child up for success!

It's Summer! 

Things to remember this summer to help your child's language development.....

• When arranging a playdate, carefully consider the characteristics of a potential playmate, ensuring that the playmate is around the same age as your child and has similar interests. As children become older, they can select classmates or peers that they wish to play with. Additionally, it is beneficial to schedule playdates around your child’s sleeping and eating routines.

 • Practice difficult skills. Review expectations of behavior and practice skills that may be difficult for your child. For example, if your child struggles with sharing, roleplay how to share prior to the playdate.

• Provide structure. Be sure to set a time limit for the playdate that is appropriate for your child. Make a list of activities, and allow children to take turns choosing ones they will enjoy. Choose activities or toys that promote social interaction and cognitive development, such as board games, puppets or blocks. You may also include toys that encourage pretend play, such as dolls, racecars, action figures, etc.

• Review the rules. Children succeed when they know what is expected of them. Review the rules with all children prior to playtime: behavioral expectations (e.g., no running in the house) and social expectations (e.g., take turns when playing with blocks).

• Plan a snack break. Try to include a snack or cooking activity. This is a great way to practice following directions, sequencing, asking/answering questions, turn taking, and social skills.

• Get moving. Incorporate physical activities during playdates. Go to a playground or park, or allow children to play in the yard under adult supervision.

 • Let children play. At first, children may need a bit of adult support for a playdate. However, as they become more confident and comfortable, slowly fade adult support and allow them the opportunity to lead their playdate.

MAY is Better Speech and Hearing Month

Each May, 

Better Hearing & Speech Month (BHSM) provides an opportunity to raise awareness about communication disorders! 
Educate yourself about what Communication Disorders are, the signs of communication deficits, the affects of these deficits, and what you can do to stay proactive! 

For 2016, our theme is 
"Communication Takes Care." 
Check out http://www.asha.org/bhsm/ for more info. 

Parents often wonder what they can do at home to improve their child’s communication skills.

Here are 10 activities to promote your child’s speech and hearing skills:

Treasure hunt with words or pictures. You can do this around the house or garden. Keep it simple. Give your child some hints. When he finds a card, have him say the item written or drawn on the card while looking at you. Continue until all the cards have been found. This helps develop eye contact, communication, pronunciation and symbol or word recognition.
Involve your child in activities of everyday life. Any interaction between parent and child is an opportunity to improve communication. Housekeeping, cooking, grocery shopping are all activities that a child can actively participate in. Talk through your process, and ask your child questions about what he sees or does.
Public places I-Spy game. Parks, malls and beaches are all great venues for people-watching. Point out people, objects and actions you notice. Have your child take turns with you, and turn it into an “I-Spy” game. This activity will promote social observations, descriptive vocabulary and turn-taking.
Tell Me What to Do. This game is fun for kids. Pick an activity your child knows how to do. Tell your child that you need to do the activity but you don’t remember how. He has to tell you exactly what to do. The activity can be a game you play, or an object you have to seek and fetch. Get him to give you detailed instructions.
What’s that sound.  This is a great listening game. Take turn making an animal sound and the other person has to guess what animal the sound belongs to. You can also cut out images from magazines of things and animals that make sounds and glue them onto little cards. These can be used as prompts for the game.
Finish the story. Come up with a simple story, and take turns adding to it with your child. For example, you might open with “Once upon a time there was a prince.” The child would then add something about the prince. You might follow with something about the setting. Your child could then say something about the plot, and so on…
Talk, Talk, Talk. When it comes to babies, experts agree that parents should spend time face to face with their child, talking and sharing the world in a descriptive and engaging manner. Babies love to have their sounds echoed back at them. It’s also important to speak about emotions. Children need to see their emotions reflected back to them, and they need to hear the words that explain how they feel. This simple technique can help them develop an emotional vocabulary and regulation.
Swing and talk. If your child tolerates swinging, consider working on speech skills while he swings. You can sing the alphabet song. Face him so that there’s eye contact, every time he comes towards you say one letter, or take turns with him saying one letter at a time. You can do the same thing with songs like “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star,” counting from 0-10, or touching a part of your body that your child then has to name.
Flashlight game. This is another favorite! Tape pictures or words (if your child reads) on a wall. Make the room dark. Take turn with your child holding a flashlight and lighting up a picture or word. Have your child say the word he sees. 
Bubbles. Children of all ages love bubbles! Therapists love them because it’s a fun way to work on many essential skills. Bubbles promote eye-contact through anticipation. It can be used to promote speech by making the child request more or telling you where he wants the bubbles. Teaching how to blow bubbles also works on your child’s oral-motor skills.

Understanding Academic vocabulary?

Academic vocabulary includes words used in academic dialogue and

texts. It does not include words students use in general conversation,

but academic vocabulary relates to other familiar words that students

do use.

 For example, rather than using the simple verb watch, an

academic term would be observe. Academic vocabulary words help

students understand oral directions and classroom instructions as well

as comprehend text across different subject areas.

Why is it Important?
Speech Language therapist can help students understand complex sentences and vocabulary, comprehend written and oral information, and compile thoughts for speaking and writing. These skills are essential for students to feel confident in their work, perform their best in school, and be on a career pathway that they want, not one that is decided for them because of a disability.

Parent Need to KNOW: Testing vocabulary includes active verbs and concrete nouns. The active verbs direct students to think more deeply about their subject matter (identify, explain, organize, retell, illustrate, etc.). The nouns tell students what they are to use to present their comprehension of the subject material for an assessment or assignment (i.e., outline, graph, chart, essay, theme, analogy, Venn diagram, etc.)… 

How to Encourage Special Needs Students

Here are seven ways that you can activate the strengths of your students with special needs, whether you run a full-inclusion classroom, a self-contained special Ed classroom, or anything in between:

• Discover your students' strengths.  Find out about your students' strengths and abilities by talking with previous teachers and looking at cumulative files (focusing on the highest grades and test scores and any positive comments from teachers). Then, fill out a strength-based inventory for each student—and have parents fill one out as well. 

 • Provide positive role models with disabilities. Students with special needs need to learn about individuals with disabilities who have become successful in life. This way, they can hopefully come to the conclusion that "If they can do it, so can I!"

• Develop strength-based learning strategies. Once you know your students' special strengths, design strategies that utilize those abilities.

• Use assistive technologies and Universal Design for Learning tools. Learn about apps that capitalize on the gifts of your students with special needs. For a student with autism who loves to use an iPad but has difficulty communicating is a great alternative communication device.  

• Maximize the Power of your students' social networks. 

Create a graphic representation of a student's peer network, identifying both strong and weak relationships. Then, pair the student with classmates that he has the most positive relationships.

• Help students envision positive future careers.  Encourage special needs students by helping them make links between their strengths and the requirements of specific jobs or careers.

• Create positive modifications in the learning environment.   Think about how you can create changes in your classroom that brings out a particular strength of your students with special needs. For example, provide a student with ADHD who learns best by moving, for example, with a stability ball that he can jiggle on while doing his class-work.  

Teaching Grammar

Teaching Grammar in Elementary

     In therapy, I have observed how difficult it is for elementary age kids to use correct verb tense when speaking and/or writing. Test your own children and see if they are able to make a sentence with each verb using correct sentence structure. 
For example: " I will buy a car today.", "Yesterday, I bought a car.", "I wished I had of bought the yellow car."

Teaching children to write sentences well, in turn, helps them become better readers and    communicators.

Students Who Stutter

CLASSROOM SITUATIONS

Classroom tasks are among the most challenging for children

who stutter. Here are some ideas from other teachers that can

help you help the children in your classroom.

• During classroom discussions, allow extra time for

children to respond, and encourage everyone to

contribute their ideas.

• Recall that reading out loud in class may increase a

child’s anxiety as she waits for her turn. After talking

with the child about what would work best for them,

consider selecting readers at random, or using another

strategy, rather than going “down the row.”

• In group work, monitor the children’s collaboration

to make sure the child who stutters has the chance

to participate in class activities.

• Remember that time pressure makes it harder for

children to speak. When asking questions, try not

to reward only the fastest responses.

• Help students learn to take turns and allow time for

thinking and responding.

• Oral reports may be particularly difficult for some

children. Work with the child to develop a plan that

meets their individual needs. Flexibility may be needed,

but it is important to provide opportunities for the

child to be a successful contributor in class.

ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS

1. Finishing sentences and filling in words is not

generally helpful. Even though you may be trying

to help, this can put even more pressure on the

child/student who stutters.

2. Be a good listener. Maintain normal eye contact and

do not seem impatient, embarrassed, or alarmed.

Wait patiently until the child is finished speaking.

3. Don’t give advice such as ‘slow down’ ‘take

a breath’ or ‘relax’. These are simplistic responses

to a complex problem.

4. Let the child know, by your manner and actions, 

that you are listening.

Semantic-Pragmatic Disorder

Pragmatics refers to the expression of language.

Children with autism, Asperger’s syndrome, or PDD (Pervasive Developmental Disorder), etc., have difficulty expressing themselves, especially in social situations. They may express their thoughts and feelings openly and explicitly with little or no consideration for others in their surroundings. Controlling the volume of voice may also be an issue.

Children diagnosed with “Semantic-Pragmatic Disorder” experience delays in language development and have difficulty with comprehension and expression. Check with your pediatrician or speech-language pathologist if you have questions regarding your child’s inability to express himself/herself or communicate effectively with you and others.

A child with SPD between the ages of 0-4 usually:

• Is quiet, content, and plays alone.

• Does not respond to someone calling and may appear deaf.

• Is a late talker and cannot express wants easily.

After age 4, parents may notice that the child:

• Does not initiate play but participates in rough and tumble play.

• Has a grasp of jigsaw puzzles, numbers, letters, shapes and colors.

• Enjoys activities like washing up or operating a computer.

• Parrots phrases or sentences.

• Obsesses over certain personal interests.

• Over-reacts to touch, pain, and everyday noises (vacuum cleaner, balloon pop, and blender).

• Has difficulty following rules, taking turns, or participating in team or group activities.

• Speaks literally in a grown-up tone and doesn’t like “baby talk.”

• Finds facial expressions, gestures, and body language confusing.

• Has difficulty comprehending idioms and figurative language.

• Has difficulty with abstract concepts like time or motivation (e.g., next week, when you get ready, don’t stay too long).

• Reads very early or late, but without comprehension.

• Finds social events challenging, is unsure how to take part, and dislikes crowds.

• Has minor problems with motor-skills.

• Has specific language impairments.

• Becomes distracted while on task by something very random.

• Appears indifferent or aloof regarding the feelings and opinions of others.

Play Intervention

Play intervention is a great way to enter the world of children and to be engaged in what interests them. Studies have proven that play intervention greatly enhances the communication in children with autism.  The following are simple play activities that we often forget about that could be used to interact with children:

*Chase: "I'm gonna get you!"

*Get bubbles, balloons, etc...

*Ball play (rolling back and forth)

*Pretend Play 

*Song play/games (wheels on the bus, old McDonald Had a Farm)

*Ready, Set, Go!

*Real Hide and Seek

*Duck Duck Goose

* Reading books (but not reading every word, explain what is happening)

*Drawing faces

*Hot Potatoe

*Treasure Hunt games  

*Board Games (Candy Land, Bingo, Memory, Go Fish)

*Complex Pretend Play (Making up stories about animals, dolls, etc.) 

Red Flags of Autism

The following red flags may indicate a child is at risk for an autism spectrum disorder, and is in need of an immediate evaluation.

In clinical terms, there are a few “absolute indicators,” often referred to as “red flags,” that indicate that a child should be evaluated. For a parent, these are the “red flags” that your child should be screened to ensure that he/she is on the right developmental path.

Red Flags of Autism Spectrum Disorders:

***If your baby shows two or more of these signs, please ask your pediatric healthcare provider for an immediate evaluation.

#1 Impairment in Social Interaction:

• Lack of appropriate eye gaze
• Lack of warm, joyful expressions
• Lack of sharing interest or enjoyment
• Lack of response to name

#2 Impairment in Communication:

• Lack of showing gestures
• Lack of coordination of nonverbal communication
• Unusual prosody (little variation in pitch, odd intonation, irregular rhythm,
  unusual voice quality)

#3 Repetitive Behaviors & Restricted Interests:

• Repetitive movements with objects
• Repetitive movements or posturing of body, arms, hands, or fingers 

Early Literacy Skills That Predict Reading and Writing Success: Phonology is Important!

Some parents think their child’s success in reading and writing depends on getting the “right” first grade teacher, but his/her success really depends on how much he/she learns at home about reading and writing before entering school. Early experiences with books and language are most critical for future success in literacy. Parents must be responsible for providing experiences at home that promote the following skills:

• Print Motivation: is taking an interest in and enjoying books. A child with print motivation loves being read to, plays with books, and pretends to write. Trips to the library are fun, motivational, and FREE! Exchange books with other parents with children of your child’s age. Encourage print motivation in your child by making reading a special shared time with you. Make books accessible to your child. Let your child see you enjoying reading. Talk to your child about how we use reading and/or writing almost every minute of the day.

• Vocabulary: (knowing the names of things) is the most important skill for children to have when learning to read. By the time your child enters school, he/she should know between 3,000-5,000 words. Help develop your child’s vocabulary by reading and rereading a variety of books (fiction and nonfiction) and teaching the names of all the objects in your child’s world.

• Print Awareness— is a child’s ability to point to the words on the page of a book. It includes learning that writing (in English) follows rules: print moves top to bottom and left to right, and that the person reading is someone that knows what all the letters and words say. Point out and read words to your child everywhere you see them: on signs, advertisements, labels, stores, candies, products, etc.

• Narrative Skills: help a child understand and tell a story and describe things, like what happened at a birthday party or about a trip to Grandma’s. Parents can help strengthen their child’s narrative skills by asking him/her to tell what is happening in a story or book,  instead of always listening to you read. Ask your child to tell you about things he/she has done or will do that involve a regular sequence of steps: getting ready for school, what your family did/will do on vacation, how to play a particular game, etc.

• Letter Knowledge: is the ability to recognize and name letters (upper and lower case) and produce the sounds they make. Develop your child’s letter knowledge by using lots of fun reading and/or writing activities: pointing out and naming letters in a book, on a sign or on a label; drawing letters in sand or shaving cream; painting letters on paper with brushes, etc. Talk about letters and how some are similar in shape (l, H, F, E, and T or W, M, N, V). Teach the child how to write the letters in his/her name (one letter at a time) when he/she begins using a crayon to draw or “write”. As your child learns each letter, have him/her practice producing the sound the letter makes.

• Phonological Awareness: is an understanding of hearing and manipulating sounds in words. Phonological awareness includes the ability to hear and create rhymes (bat, cat, gnat, hat, mat, and sat), say words with sounds left out (bat without b is at), and put two word chunks together to make a word (fl + at = flat). Most often, children having difficulty with phonological awareness have trouble learning to read. An understanding of phonological awareness begins with a child’s exposure to and practice with the previous five steps. Phonological awareness is one of the final steps in preparing children for actual reading instruction that begins in kindergarten.

Tips for Topic Maintenance

How Kids Can Stay On Topic

 Use comments and non-verbal gestures to show you are listening.

Tell students that comments and non-verbal gestures, such as nodding your head, agreeing with comments, and making eye contact, can help keep a conversation going. Let students know that these behaviors are all ways to show that you are listening and following the topic of conversation. Have students practice these non-verbal skills while role-playing, then see what other comments and non-verbal gestures they can come up with to help move conversations along.

Add information about the topic to the conversation.

Remind students that conversations require both speaking and listening. Discuss the importance of sharing what you know about a topic during a conversation, but also talk about the importance of listening to others’ comments and ideas. Be sure to tell students that what they have to say and contribute is important… we all have something to share!

Let everyone have a chance to talk.Make sure students understand that a conversation is meant to allow everyone to have a chance to give information, ask questions, or comment about the current topic. To help with this, students can practice the self-talk statement, “I will not dominate the topic and will let everyone have the opportunity to talk about it.”

Wait to talk about unrelated topics.

Instruct students in the difference between comments that are on topic and those that are off-topic. Remind them about the importance of turn-taking in conversation, and that they need to wait until everyone is finished talking before introducing a new topic.

Practice identifying others’ off-topic remarks.  

Help students identify off-topic remarks by focusing on listening to others’ comments. Provide them with opportunities to focus on conversations they are not part of, and then provide feedback for what remarks were on topic during the conversation and which ones were not. Role-playing or watching videos are great ways to do this.

Normal Language Skill Development

The following list of milestones is the result of current research in the field where studies continue to analyze how and when children learn and begin to present certain language skills. As you look over this list, keep in mind that children vary greatly in how and when they develop and learn these skills. These skills do not follow a concrete order.

At age 5, most kindergartners become able to:

• Sound as if they are reading when they pretend to read.

• Enjoy someone reading to them.

• Retell simple stories.

• Use descriptive language to explain or to ask questions.

• Recognize letters and make letter-sound matches.

• Show familiarity with rhyming and beginning sounds.

• Understand that reading print goes left-to-right and top-to-bottom.

• Match spoken words with written ones.

• Write letters of the alphabet and some words they use and hear often.

• Write stories with some readable parts.

At age 6, most first-graders can:

• Read and retell familiar stories.

• Use a variety of ways to help themselves read and comprehend a story (rereading, predicting, asking questions, or using visual cues or pictures).

• Decide on their own to use reading and writing for different purposes.

• Read some things aloud with ease.

• Identify new words by using letter-sound matches, parts of words, and their understanding of the rest of a story or printed item.

• Identify an increasing number of words by sight.

• Sound out and represent major sounds in a word when trying to spell.

• Write about topics that mean a lot to them.

• Use some punctuation marks and capitalization.

“Remember that while babies aren’t born book lovers, they are born learners. The more you read to them, the more they learn.“ Kate Jack – Parent & Child Magazine Resources