And Away We Go......

This week all screenings and referrals have been completed and invitations for the Sound Improvement Groups have been sent home.  If you have received one and not yet turned it in, please do or request a new one if necessary.  Speech services began this week and it has been just wonderful working with your children!  I will also be working with some students not in speech within our RTI program and that will begin on Monday.

I cannot express the importance of working with your child daily on speech homework.  Practice, practice, practice is the key to remediating articulation errors.  Remember that it takes time to learn a new skill, particularly one that will eventually become natural.  Here are some suggestions for working with your child in the home environment:

• Designate a time each day to review production of target sounds.

• Avoid "over-correcting" a child.  It is acceptable to remind your child to use his/her "new sound" without correcting each mispronunciation. 

• Slow your rate of speech to model production of target sounds.

• Use language at an age-appropriate level.

• Avoid interrupting the child's speech to correct production when he/she is in mid-sentence.

• Find time to do quiet things, such as reading a book or going for a walk, and talking about the activity without correcting each sound.

• Find ways to build your child's confidence.  Praise is very important!

• Always listen to what your child says, not how your child talks.

• Be patient and use good eye contact.  Give your child a chance to express himself/herself.

• Talk about your child's speech in a matter-of-fact, reassuring way.

• Make homework time fun.  Play games which require turn-taking.  Before each turn, your child could label a picture or produce a word with the targeted speech sound. 

• Use a variety of resources.  Here is a link to a website which offers speech articulation games:http://www.quia.com/pages/havemorefun.html

If you need any suggestions or would like some creative ideas on practicing with your children at home, please contact me at any time!

Moving Along.....

It was wonderful to see you if you were able to attend our Curriculum Nights here at Elizabeth Ide.  It was nice to reconnect with familiar faces and meet new families.  It has been a joy to see returning students and I am anxious to begin working with them!  Kindergarten screening will be completed next week and speech services will officially start the following week.

If the screening determines your child may benefit from speech services, you will receive a letter and consent form next week regarding Sound Improvement Training. This is a program offered to students in compliance with the government's Response to Intervention (RTI) program.  I developed this program four years ago and it has proven quite successful for many students.  A program such as this allows students to benefit from speech services without initially being placed in special education. RTI is a preventative measure that allows a student to possibly reduce his/her risk for further articulation difficulties that may negatively affect his/her educational performance by participating in a Sound Improvement Group.

In the Sound Improvement Group, I meet with students with similar needs individually or in small groups to 1) check for stimulability of sound production, 2) attempt possible interventions to develop correct sound production, and 3) track data to interpret future needs of the students. Since we focus on sounds that are still developing, there is no guarantee that this will be your child's only speech and language intervention. This is a preventative measure used for a specific amount of time (semester basis) to see how your child's sound production develops. Your participation at home is warranted for the duration of this program. Homework will be given and each child is expected to practice while in this group.

If you see this paperwork come home and you have ANY questions, please contact me at any time via telephone or email.  

Fair is not everyone getting the same thing. Fair is everyone getting what they need. -Anonymous.