Tuesday, April 30, 2013

BHSM at Home Sweet Speech Room

Well, it's that time of year again. Finals....I have two finals and a big project to work on.  I will be done next Thursday! Woohoo!  Then I have three weeks off to blog and make some new products for all of you. 

I am sure you are well aware that May is Better Hearing and Speech Month.  Lots of bloggers are celebrating it and doing a lot of fun things for it, so be on the look out for all of those!  Here's a sneak peek of what you can look forward to here! It all starts tomorrow!!



Hope everything is going well for the last few weeks of school here!  What are you doing in therapy this week?
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Friday, April 26, 2013

Fab Find Friday: 4/26/2013

Happy Friday, everyone!! I cannot believe that it is April 26th!!  Only a few more weeks!  I hope everyone survived the weeks of state testing and IEPs and all of that.




1. I teamed up with Educents to bring you a fabulous giveaway of one Conscious Box.  The giveaway is now closed, but you can still purchase a Conscious Box at a discounted rate! Check it out:





2.  My friend Erik X. Raj wrote a great post about the unwritten goals that we target in therapy.  Check it out here!






3.  A blog post from Raising Playful Tots about the point of play for children. Check it out here!





4.  A list of books that target social skills from Clever Classroom here.


5. Letter puzzles idea--something different for speech therapy!  From storytime katie here.



6.  Some humor for the end of a crazy week: What We Should Call SLP School  here



Have a GREAT weekend!  Anything fun planned??? I'll be working on finals and projects.

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Monday, April 22, 2013

Earth Day Conscious Box Giveaway


I'm excited to bring you an Earth Day Giveaway from Educents and Conscious Box!! They have teamed up to bring a lucky winner a Conscious Box delivered right to their door!!  Conscious Box offers a monthly subscription service that delivers the purest, most natural products on the planet, right to your doorstep!






So why am I hosting this giveaway, if it's not inherently related to speech?   

If you remember, I posted about going green in your speech room. You can read that here, if you missed it.   This is where it all started: I cannot even begin to tell you my reaction this summer when my supervisor asked me to wipe down the preschool table with 409!  She said, "Well, just do it when the kids are outside, so they don't smell it."  For me, it's just as bad that they were about to eat off the table 10 minutes later! Not only are the fumes bad, the chemicals could get onto their food or pencils or papers or whatever you have on your table. YUCK. And you know kids-the second they get a chance to put something in their mouths, they will! I have converted to using all-natural, nontoxic products when cleaning. This is healthier and safer for the students and for you!

 So here's the scoop:  Conscious Box puts together new boxes each month full of "surprises."  All of them are healthy, green products.  Since it is a surprise, there's no way for me to know what exactly is in the box this next month (May).  However, some of the products in the past have included: St. Claire’s Organics, Gluten Free Beauty, Essential Living Foods, Caveman Fuel, Earth Friendly Products, Artisana Cacao Bliss, Natural Vitality, Himala Salt, and Soapbox Soaps. 




So again, why am I posting this?  Well...a few things:

1. We can teach our students about being healthy especially on Earth Day!! 
2. We can clean our rooms with green products. 
3. Maybe there will be a product in there that you can use in your classroom!! 

There will be ONE winner.  If you do not win, you can still get a 3-month subscription to Conscious Box for less than $12/month by heading over to Educents.com. For one week only, Educents will be offering the Conscious Box for 40% off!  In addition, ALL profits from the sale of this box will be donated to The One Fund, which will provide funds to help those families most affected by the tragic events that unfolded during Monday’s Boston Marathon.




You can enter this giveaway via Rafflecopter here:


a Rafflecopter giveaway


Notes: Conscious Box only ships within the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii. They can also ship overseas to APO addresses, as well as US territories.  The giveaway will end this Friday, April 26, 2013.  The box will be shipped May 10, 2013.

 I was contacted by Educents about this giveaway.  No compensation was received. 





Educents, a flash-deal website, is an easy way to get huge discounts on the educational products you know and love (and maybe even some you’ve never heard of!)
In a world where education is becoming increasingly expensive, Educents is a company with a mission: to provide every family access to affordable educational materials. They focus exclusively on handpicked, unique educational materials including online curriculum, learning tools, educational toys, software, e-books, and more. With new deals added every day, Educents is quickly gaining popularity amongst parents, teachers, homeschoolers and learners of all ages.
 Come check out Educents.com to find your favorite brands at up to 90% off retail prices! Note: You will be signed up for the Educents newsletter.


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Friday, April 19, 2013

Fab Find Friday: 4/19/2013

A lot has happened this week, both on the national news and on a personal level, so I haven't been super active in terms of blog stuff.  I will post the few things that I found, though!



1.  My friend, Shannon, over at Speechy Musings posted a new FREEBIE for figurative language!! Check it out here.






2. Tips for how to read a wordless picture book from What Do We Do All Day? Check it out here!  (P.S. This is GREAT for parents, too!)



3.  Lauren at Busy Bee Speech posted about how to get parents involved in their child's speech and language therapy by tracking progress at home.  Check it out here






4.  I spent a lot of time reflecting on my own life and actions this week.   I came across this verse and thought it was appropriate, especially in light of recent events.  Whether or not you read the Bible, I think there is a truth to what it is saying.

Source: Pinterest




5.  If you haven't checked out Educents yet, you should do it. It's like Groupon but for educators!! They currently have a Phonemic/Phonological Awareness set available.   They have had/still do have some reading programs and craft sets available, too!  The possibilities are endless!  Check it out here.





Well, I hope you all have a good weekend.  Rest up, say a prayer for Boston, and hug your family extra tight!  


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Thursday, April 18, 2013

Advice for the Grad School Process (GRE, Applications, and School)

Tuesday night, I had the opportunity to talk on a panel of current graduate students to a group of undergraduate students about topics such as the GRE, the application process, and what grad school looks like.  I thought I would share some of my insights as well as the other girls' sitting on the panel.

GRE:
One of the points I want to emphasize is that you should look at each individual school when it comes to requirements. I found out that our school looks at the writing score more than the overall composite score.  At other schools, the composite score matters, and they won't consider if you scored below a certain number. 

I started studying one month before the test; other girls said they started studying for it 2 months in advance.  Either way, you need to study. You may do well without studying, but most people benefit from studying.  Whether you take a class or study from the book, you will learn tips about the certain components they look for in the writing section, what the strategies are for doing well on the various sections, and how to take the test efficiently. 

Read the instructions ahead of time, be it during the practice tests or in the book.  The directions are the same in those tests as they are in the real test.  Read them ahead of time so that you don't waste that time while you're taking the test.

Applications:
The biggest take away here is DO NOT WAIT! Get started right away, and do not wait until close to the deadlines to apply.  Give your recommendation letters to the people writing them EARLY.  Gently remind of them of deadlines without being too pesky. 

Stay organized.  Keep track of all of the information for all of the schools in an Excel spreadsheet.  Have a folder or tab in a binder for each individual school with a cover sheet of their deadlines and addresses to send places. Whatever works for you.  Just stay organized.  Every school is different, and the information will start to blur together after awhile.

Your statement of purpose should be individual to that school.  I don't mean that it has to be a completely separate letter than all the others.  I had the bulk of the statement the same for every school and had the last paragraph unique to each school.  Do be on the look out for specific requirements, because some schools have additional questions they want answered.  These are really important, so do your research into what the professors research and what clinic opportunities there are.  For example, I wrote about our early childhood placement, and they assigned me to it the very first semester I was on campus!  I also wrote about working with bilingual kids in a certain clinic on campus, and they assigned me to that later, too!! They really do read those things-I promise!!

Grad School:
A typical day in grad school...well, first I would say there's no "typical" day.  Every single day is different.  For example, I have nothing on Mondays, but I have clinic and two classes on Wednesdays.  I will give you the general day, though.  Generally speaking, I have 1-2 classes, and they are 1 1/2-2 1/2 hours long. Chances are you'll have a therapy session or two that day, too.  You'll have to get to school a little early to prep for that and make sure the cameras are on to record you.  When you're done at school for the day, you go home, cook dinner, and do more work, be it homework or prepping for clinic.   You never really stop working...A good way to describe it is this:  It's like working a full-time job, except that you go home and do more work, instead of going home to watch tv (or whatever else).

Undergraduate classes are mostly about theory and normal language; graduate classes are more application and disordered language.  Generally speaking, graduate school is a lot more projects than tests (for us anyway).  I wouldn't say that it's necessarily more difficult. It's just different...and maybe busier. But not more difficult. 

It's all about time management.  You'll have a huge paper, clinic report, and a homework assignment all due the same day. Use a planner, Google calendar, etc.  Find something that works for you.  You will find all of the girls in my program writing in their planner quite frequently.

Do not be afraid to ask questions. You are there to learn. If you don't understand something, ask about it.  Seriously though...just do it!


Ok I think that's pretty much a good summary of what was discussed.  I hope that helped those of you who will be applying to grad school soon! 

If you have specific questions, feel free to email me! I will try to answer it :)

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Tuesday, April 16, 2013

Quick Tip: Using A Pacing Card


Do you ever get sick of saying, "Good job! Now say it again?"  If so, this is for you!



One of the tricks I learned this year in graduate school is to use a pacing card with students.  It is simple, easy, and fast to implement.  I had a little preschooler who was just working on resonance from his cleft palate. He knew all of the words and was intelligible-just needed some extra help with his nasality. He got sick of hearing the same thing over and over, and I got sick of saying it!! 

So we introduced a pacing card:



My student had to say each word 5 times total.  Let's say the target word was "pat." He would place his finger on the dot under the 1 and say, "Pat." Then, I would give feedback. He would proceed to placing his finger on the first dot under the 2, say, "Pat," move his finger to the next dot, and say "Pat" again. I would give feedback on his productions after 2 of them.  

He found this more fun than just saying the word over and over and over. Essentially that's what he was doing, but the element of moving his finger from dot to dot made it more fun for him, I guess! 

Do you think this is something you could use?  I created a simple one for you, if so!  You can get it by clicking on the image: 
 
 

Hope you enjoyed this quick tip!

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Friday, April 12, 2013

Fab Find Friday: 4/12/2013

Happy Friday everyone! Another week is finished, and we are one step closer to SUMMER!  Woohoo!


1.  Did you know there's a blog hop going on right now???  You could win TpT gift certificates...and you get 17 FREEBIES!! Check it out here.



2.  A FREE book companion for If You Give a Dog a Donut from thedabblingspeechie here.



3. Tips for keeping a student's attention during assessments from Teach Speech 365 here.


4. Cute poem entitled "If You Give an SLP an iPad" here.





5.  What I'm thinking right now....


6. Pirate Cartoon:

Source: Pinterest

Hope you all have a great weekend!


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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Working with Children with Autism: Tips and Collaboration Ideas

I am SO excited about this post today!  To continue with Autism Awareness, I invited Sasha, over at The Autism Helper, to write a guest post about working with children with autism and their classroom teachers.  She teaches in a self-contained classroom with 10-14 year olds with autism! She is currently working on her Master's degree in Applied Behavior Analysis!



Working with Children with Autism: Although I am sure I could write an overly long book about this topic I would love to share - what I think - are the most important things to know and consider! SLPs are BEYOND important in the world of autism! In my mind, building communication is priority number one. Communication opens the door to a wide range of other skills, environments, and opportunities. 

My tips :) 

Collaborate with the Teacher: One of my favorite parts of my job is collaborating with the clinicians that work in my classroom. I love getting another perspective and having someone to bounce ideas off of. I have been very fortunate to have some amazing therapists to work with. These therapists have melded perfectly within our classroom dynamic. I appreciate a clinician who: respects our classroom schedule {it's there for a reason and my students know when they are supposed to have therapy and when they aren't}, asks my opinion {we are a team, right?!}, communicates with me, and is flexible {sometimes things just don't go as planned!}.

Teach the Teacher: Like I said, I love collaborating. Leave the classroom teacher suggestions for how to incorporate your ideas and techniques into the student's day to day schedule. Give realistic suggestions that are doable! Yes, I would love to embed a communication opportunity into each and every activity we do - but sometimes I just honestly don't have time with a full classroom on my hands. Don't be offended if your suggestions aren't immediately taken up :)

Understand and Use the Behavior Plan: This might actually be the most important point. Children with autism can sometimes have very challenging behavior. If the teacher is using a behavior intervention that is successful - use it! Consistency is beyond important when implementing some interventions and it is imperative that expectations stay constant throughout the student's day. If you have questions about the behavior plan - ask! Make sure you feel comfortable with the system. 

Reinforcement: This is probably important point #2! Really look at what reinforces each students' behavior (behavior meaning communication!). Some children with autism are not reinforced by social praise as many other children are. Some types of communication may be initially challenging for students with autism because the social attention the communication results in is not reinforcing to them! Social skills deficits are a diagnostic criteria of autism and is something that needs to be targeted! When working on social communication skills or other new communication skills, use high magnitude reinforcers! Let the student work for break time, iPad, snacks, etc. You can always fade it out later - but many times you will need this to develop new skills! The example I always use is - you wouldn't come to work if you didn't get paid, would you? Our students need a reason to work!

Keep it Structured: Since most children with autism struggle with communication, unfamiliar transitions or activities can be difficult for them because they do not know what to expect. Children with autism thrive when the environment is structured and routine based. Make sure to come at a regular time. Ease in new activities slowly to allow students to adjust and become familiar with the task expectations!

Less is More: I am probably preaching to the choir on this one - but so often with my students less is more when it comes to language. Even some of my highest functioning students, have deceivingly low receptive language. They are often good fakers and can play along like they understand. But many times they do not.

Sasha has a lot of great activities in her TpT store.  She is the queen of file folder activities :) She also has a Facebook page where she will post pictures, tips, and activities!  To see her website, click on the picture below: 


I hope you learned a lot from her!! I know I certainly did! I will definitely be implementing these strategies with some of my students.  

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Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Spring Into Speech Blog Hop

You have officially made it to the 12th stop on this blog hop!


If you are new to my page, I would LOVE your support in this adventure!  You can follow this blog via email (found in the sidebar to the right).  Be sure to follow my Facebook page and Twitter page. I'm pretty active on Pinterest as well, where I pin about speech therapy, food, and life!  Also, please consider following my TpT store for updates on new products!



If you're new to the blog hop, start here:


At each stop blog along the hop, you will find FREEBIES and find an image with letters.  At the end of the hop, combine all of the letters you collected to create a phrase!  Note: They will NOT be in order! Once you figure out the phrase, you can enter into a giveaway with some AWESOME prizes (on the last blog)!

The prizes are:
1st Prize - $50 Gift Certificate to TpT
2nd Prize - $30 Gift Certificate to TpT
3rd Prize - $20 Gift Certificate to TpT

Now for your freebie!!

I created a quick function activity for you all to use with your kiddos!



Give each student a flower pot.



Students will take turn drawing flower cards and determine the function of the object pictured on the card.  If the students answer correctly, they place their cards on their flower pots.


You can find this freebie here.


Now, what you've all been waiting for--the next set of letters. Write this down now and put it with all the other letters to make a phrase later!



Now, hop on over to Speechy Musings for the next freebie!! Happy Spring and Happy Hopping to all of you!! Good luck :)



By the way...here's the list of the all of the blogs participating in this blog hop!



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