Author: Wee Speech PC

    In her presentation, speech language pathologist Angie Neal discusses the use of screen time in children and its impact on development, both in negative and positive ways. In the course of the last two years, we’ve seen technology be useful for a lot of good things. Facetiming loved ones, attending school virtually and simulated learning experiences such as virtual field trips to the Great Barrier Reef or your local zoo are just a few examples. We also need to consider the negative aspects: an increase in rate of obesity due to increased snacking during screen time, disruptions in sleep and even disruptions in specific areas of brain development. How can we overcome the negative effects seen from this

  It is thought that approximately 15-20% of the population are “neurodiverse,” meaning that they have received a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Dyscalculia, or Tourette Syndrome. With the increased prevalence of these diagnoses, many companies are beginning to focus on  neurodiversity in their workforce. Large companies, such as SAP, Microsoft, EY, JPMorgan Chase, and Ford Motor Company, are part of the “Neurodiversity @ Work Roundtable,” where including the neurodiverse population in the workforce is emphasized. One study found that “neurodiverse employees were comparable to neurotypical staff in work quality, efficiency and productivity. The bonus was ‘the neurodiverse employees excelled at innovation’.” https://theconversation.com/neurodiversity-can-be-a-workplace-strength-if-we-make-room-for- it-164859

  In August 2022, a new series of cartoon episodes focusing on explaining various disabilities will be premiering! The 10 episode series provides information for children, families, and educators covering the topics of assistive technology, transportation, communication, and service animals. The episodes are targeted for viewers in kindergarten through third grade to increase understanding and awareness regarding peers and their differences. The videos will aim to explain how children with varying ability levels complete various tasks. Over the course of the next couple of years, these videos will be piloted in schools. Please visit the link below for more information! https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2021/12/cartoons-about-disability-will-educate-children

  A recent study conducted by The School of Psychology’s Centre for Human Developmental Science revealed that playing with dolls independently lead to frequent talk about others’ thoughts and feelings compared to when playing on a tablet. The ‘internal state language concept’ is linked to increasing a child’s opportunity to develop social skills and can be beneficial to a child’s emotional development. Lead researcher Dr. Sarah Gerson said, “When children create imaginary worlds and role play with dolls, they communicate at first out loud and then internalize the message about others’ thoughts, emotions and feelings. This can have positive long-lasting effects on children, such as driving higher rates of social and emotional processing and building social skills like empathy that

In her TedTalk, pediatric occupational therapist Angela Hanscom discusses three trends that teachers have reported over the course of the last 30 years: increases in children experiencing difficulty paying attention in school,  changes in spatial awareness (possibly evidenced by children running into each other or into objects/walls or falling out of chairs) and an increase in children’s frustrations. In an effort to discover the causes behind these trends, Hanscom completed a study to look at core strength and normal balance reactions and compared these results with standardized norms from 1984. Her results indicated that only 1 out of every 12 children was meeting the averages of those children in the 1980s. Why? A factor that may have contributed to these

Due to the surge of COVID-19 cases in the last few months, your child may have transitioned to using a teletherapy platform when receiving services. If your child is receiving a speech/language evaluation, here are some important tips a caregiver may take into consideration to make the process smoother: Have your child positioned in a quiet environment with minimal distractions; when possible, a chair that allows for a child to have their legs positioned at a 90-degree angle is optimal (small benches/boxes can be used for foot support if a smaller chair is not available) A headset with a microphone is beneficial – not only can headsets cancel out external noise, it can ensure a higher quality of audio input

According to the ASHA Leader, a shift in the typical school paradigm of providing 30-minute group therapy sessions is increasingly being recommended to be adjusted to a more individualized and intensive frequency of service. In a school setting, because children are theoretically accessible for seven or more hours in a day, over five consecutive days in a week, the traditional, “one size fits all” therapy recommendation for providing 30 minutes a week to a group of 2-5 students at once is said to be limiting to a child’s overall progress and their individualized attention. It is said that 30-minute group therapy sessions do not fit with the guidance and philosophies from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) nor the

According to the ASHA Leader, one of the many devastations of the COVID-19 pandemic has involved the number of children in traditional school settings who have under-identified speech-language needs. As students have increasingly returned to “brick and mortar” school settings, outpatient clinics around the country have reportedly observed an influx of parents seeking out speech-language evaluations for their children by private entities. Part of this influx is reported to be due to school-based evaluations not being as readily available during the remote learning phase. It has been reported that in outpatient clinic settings, therapy providers often have the time and resources necessary for assessing a child’s communication needs in quick turn around from when parents initially pursue services. It has

One question that is often asked is, ‘How can we work on our child’s speech goals outside of therapy?’. While doing worksheets for homework can be helpful, another way to target speech goals outside of therapy is incorporating activities into the child’s everyday life. In the article, ‘We left the Therapy Room, Now What?’, Coaching Families on Carryover Skills for Children in their environment’, by Jestina Bunch, Autumn Sanderson, and Ashley Irick,  different activities and strategies one can incorporate into their everyday lives to aid in goal progress are discussed. Some fun and easy ideas from the article are listed below. -Auditory Skills: Say before you show: make appropriate sounds before showing the associated item(i.e. vroom vroom; I hear a