Speak to me

-Having your child describe his/her ideal costume.

-Ask them about their school party-be sure to ask open ended questions.

-Have them tell you about their favorite candy and you guess what it is based on the description, or play I spy with their bucket of candy.

-Work on descriptive concepts by talking about colors, costumes, pointy noses, sparkly skin, sizes, scary, etc are all great things to start with.

-Have the child tell you what they need to do to get ready for Trick or Treating.

-Work together to make up a game to play at a party.

-Make cupcakes and have the child tell a family member what the ingredients were, the steps of how to make it, or how to decorate it the way they did.

-Have your child describe a leaf, then go on a hike and see if you can find one like it.

-Separate all the candy into categories like color, size, shape, type of candy, etc.

-Make a list with your child of Halloween/Fall words that help them practice a sound that he or she has difficulty with (i.e. if the sound is /s/: scary, skeleton, skull, treats, pumpkins, ghosts, etc. are all great words).

The most important thing to remember is that if you make it fun your child will want to do it. If your child thinks this is work, then they will not enjoy it as much. You do not have to do these activities sitting at a desk to make them a great learning experience. Most kids learn better when they are active in their learning anyway. Have fun and enjoy the many other speech and language activities that there are to do in the Charlotte, NC area.

When do you dress up in a costume?

When do you go trick or treating?

When does Halloween come this year?

When can you eat your Halloween candy?

THE OPTIONS ARE ENDLESS, BE CREATIVE!

Why do you dress up for Halloween?

Why do you want to be a ___ this year?

Why do people dress up for Halloween?

Why do people carve pumpkins for Halloween?

Why do you get candy when you go trick-or-treating?

THE OPTIONS ARE ENDLESS, BE CREATIVE!

Who do you want to be for Halloween?

Who will your sister/brother/mother/father be for Halloween?

Who do you think I should be for Halloween?

Who rides on a broom and cackles?

Who has sharp teeth and can turn into a bat?

Who wears a hat, rides a horse, and says howdy?

Who will you go trick or treating with?

Who gives you the most candy?

Who comes out at night, screeches and says “who who”?

Who decorates your house for Halloween?

Who gives out the candy at your house?

Who helps you carve your pumpkin?

THE OPTIONS ARE ENDLESS, BE CREATIVE!!

Where do bats fly?

Where do you put your jack-o-lantern?

Where did you get your costume?

Where did you get your pumpkin?

Where do you trick-or-treat?

Where do you get to wear your costume this year?

Where do pumpkins come from?

Where do you keep the candy for Halloween?

Where did your parents buy the Halloween candy?

What do you say when you go Trick or Treating?

What color is a pumpkin?

What do you get when you go Trick or Treating?

What are you going to be for Halloween?

What are some things that remind you of Halloween?

What color is a ghost?

What color is a bat?

What color is a pumpkin?

What time of day do you go trick or treating?

What will you wear for your costume?

What should you carry Halloween night to be safe?

What does a witch say?

What month does Halloween come in?

What is your favorite candy?

What colors remind you of Halloween?

I am told by parents all the time, we just don’t have any time to practice speech. Speech is one of those things that doesn’t need to have a set time to be practiced; it can be implemented into daily routine, games, car rides, etc. Make it fun by playing your child’s favorite game; on their turn have them say their sound in a word, or a sentence with their sound. Play "I Spy" with your child in the car, in their room, in the bathroom while bathing, during dinner, outside, etc having them "Spy" things that start or end with the sound they are working on. The ideas are unlimited; the important thing is to get them motivated.  Whatever motivates your child will help practice become more enjoyable and less of a struggle. You can always reward your child by having a star chart for when they initiate practicing themselves, or when they practice. Speech must be practiced to be the most successful.

My newest and favorite speech therapy tool for kids with articulation problems is to use tongue twisters with their sounds. They can be used with all ages and it makes practicing the sounds less boring because it is trickier and funny when you mess them up. It is great to use once a child has learned to say the sounds in single words, but has not mastered the sounds in spontaneous speech. 

A great example for a child practicing the /f/ sound in the beginning of words: 

Practice words sent home are: Fun, Four, Friends, Fluffy, Fantastic, Family, Food, Fudge, Full, and Fish

Tongue twister made: Four Fun Fluffy Friends got Full eating Fantastic Food, Fudge, and Fish with their Family.

After having worked with so many kids, it is very rare that I go somewhere in Charlotte and do not run into a family I know from treating one of their kids. I enjoy seeing children that I treat or have treated for speech and language problems.  Nothing better than running into a client in a store that I treated when they were 3 years old and they are now 10 years old doing really well. Seeing a child in the natural environment also gives a clinic-based therapist the opportunity to see how the child truly does in social situations, in different environments and with strangers. It can provide us with new ideas for how to take speech therapy to a new level. Not to mention, I love the look on a child’s face when they realize I am a person who needs to shop for groceries too.  Just remember, if I am with anyone, I will introduce them, but cannot introduce you because of HIPAA privacy laws, not because I have forgotten your name or your child; however, you may introduce yourself anytime. Don’t hesitate to speak to your therapist when you see them in a restaurant or store, even if the child is not behaving.

I have parents ask me all the time: What is that baby doing in your lobby? Are they waiting for therapy, too? Aren’t they too young? One of the first things I explain is Child and Family Development is a multidisciplinary practice, and we have speech therapists in addition to occupational therapists, physical therapists, educational specialists, and psychologists on staff. We see kids of all ages and that includes babies who are already developing behind the normal child his/her age or who were diagnosed with a condition that can make it difficult to master developmental milestones. A child can not be too young to receive services in our office.