Category: Health

Speech_terapy-1080x675

How Long Does It Take for Speech Therapy to Work?

It’s human nature for parents – and children alike – to want to see quick results when starting speech therapy. However, it is important for parents and children to remember that everybody is different and learns at their own pace. 

Here at SLP-tele, our online speech therapy providers know exactly how to meet your child’s speech therapy needs in order to help them conquer their goals. For parents and children interested in learning how “fast” it will take for speech therapy to work, they should consider the following. 

Factors that Affect the Length of Time 

1. Parental Involvement

Parents need to be involved in their child’s speech therapy journey the entire time. Children need the support and encouragement that only a parent can provide. This makes the entire learning process that much easier and successful. Additionally, when parents are willing to do “extra” after the sessions are over, the child has a greater chance of retaining what they have learned.

2. Child’s Participation

Although some children tend to be shy when working with a stranger, it is important that they participate in their lessons. Thankfully, our online speech therapists at SLP-tele have the experience and training needed to make sure they get the most out of your child.

With a little bit of encouragement from you, your child will not only happily participate in their speech therapy sessions, but will have a great time doing it.

3. Severity of Your Child’s Speech Disorder 

Children can face a wide variety of speech disorders include articulation disorders to child speech delay/disorders. If there are additional physical ailments, such as a high narrow palate or tongue-tie, then the amount of time needed for the child to overcome their speech challenges will generally increase.

4. The Age of Your Child

If you notice a problem in your child’s speech early on, it is best to begin seeking out professional assistance immediately. The longer you wait to get help, the more rooted the issue can become, which can make the speech pattern or habit harder to break. 

5. Frequency of Independent Practice

The saying is true, “Practice makes perfect.” Independent practice is going to be just as vital as the actual therapy sessions themselves. Here at SLP-tele, we provide families with additional resources that can be used once the therapy session ends, and children, along with parents, will even be able to revisit old lessons to keep practicing.

6. Commitment to Sessions

It’s a simple rule but it makes all the difference in the world. You and your child’s commitment to speech therapy sessions will help you to reach goals that much faster. That includes the frequency of therapy sessions. The more often your child works with our online speech therapist, the sooner you are likely to see results. 

7. Additional Learning or Behavioral Challenges

Additional learning or behavioral challenges need to be taken into consideration when estimating the amount of speech therapy treatment that will be needed. Notifying your speech therapist about any medically documented issues is also important so that they can develop a comprehensive plan that will take these additional challenges into consideration. 

If you have a child that is struggling with their speech don’t hesitate to get help. SLP-tele specializes in online speech therapy and we would be more than happy to help you and your child reach your speech goals. 

Serious little Caucasian boy closing his mouth with hands. Illustrative image for childhood trauma, child traumatic experience. Psychological assistance, children rescue. Silent cry for help. Stutter

One Day At a Time: Tips for Helping Your Child Overcome Their Stuttering

As our little ones begin to grow and become more verbal, you may begin to notice them stammer as they speak. While, on many occasions, it is natural for a toddler or preschooler to have issues pronouncing certain words, there are other instances where parents may be rightfully concerned.

If you have noticed that your child has a bit of difficulty speaking and they tend to hesitate or repeat certain syllables, words, or phrases, then this may be a sign of stuttering. Thankfully, however, there is plenty that can be done in order to improve your child’s speech and communication skills.

And your team at SLP-tele is eager to help. Our southern California speech therapists are ready to deliver the quality treatment and care your little one deserves. Plus, we are able to provide convenient online speech therapy services.

If you are a bit concerned that your child is stuttering, then please consider the following information and tips on how to help them improve their speech skills. 

What is stuttering? And how can I recognize it?

It’s natural for children to occasionally repeat syllables or words once or twice. Children may also hesitate a bit before speaking and use filler words such as “uh,” “er,” and “um”. This type of disfluency often affects children who are just beginning to learn to speak and occurs between the ages of one to five years old. Generally, this type of speech patterns will come and go.
Even if these types of behaviors disappear for several weeks, then return, the child may simply be going through a learning stage.
However, children with stuttering issues are likely to repeat sounds more than twice. The tension and struggle to pronounce words also becomes obvious in the child’s facial muscles, especially around the mouth. Also, the pitch of the voice may rise with repetitions, and occasionally the child will experience a “block” which means there is no airflow or voice for several seconds.
A child with a severe stuttering problem stutters more than 10% of their speech or stutters with a lot of effort and tension, and avoids stuttering by changing words or using extra sounds to get a sentence started.

There is hope though. There’s plenty you can do at home to support your child, and with assistance from SLP-tele, your child can greatly improve their communication skills. 

How Parents Can Help Their Children Improve Their Stuttering

1. Pay attention: Try to increase the time that you give your child your undivided attention and really listen to them. Naturally, however, you won’t want to drop everything every time they speak but actually paying attention to what they say can help them to build confidence in their abilities.

2. Don’t ask too many questions all at once: Asking your children questions is natural, expected, and beneficial for many reasons. But try to resist overwhelming your child with multiple questions all at once. Sometimes, it is more helpful to comment on what your child is saying rather than overwhelming them with questions.

3. Take turns talking: Everyone in your family can help by taking turns when having a family conversation. Children find it easier to talk when there are fewer interruptions.

4. Build up their confidence: Some of the hesitation and stammering can come as a result of their insecurity. When your child is concerned about the way they talk, they may not communicate as well as they would like. Positive words can truly go a long way.

5. Spend some alone time together: Spend a few minutes each day when you can give your child your undivided attention. This means no TV, iPad, or phones. This can be a confidence builder for young children when they have your undivided attention and can help them improve their thought processes and communication abilities.

6. Reduce the pace of your conversations: Don’t rush through your conversation when speaking with your child. You’ll also want to pause a little more frequently to give them the opportunity to respond. Your own relaxed speech will be more effective than any advice such as “slow down” or “try it again slowly.”

7. Reduce the demands they feel: As your child develops more advanced speech and language skills, they will experience many demands. Reducing this amount of “demand” speech (forcing them to have a conversation) can decrease the pressures they experience.

With SLP-tele by your side, your child will greatly improve their stuttering and communication skills. And with us right in the middle of summer, now is the perfect time to start working on this issue. Our online speech therapy services are fun, engaging, and sure to improve your child’s speech.

To get started with our online speech therapy services, contact SLP-tele right now at (877) 757-8353 and schedule an appointment.

little kids swimming in pool underwater.

4 Fun Summer Speech Activities

Summer is nearly here and your child is undoubtedly very excited to finally get a break from school. While it’s good to give our little ones a much-needed rest, we also don’t want them to be affected by the summer brain drain.

At SLP-tele, not only do we provide exceptional child-focused in-home speech therapy, but we also want to provide parents with the support and additional activities they need to keep the learning going all summer long. While kids seem to avoid learning during the summer like they avoid vegetables, there are plenty of summer-themed speech activities that we’re sure your child will absolutely love playing.

Summer Speech Therapy Activities to Give a Try

1. Preparing for the Pool (Listing Activity)

Children love going to the pool to cool off and splash around. An excellent activity to get your child to be active with their speech is to have them list out what you’ll need for your day at the pool (or beach, park, or other place you’ll be visiting.) For example, swimming terms they can use can include swimsuits, swim trunks, floaties, towels, goggles, diving, and lifeguards. Also, on your way to the pool, have your child plan out all the things they want to do there. There’s so much they can do at the pool, so have them explain everything to you in clear, full sentences.

2. At the Pool Activities

A simple activity to play with your child is “Sink or Float.” Take many different types of toys to the pool and use them to play the game. You can have your child describe the toy while letting you know why they think the toy will sink or float. Just as a reminder, most toys will float so make sure to take a couple that will sink, like diving toys.

Because there is likely to be a lot of other children at the pool, this is a great opportunity for your child to interact with others as well. Just remind your child ahead of time that if another child asks them to play, or talks to them, they need to respond appropriately.

For safety reasons, you’ll want to stay close to your child while playing this game – or when spending any time at the pool for that matter.  

3. Beach Activities

Most children enjoy a day at the beach, especially playing with the sand. A fun speech activity to do at the beach is to bury objects for your little one to find. When they find an object, have them describe the object before putting it in their bucket.

Of course, the goal is to find them all, so be sure to bury them within a small area so they can easily be found easily.

Another fun and easy activity to do is building a sandcastle. While building up the castle have them name what they want their sandcastle to have, for instance, a moat, windows, doors, seashells, a bridge, etc.

4. While Traveling In the Car

Whether you’re taking a family vacation or simply driving down to the local community pool, you can play the alphabet game. This simple speech game consists of taking turns using a letter to think of as many words as you can for a specific subject such as animals, foods, restaurants, and the likes.

For instance, you can use a letter such as “C,” to come up with words like cat, cow, crane, etc. Or you can use sounds such as /sh/ to have your child come up with words like shore, shark, shrimp, ship, etc.

There are plenty of additional speech therapy activities that can be played at home during the summer. Want to learn more? Then contact SLP-tele today.