Speech-Language Therapy

Each person has different strengths and weaknesses.  Part of the speech language pathologist job is to help each person understand and use their strengths to overcome their weaknesses.  Discovering each person’s strengths is like uncovering pearls. The goal is to learn how to use an individuals  strength to decrease or navigate around their speech language deficit. It’s …

The sweet smell of success

Success! One of my high school clients with a moderate to severe language-based learning disability that looks similar to dyslexia, scored in the average range on a formal assessment for writing at the sentence level. This is so exciting! Last year formulating sentences with prepositions, adjectives and conjunctions was a huge challenge for this client. …

Case Study: Part II Reading and Technology

It has taken years of work two times a week to bring Renee’s reading rate up to a functional rate that can support her high school academics. However, Renee’s reading rate is still not grade level and because she easily fatigues when reading, remediation can not be the sole solution. She does not always read …

Case study: Reading

One of my favorite clients, I will call her Renee in order to retain confidentiality, came to me in 8th grade reading at the kindergarten level. She had years of intervention in school. The school curriculum was project based and the reading program was based on the whole language philosophy. What is “whole language?” It …

Life when you can’t read

I stumbled across this video from a show called “My So Called Life,” were the main character discovers that a boy she likes can not read well. Jordan, the character, doesn’t appear to be receiving any intervention. He’s ashamed, and other students think he is stupid.Self blame, self doubt, poor self esteem will follow him …

Good reading skills are needed for postsecondary education

“Millions of adolescents lack the reading skills needed to succeed in postsecondary education and the workplace — and students with learning disabilities tend to struggle the most”( www.ldonline.com; 8/16/10). How do you know if your child has the reading skills they need to succeed at the college level? Poor reading skills can be distinguished by …

Web sites associated with Reading

Another great site is the International Dyslexia Association web site. Like AANE it also is a great resource for information on reading disorders especially dyslexia. The site offers information regarding the various types of reading remediation. Remember as with all remediation quality is not based on the program, but in the level of instruction and …

What did you just read?

Recently I sat listening to a new client read, and after he read I asked him to summarize the information. I was not surprised to hear, “I can’t.” He read the words with little expression, and his primary emphasis when reading was on trying to pronounce complex vocabulary. Little effort was put into phrasing, visualizing …

Do older students need continued reading and language intervention?

“It is likely that children who have reading or language intervention in the primary grades will continue to need additional supplementary experiences in the upper grades as well. We know that the literacy demands are of a different nature for older children; as children proceed through the grades, they are expected to learn from informational …