Fostering Growth Mindset in Students with Speech & Language Challenges
Carol Dweck’s research on “growth mindset” supported my work with adults and children struggling with speech and language challenges. Early in my career working with elementary, middle and high school students, the biggest challenge was getting students to produce. No grades were given, the work being done was in the most difficult areas and many […]
“Your Fantastic Elastic Brain”: Motivating Children and Teens with Speech and Language Disorders
Struggling to motivate children and teens with speech and language disorders is an on going concern. Many learn to navigate around their deficit using strategies, but others avoid learning risks at all cost. In therapy using interesting games is a popular motivator, but using these tools does not teach students how and why they should […]
Speech-Language Therapy vs Tutoring (Updated)
Speech-language therapy vs tutoring: What’s the difference? In order to choose the right services for yourself or your child, it’s important to understand the difference between speech-language therapy vs tutoring. How is speech-language therapy different from tutoring? Why choose one service over the other? Tutors re-teach information taught in the curriculum. Students acquire information at […]
Socializing with People on the Autism Spectrum
Board game meetups are a great place for high functioning people on the autism spectrum to socialize. I was part of a board game group that had several neurodivergent players. However, one player had a difficult time. Sometimes they said things that offended other players. They cheated when teaching new players which made their opponents […]
Communication Problems: Fighting Back
People with communication challenges write novels and poetry, create and sing their own lyrics, and give public speeches, but they sometimes need additional support.
Speech and Language Deficits Impact Life
Recently the Museum of Science exhibited Leonardo da Vinci’s work. Recreations of his drawings were made into physical models. I was struck by his inventiveness and his ability to both write and sell his ideas. His communication strengths were obvious from his displayed writings convincing Ludovico Sforza of Milan to hire him to his elaborate […]
Discovering What Works: Managing homework battles
My daughter is now in the 8th grade. Our “homework battles” are primarily behind us, but not forgotten. I wish I could say it just took time. That would negate all the wonderful help she’s received. Managing homework battles takes a thoughtful, comprehensive approach. It requires perseverance, patience, and sometimes skilled help to address the underlying […]
Language Challenges Uncovered: The Foundation for Academic Achievement Part 2
If language is the foundation for academic achievement then what do language challenges look like in everyday life? There are many areas that can impact language including word finding, auditory processing, comprehension and As a speech therapist one of the most telling signs of word finding problems in children and adults is the frequent use […]
Language: The Foundation for Academic Part 1
The foundation of language chart above provides a simplified view of language development to show how early language development supports future academic achievement. Because we so often take language for granted and schools often downplay the impact of speech and language challenges after the third grade, it is easy not to realize, that even small speech […]
The Potential of a “C”: Developing a Growth Mindset
What we think about our ability to learn matters. Believing that we can only learn a fixed amount, or that others can only learn a fixed amount, does not offer anyone the opportunity to grow. Without the belief that we can learn and grow, a “C” student can never become an “A” student.