My first job as a speech pathologist was in a rehabilitation hospital that specialized in traumatic brain injury. It was memorable for so many reasons. Working with acquired brain injury patients taught me that no one chooses to do badly. I was able to see that all our behaviors both positive and negative are a …
Category Archives: Communication
Traumatic brain injury: Why would you ever need a Speech Pathologist?
My first job was working at a rehabilitation hospital that specialized in traumatic brain injury. It was a very interesting job because when working with a patient with an acquired brain injury the behavior present after the injury can be related to the site of the injury. I closed head trauma to the left side …
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Lagging skills: So what’s a mom/ Speech Pathologist to do?
During my observations I noticed once my daughter began to scream she was no longer able to think. Unexpected transitions set her off, and even though she has a very good vocabulary during times of anger she used few words. Rewards, time out, punishments hugs, natural consequences didn’t work. Anticipating situations that caused the rages …
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Predicting, planning, and organizing: Why can’t I do It?
Problems with time management is one element of executive function, other elements include predicting, organizing, and planning. We all occasionally lose our keys. I know I do, but I once had a client that was constantly late to every appointment because they could not find their keys or pocketbook. For most of us a few …
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Executive functioning: What is it?
Executive functioning is a buzz word in the learning disability community that often seems mysterious. I have first hand experience with executive functioning problems. My daughter wakes up for school and takes at least 40 minutes if not more to get dressed and brush her teeth in the morning. Unfortunately the bus leaves at the …
Perfect spelling with spelling remediation?
Another client had severe spelling deficits after years of remediation was still a very poor spontaneous speller. With direct spelling remediation, however; two areas improved. First spell check recognized the spelling of words that originally had been so different from traditional spelling that the program gave no appropriate suggestions. Secondly, she began to recognize when …
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LD online: Offers personal narratives
This is the first web site I found years ago. It offers testimonies from people with a variety of learning disorders. Henry Wrinkler the “Fonz” on the show “Happy Days” writes about growing up not knowing that he had dyslexia and feeling dumb. Teenagers especially benefit from the stories offered on LD online. They have …
Children’s Language web sites
Did you know that children lose up to a month of school during the summer, and children with LD can lose even more than that. here are some web sites that offer language practice for students? Check out Grammar Gorilla – http://www.funbrain.com/grammar/index.html Mad Lib – http://www.funbrain.com/brain/ReadingBrain/ReadingBrain.html Practice letter recognition (if child says sounds can help …
LD sites review
Often I look at sites that have to do with language disabilities, so I decided to share some of my resources. A site I visit often is the Asperger’s Association of New England. It’s helpful because not only does it offer definitions and information about Asperger Syndrome, but posted on the site is a wealth …
Learning to Learn
I just love when I come across someone who has a philosophy that is similar to mine. Learning should be about learning how to learn not focused on just making sure students learn certain information. In a society where what we know is growing exponentially much of the content that will be taught to our …