Bright Start Therapies

Should I “Wait and See” if My Child Will Start Talking?

admin — Sat, 11 Sep 2021 01:08:20 +0000

I have often had parents tell me that someone has advised them to “wait” and “see” if their child may just be a “late talker” and will soon catch up to his or her peers. Parents often know a story of a distant family member who suddenly started talking and all was fine. I am one of these stories. I was three years old and using minimal words to communicate. According to my mother, my brother who is only a few months older (we are both adopted) did all my talking for me. My mother was advised by our pediatrician to wait for my own response or request in order for my needs to be met. I did eventually start talking without intervention, and according to my mother haven’t stopped talking since! While it’s true that Children will continue to develop and grow even without intervention, if there is a delay it can follow the child as they mature. Research shows that delays, left untreated, continue to impact a child’s learning and development even into their high school years. So, what exactly is a late talker? Late talkers are toddlers that are developing at an average rate in other areas, such as cognitive and motor skills, but have limited speech and expressive language for their age. If your child exhibits the following, they may be a late talker:

Limited vocabulary: Less than 50 words at age two
Not combing words, using mostly single-word utterances
Comprehension of language is intact.
All other areas of development are age appropriate.

“Late Talkers” are just one of many reasons toddlers may not be talking much yet. A child’s speech and language delay may the first sign of other disorders not yet diagnosed. Childhood Apraxia of Speech is one of those disorders. The underlying cause of the speech delay may be something that requires intervention in order for the child to progress. It’s always best to seek a professional evaluation to determine if your child would benefit from intervention. The “Wait and See” model is too risky for a child who may be losing precious intervention time while we wait. Early Intervention services are covered at the state level and a speech and language evaluation is assessable without cost to families. You can call your area Regional Center to request a speech and language evaluation if your child is behind in his speech and language development. More brain development occurs in the first few years of life than any other time. Early interventionists want to capitalize on this critical window of development. Therefore, if your child is using limited speech, why wait! I say, what are we waiting for? Is your child frustrated when they are not understood? Do they have an increase in behaviors when they are not able to communicate effectively? There is no harm in having an evaluation and knowing from a professional whether speech and language services are recommended.

The post Should I “Wait and See” if My Child Will Start Talking? appeared first on Bright Start Therapies.

Five Strategies to Use with Books

admin — Sat, 11 Sep 2021 01:05:22 +0000

Reading plays such as important part in a child’s speech and language development – and we can start early on! Your child may have figured out how to hold the book and turn the pages, but what now? They don’t have the patience to sit through the whole story? Maybe they want to read the same book every night? Well, we are here to help with some ideas you can use today. Here are five strategies you can try with your little one during the next book reading experience.

Let Them Choose

Have your child choose the book that you will be reading. They may want to read the same book five nights in a row, and that’s okay. Often, the repetitions are comforting, help them learn new words, and develop better understandings of the concepts. By allowing them to choose, we are also giving them autonomy and power during this activity. If needed, we can help guide their choices by setting several books out on the floor for them to choose from.

Sit Face To Face With Your Child

Instead of the traditional positioning of sitting side-by-side with your child during book reading, have them sit in front of you! This means that you are facing your child and have the book near your face or in front of your body. This allows your child to see both – the book and your face as you say the words and sounds!

You Don’t Have To “Read” The Book

It may feel like a natural thing to read the words printed on each page but try talking about the things you see instead. You can label the objects you see, use animal sounds (raawr, baa, meow), fun sound effects (peep-peep, uh-oh, wow) and silly facial expressions. These are bound to make book reading more entertaining and fun for your little one.

Allow Them To Turn The Pages

By having your child turn the pages of the book, you are engaging them and giving them something to do during this activity. You are also incorporating following directions by asking them to “turn the page”. It’s even okay if they skip a few pages, after all, the pages are not what counts!

Wait For Them As you turn each page – wait. By waiting a little, we are giving your child an opportunity to comment, label, or say something. This allows them to take a turn and offer the input they may have. You will be surprised what a little wait time can do!

The post Five Strategies to Use with Books appeared first on Bright Start Therapies.

Social Skills Don’t Always Come Easy

admin — Sat, 11 Sep 2021 01:03:21 +0000

As I drive down my street, I see the four boys I often see around the neighborhood playing together. I wonder if some are related or just friends who live near each other. Sometimes they are all crouching down together to investigate something on the sidewalk while other times, they are walking together towards a new adventure. Today, it was a lemonade stand. They were just getting set up as I neared the corner of the busy cross street. I pull over and all four are full of smiles and greetings. As I waited for my cup of lemonade, I suggested they move to the opposite side of the street, where cars could pull over more safely. “Oh yeah”, “good idea”, “ok”.. they all chimed in while using good eye contact and social graces. This simple interaction with them was all it took to remind me that what comes so easy and natural for many children is something that takes intervention, modeling, and coaching for others to achieve. Social skills don’t always come easy! There are many ways to help children who struggle with social skills. Here are 5 simple ways you can help your child to develop and strengthen their social skills:

Model appropriate social behavior for them!

Sound’s simple, but it’s not always easy to follow ourselves! Be aware of the behavior you want them to achieve and find ways to model it for them.

Read books that have a social message
- My Friend Is Sad by Mo Willems
- The Feelings Book by Todd Parr
- Teach Your Dragon to Make Friends by Steve Herman
- How Do Dinosaurs Say I’M MAD! by Jane Yole
- The Way I Feel by Janan Caub
- My Mouth Is a Volcano! by Julia Cook
- Do Unto Otters by Laurie Kelle

Set up play dates with peers

Facilitate the play date by providing support and modeling appropriate behavior when necessary. This way, your child can use social greetings, take turns, take conversational turns, join in play and respond to other children.

Teach your child to use the appropriate emotional words to describe how they feel such as “I’m mad!” or “I feel sad”.

Teach your child appropriates ways to get someone’s attention. Role play both expected and unexpected behaviors with them so your child has a chance to practice appropriate behavior and to recognize inappropriate behavior as well.

The post Social Skills Don’t Always Come Easy appeared first on Bright Start Therapies.

Four ways to support your young child if you suspect they may have Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS)

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2021 06:06:28 +0000

If your child has been receiving on-going speech therapy and now you have concern’s regarding your child’s speech disorder may be CAS, you should first discuss your concerns with your current speech therapist. This will open up the dialog on CAS and allow for you both to share with each other information. CAS is a dynamic and complex disorder that should be evaluated by a licensed speech language pathologist who has extensive experience evaluating and treating CAS. Ask your therapist if they feel your child would benefit from a CAS evaluation. If you have had a previous speech evaluation and feel you still have questions and concerns regarding CAS, this may be a good time to ask if you need a re-evaluation. If you are not already receiving homework ideas ask your therapist what can you work on at home to best support your child’s speech development.
Create a positive and supportive environment. For many young children, having a speech disorder may feel like having duct tape over the mouth. Your child may know what they want to say but have trouble forming the words. Can you imagine the frustration this may cause your child? Put their frustrations into words and say the feelings you think they may be feeling for them outload. This will validate how they feel and let them know you acknowledge their feeling. They may look at other family members and wonder why speaking seems to come so easy it seems to be and not understand why it’s so hard for them. You can create a positive and supportive environment by giving your child lots of praise when they make vocalizations. Let your child know their attempts are heard and appreciated! Another way to support your child is to take any pressure off them to say words. Don’t ask your child to say words. My rule of thumb is don’t say “say..”. Just model sounds face to face so they can see your mouth formations and wait. If your child does not imitate you it’s ok
Although the internet can be confusing and sometimes overwhelming when your researching information, it can also provide you with powerful resources. There are many sites devoted to answering parent questions on CAS. Do your research and develop questions to discuss with your child’s therapist. By putting all your fears and concerns out there for your therapist, you can together discuss your child’s strengths and areas of concern to work together towards the solution.
Give your child a chance to imitate sounds at the speech level they are most proficient at. Does your child make mostly syllable shapes sounds such as up, go, ah, oh, da, ma? If so give multiple opportunities to keep making these sounds and model other syllable shapes with the same consonants but try other vowels. If your child can say da or dada, try for do or duh. spontaneously is not the same as being asked to say something on command. Saying something on command is more challenging for a child with CAS, so don’t expect your child to easily repeat words you may have heard. Ask your speech therapist for a list of sounds, syllables or words they feel would be appropriate to practice at home and ideas for how you can get your child to imitate you without you asking them to talk.

The post Four ways to support your young child if you suspect they may have Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) appeared first on Bright Start Therapies.

How to make a kid friendly charcuterie board

admin — Wed, 08 Sep 2021 06:04:06 +0000

Charcuterie boards are a fun way to serve snacks for a kid’s party, movie night or even dinner! The items you choose can be your child’s favorites and as individual as he or she is! If your child is gluten free or dairy free – no problem, there are so many options that fit well onto a board! Below is just a suggestion of ingredients and how artfully you chose to make your board is up to you! The good news is there is no way to go wrong, and your kids will love it!

Snack ideas:

Trail mix
Small crustless sandwiches (can use fun cookie cutter shapes)

peanut butter and jelly encrustables from the freezer section of your local grocery store

Meats: pepperoni, salami, turkey, ham, cheese, grapes, apples
Cheese: fresh mozzarella pearls, cheese cubes, mini babybel cheese
Yogurt tubes, applesauce pouches
Fresh fruits: strawberries, pineapple, watermelon, blueberries, blackberries, or raspberries
Mini pickles
Olives
Veggies (cucumbers, grape or cherry tomatoes, celery, baby carrots, peppers, etc.)
Seeds (pumpkin, sunflower, etc.)
Fruit (apples, strawberries, grapes, etc.)
Dried Fruit (apricot, pineapple, banana chips etc.)
Nuts (walnuts, almonds, candied pecans)
Ranch or ranch dip
Hummus
Crackers: fish crackers, pretzels, focaccia bread cubes
Yogurt dip (dill or cucumber or ranch flavored)
Chocolate avocado mouse
Veggie straws, Pirate booty, popcorn
Sweet treats: M&M’s, Mini Oreo cookies, mini size candy bars, chocolate covered almonds, chocolate covered mini pretzels

How to Assemble:

Set out a large platter or cutting board.
Start by putting dips and food items that need to be contained in small bowls such as trail mix. Spread the bowls out in different areas of the board.
Add your larger items in next such as mini sandwiches, yogurt or applesauce pouches.
Add in meats in various areas of board.
Add in small cubed or squared cheeses.
Add in crackers, veggie straws, focaccia bread cubes.
Add in smaller items such as nuts, fruits and chocolates.

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