Login
Free Trial

Marisha

8 Ways to Reduce Stress at Work

by Leave a Comment

Last week, we talked about lies that we’re telling ourselves. These lies tend to pop up when we’re feeling particularly overwhelmed with our workload. Addressing the lies is a huge first step, but they’re not always easy to tackle. There are some other things that we can do in the meantime to reduce the overwhelm.

So let’s have at it, shall we?

1. Eat the frog first. It’s not as bad as you think it is.

That thing you’re dreading most? Do it first.

Dreading billing?

Set aside 5 minutes first thing in the morning to tackle it.

Dreading that report?

Come in a little early and tackle it before you start anything else. (Don’t even think about checking your email before you dive into the report! That’s a time suck!)

Dreading a particular group?

Try to schedule them when you’re feeling freshest. Don’t try to schedule them at the end of the day on Friday!

The worst part about doing these things is thinking about doing them. If you can get them done first thing, then you won’t have to dread them! And you’ll start your day feeling super accomplished!

2. Set goals.

What do you want to accomplish? Remind yourself of your goals every day and do one small thing towards your biggest goal.

Want some more ideas? Check out this blog post!

3. Schedule blocks.

It’s easy to let your schedule get out of control. Be intentional with how you’re spending your time at work. I started to be more productive when…

• I scheduled time to do paperwork and bill. I always schedule this first thing because it’s not exactly my favorite part of the job, and I got really good at procrastinating. Once I had a set paperwork time, I was a lot more productive!

• I scheduled time to prepare for my therapy sessions. This meant I was ready to tackle each session. No more scrambling at the last minute!

• I schedule time to check email. I only opened my email program during set times of the day and turned off notifications. This made it a lot easier to stick to my plan, and I had more control over my day! Email is one of the biggest time sucks.

• I scheduled time to make copies. This saved me tons of time because I didn’t have to make multiple trips, and I scheduled a time when I knew there wouldn’t be a massive line.

4. Plan ahead!

Map out the big due dates (e.g., IEPs, evaluations, billing, progress reports) and work backwards. Protect yourself from crazy overwhelming weeks!

5. Don’t do it all yourself.

It’s okay to ask for help! We talked more about this last week!

6. Gratitude.

I do this on my way home from work. I take a few minutes to think about the things that went well during the day. Did a student make progress on a goal? Did I collaborate well with a teacher? Did I conquer a pile of paperwork? It’s a great way to debrief and wrap up work on a good note!

7. Connect with positive SLPs.

“You are the average of the five people who you spend the most time with.” – Jim Rohn

As SLPs, we might not want to take this too literally! 🙂 I was spending the majority of my time with three-year-olds, so I’m not sure what that says about me!

I think the principle is really powerful, though. Who do you talk to about your work? Do you talk to people who always complain? Do you talk to people who inspire you? Be intentional about who you talk to about work. If you don’t have SLPs to talk to “in real life,” then follow some inspiring SLPs on Instagram or Facebook and schedule some time to soak in their positivity!

8. Try something new.

If you’re lacking inspiration or not enjoying your work, then try something new. Take a course. Attend a seminar. Read a good book. Observe another SLP in your district. Create some new materials. Reorganize a part of your speech room. Really, whatever floats your boat!

If all else fails, you can look at cute animals! 🙂

via GIPHY

What do you do to reduce stress at work?

5 Lies that SLPs Tell Themselves

by Leave a Comment

I always start a new school year with the best intentions. I set big, lofty goals and am ready to conquer #allthethings!

But then reality hits…

My caseload numbers increase.
Meetings start to fill up my calendar.
And the overwhelm starts to strike with a vengeance.

And that’s when I start to doubt myself…

Who am I to think that I could accomplish the goals I set? Isn’t it impossible?

These types of questions always used to put me in a negative spiral, and I ended up making these questions a reality.

When I thought I couldn’t keep up with Medicaid billing, I found myself with a massive backlog of notes to submit.
When I thought I couldn’t help a student, I left it up to the rest of the team to figure it out.
When I thought I was too overwhelmed to tackle the day, I called in sick and came back to an even bigger mess the next day.

Those are not fun things to admit…

The good news? It doesn’t have to be that way!

I finally realized that my goals were actually attainable. I just had to get out of my own way and stop telling myself lies.

After having conversations with hundreds of SLPs, I realized that I wasn’t the only one doing this. Here are some of the most common lies that I heard…

1. “I’ll never catch up on Medicaid billing.”

I know we all love to hate on Medicaid, but it really doesn’t have to be that bad!

I was spending hours a week dreading Medicaid billing. Hours. I’d procrastinate like the best of them. You know the funny part? Once I got a system down, it only took me 5 minutes a week. (Note: I was billing for every student on my caseload.) I spent hours dreading something that only had to take me 5 minutes!

Even if your district has the worst system in the world, it’s totally doable to finish your weekly billing in less than 30 minutes. Find ways to make it more enjoyable. Here are some things that I’ve tried:

• Get yourself your favorite drink and tackle it all in one go.
• Eat a Skittle every time you submit a note.
• Time yourself to see if you can bill faster next week.
• Reward yourself with a pedicure when you catch up with billing.

Is it too overwhelming to tackle a day/week of billing at a time?

Tell yourself you’ll just bill for 5 minutes (or whatever amount of time seems approachable). Make it 30 seconds if you have to! You’ll probably be able to do more than 5 minutes once you get started. Getting started is the worst part!

Just changing your inner dialogue about Medicaid will make it that much less painful. Then it’s just a matter of setting aside a few minutes a week, and you’ll be conquering your billing in no time at all!

2. “I’m too busy to…”

I’m too busy to bill.
I’m too busy to plan therapy.
I’m too busy to take a course.
I’m too busy to… [insert your answer here].

That’s a lie, too, friends!

When we say we’re “too busy,” we really mean that it’s not important enough to make it on our list of priorities.

We all have the same number of hours in the day. We all get to choose how we spend that time. What do you want to want to spend your time on? If you don’t want to do something, that’s totally okay! Own it! Just don’t tell yourself it’s because you’re too busy!

3. “My caseload is too…”

This one comes up a lot, too!

My caseload is too big/small.
My caseload is too diverse.
My caseload is too mild/severe.

Is that really why you can’t bill Medicaid? Or keep up with progress reports? Or plan for therapy? Really?

Each one of these “lies” has a different truth behind it, but I’d challenge you to evaluate this thought, too! What’s the truth behind it?

4. “I don’t know what I’m doing.”

Oh, girl! This one has a special place in my heart. It’s one that I’ve really struggled with, and I spent a lot of time talking about it on the blog earlier this year.

We do have an incredibly broad scope of practice, but I’d challenge you to reword this lie. How does this feel?

I don’t know what I’m doing YET.

We’re always going to encounter challenging cases, but we have the resources we need to figure it out.

Try telling yourself this when you’re feeling particularly overwhelmed:

I don’t know what I’m doing YET, but I will figure it out.

5. “I can’t get help because…”

I’ve spent a lot of time problem solving with SLPs. We’ll be working together to come up with a solution, and then I’ll hear this line…

I can’t get help because I’m too busy. (Double whammy!)
I can’t get help because I’m in a small/large district. (I’ve heard both!)
I can’t get help because of confidentiality. (Say what?)
I can’t get help because I don’t know anyone. (Really?)

I’ve told these lies, too, but–looking back–they make zero sense.

Asking for help has been one of my “go-to” strategies.

• If I’m stuck on a case, I can reach out to the SLPs in my district. If that doesn’t work, I’ll reach out to other SLPs that I trust. I’ve emailed former professors and even some “famous” people. They’ve all been more than willing to help, and it only took a few minutes to reach out. Much better than pining over a problem for days or weeks!
• If I’m feeling overwhelmed about my workload, then I try to think of creative ways to take some work off my plate. Some of these solutions take some time (e.g., setting up digital data), but it’s totally worth it if it’ll end up saving me time in the long run.
• I’ve also asked school volunteers, friends, and family for help with materials prep. It’s not a confidentiality issue if you’re just having them cut/laminate materials for you! Once I put it out there, I started getting emails from parents to see if they could help. (I was in a Title I school with 99% of students on free/reduced lunch.) They loved it because they weren’t able to volunteer during the school day, but they really wanted to give back! I also think they secretly (or not-so-secretly) loved the opportunity to get a little crafty!

What lie are you telling yourself?

Identifying the lie is the first step. Being aware gives us a starting point, but we want to take things one step forward!

What can you DO to turn things around and make this year easier for yourself?

We are smart, problem-solving professionals. We can find solutions for even the stickiest of problems. The best part is that you don’t have to do it alone. Asking for help is a fabulous problem solving strategy.

SLP Summit Recap: All About Grammar

by Leave a Comment

I so enjoyed co-hosting and presenting at the SLP Summit! I always enjoy the opportunity to connect with so many SLPs around the world through this online conference, and this year was no exception!

This year, I dove into evidence-based strategies for grammar intervention.

If you missed the live video, then you can find the replay in the SLP Now Academy.

Now let’s dive into some of your questions…!

1. Teaching

I have two students who continue to use the same grammar errors over and over in conversation. They are able to fix the errors when I say the sentence back to them the way they used it. Do you have anything that you have found to help in this situation?

It’s hard to tell without knowing the students, but I always look back at the framework when I feel stuck! Here are the questions I ask myself:

• Did I take a step back and teach the concept?

• Did I provide enough models before requiring a response?

• Have I used evidence-based structured practice activities (e.g., imitating contrasting sentences)?

I usually find my answer when I think through those steps!

Do you have any strategies for teaching students the meaning of different conjunctions? My students understand when to use “and,” “but,” and “or” but have difficulty with “for” and “so.”

These can be challenging to teach because they are so abstract! I provide simple definitions for the different conjunctions. I follow that up with plenty of examples that are relevant to the student (e.g., topics around their daily routine, their favorite movie characters, etc.) so they have as much background knowledge as possible—making it easier to understand and visualize the meaning of those more challenging sentences.

Here are some examples:

• and = connects (Half of the class took a test, and the other half went to recess.)

• but = however (I tripped on a rock, but I didn’t drop my art project.)

• or = otherwise (Start studying now, or you’ll fail the test.)

• for = because (I felt guilty, for I knew it was my fault my sister didn’t get to eat breakfast.)

• so = for this reason (I was sick, so I went to the doctor.)

We move through the hierarchy (starting with teaching and ending with embedded practice) to give them countless scaffolded opportunities to master the concept!

2. Focused Stimulation

When you recast a student’s sentence, do you ask them to repeat your model so they get practice verbalizing the correct sentence structure?

It depends! We want the student to have enough exposure to the concept before requiring them to repeat the sentence. The slides reference some studies that break this down a little more!

3. Structured Practice

Is the Imitating Contrasting Sentences activity available on SLP Now?

Yes! If you’re not already a member, then you can sign up for a free trial here.

Feel free to send us a message if you would like help finding a specific activity.

How would you implement the sentence mat for compound sentences with older students (high school) who have also been diagnosed as ID? Would it essentially be the same as for younger students? I love the idea, but I’m not sure how to implement it for my students.

You know your students best, so I can’t answer for your students specifically. That said, I personally have used the sentence mats with elementary and secondary students. I make sure to meet the students where they are at (e.g., by selecting appropriate sentences), but the visuals are quite versatile!

Any suggestions for irregular past tense verbs? It is so hard because drill seems to be the best way for memorizing these verb forms.

I’ve had success using the same framework (e.g., teaching, focused stimulation, structured practice, embedded practice). When it comes to drill, the “imitating contrasting sentences” strategy is one of my favorites. I select targets and cycle through those. This is my hypothesis, but I think the teaching phase helps increase students’ overall awareness, giving them the tools they need to start generalizing as they master the target list.

4. Embedded Practice

What was the app you used on the “crack the egg” example?

Cookie Doodle. Such a fun and versatile app!

Which YouTube videos do you use during your speech sessions the most?

I love Pixar Shorts and have been able to use them with a wide range of students.

For older students, I often get permission to use their favorite shows. (I couldn’t ask for a better generalization opportunity!)

Bonus!

How do you write an IEP goal to incorporate the goals when they have so many grammar goals to work on? Do you list each goal individually (e.g., past tense, pronouns, etc.), or is there a way to write a goal that incorporates several targets? My county supervisors want me to write very few goals, but I feel that when I do this, it really doesn’t make the goal measurable.

I usually keep my goals broader when it comes to grammar/syntax. I do list the targets that I’ve identified so that the IEP team is aware of the targets.

Here’s one example:

Student will produce grammatically correct sentences (e.g., appropriate use of pronouns, subject/verb agreement, and irregular past tense verbs).

Just add the criterion (e.g., in 4/5 opportunities, with 80% accuracy) and any other components that you need to add to your goal (e.g., when given ___ support, by ___ date).

You can also get more specific with the context (e.g., in conversation, when retelling a story, during classroom discussions), if needed!

Can you post the titles of the articles and where we can get them?

We mentioned several research articles throughout the presentation. The list of references can be found in the presentation slides. However, there were two articles that were particularly helpful. You can find the Connell (1982) article here, and you can find the Strong (1986) article here!

Thanks again for another amazing SLP Summit!

Leave a comment below if there were any questions that we didn’t get to!

Best of 2018

by 81 Comments

Wow! What a year, right? I still can’t believe it’s almost 2019 already!

Before we officially say “goodbye” to 2019, let’s take a quick walk down memory lane! Here’s a recap of this year’s top posts on the SLP Now blog…

Let the countdown begin!

Hint: Be sure to read until the end for a special giveaway!

#5 Getting Started with Teletherapy

I am so grateful that I was able to chat with Tracy Sippl about teletherapy. She is a fabulous resource! I know I learned a lot from writing this post with her, and I hope you will, too!

#4 Must-Have Therapy Tools

Ah! Who doesn’t love a good list? This post includes links to all of my favorite tools that have made my life easier as an SLP!

#3 How to Organize a Speech Therapy Cart

This one was posted at the end of 2016, but it got a lot of attention in 2018! If you’re an organization nerd like me, then this post is for you!

#2 How to Teach Following Directions

If you struggle to teach students how to follow directions (and then actually use the skill in the classroom), this post breaks it all down! After making all of the mistakes, I share what I learned from digging through the research and implementing those strategies in practice!

#1 Finding the Best Student Data Collection Solution for Your Caseload

The most visited post of the year… The post is all about student data!

This post got a mega makeover this year! We added a quiz and doubled down on the organization to make it super easy for you to find the best data collection option for your caseload. I spent hundreds of hours trying to find my ideal data collection system, and I so hope this roundup will save you some of the trouble!

Want to see more awesome posts? Check out last year’s top 5 posts!

Because this is our last post in 2018, we are having a GIVEAWAY…!

Enter below for a chance to win! We’d love it if you followed on Facebook and Instagram. 😀

2018 Celebration

2018 Celebration

Why Plan: The Power of Planning

by Leave a Comment

Let’s take some time to chat about therapy planning!

And yes… I know what you must be thinking (because I felt the same way): “I have a million things to do; how will I find time to plan my therapy sessions?” From the beginning of the school year until the end, we’re on a never-ending roller coaster of activity—set up our room, review student files, update materials, meetings, parent-teacher communication, and more. Did I say never-ending? Oh yes and, of course, help our students achieve their therapy goals.

And the term “lesson plan” never resonated with me. As a school-based SLP, I’m not a teacher, so why should I have a lesson plan?

So, what I found was I needed a mindset reset. And a plan.

Shifting My Planning Mindset

Since the concept of LESSON PLANNING felt so daunting, I decided to shift my attitude about it. Planning doesn’t have to be an overwhelming and time-consuming task. And it certainly doesn’t need to be a multiple-page document that takes weeks to complete or need to resemble the lesson plans a teacher creates. Planning can also look differently for every SLP.

So, what’s the big deal about planning?

Most of us wouldn’t take a road trip without considering where we want to end up, what stops we want to make along the way, and what route to take. If we don’t do a bit of planning, then we can waste time getting lost, trying to figure out where to go and when, and missing out on interesting sights.

That’s the same with our therapy sessions. Whether you spend 10 minutes a week and jot down your thoughts on a sticky note or use the SLP Now Membership to streamline your planning, the goal is to be intentional about the goals you need to achieve for each student and how you plan to get there.

Are you thinking, “Isn’t the IEP the plan?”

Just like curriculum tells a teacher WHAT needs to be learned, an IEP gives SLPs the target goals to achieve but not how to get there. Your training, experience and activity planning is what determines HOW you will help each student reach their goals.

Once I was deliberate about planning my therapy sessions, I found I actually saved MORE time and was even more productive. Here are just a few of the benefits to planning:

• Effective materials: Instead of determining on the fly what materials are best to support your student during therapy sessions, planning gives you space and time to prepare the most effective materials for your students’ goals.
• Maximize time in therapy sessions: Planning ensures every valuable minute is used effectively when you are with students.
• Fewer behavior issues: When there’s a plan to execute, there’s less “down time” and less opportunity for students to get distracted.
• Data-based decisions: Determining your therapy plan allows you to review each student’s data and make therapy decisions based on what’s best for their particular needs.
• Provide flexibility: The pre-work that is done when planning therapy sessions helps you become more innovative when you need to come up with contingency plans in a moment.
• Professional improvement: When you schedule time to plan, you give yourself the gift of reflection and can consider how to improve your SLP skills.

A Plan

That sounds pretty great, but the next question you might have is, “How do I create a plan?”

You can certainly create your own system, but why not piggyback on the expertise of other SLPs? That’s what I love about the SLP Now Membership! You can use our materials library and tools to put together amazing therapy plans in a matter of minutes. You can access these plans on any device (even your phone!), and they will save you so much time!

Want to hear more time-saving tips? Join me and register for the SLP Summit, a free online conference with lots of evidence-based strategies to help you improve your practice (plus, save time and headaches).

Using Books with Mixed Groups

by 1 Comment

Wouldn’t you love to work one-on-one with your students? Me too!

But, the reality is that we often must work with students in mixed groups. And, for the most part, each student is working on a different skill or has different goals to achieve.

Aye-yai-yai! Isn’t that a recipe for SLP overwhelm and chaos? Well, it can be. But with a mindset shift to embrace the challenge and the benefits of working in mixed groups (peer modeling is just one benefit that can make mixed groups even more effective), you can make literacy-based therapy for mixed groups very successful!

This probably won’t come as a big shock to all my long-time SLPNowers, but I think literacy-based therapy is one of the best ways to work with mixed groups. Be sure to review my 5 Rules for Literacy-Based Therapy: Mixed Groups Edition.

You can address just about any goal with books because they are filled with speech and language targets! Check out my Mixing Up Speech Therapy blog series for how to target certain skills by using books.

To get you off on the right foot for literacy-based therapy for a mixed group, here are some hints:
• Gather multipurpose tools that you can use for multiple speech and language targets. You can use one book to target multiple targets!
• Incorporate some independent work time or self-monitoring activities so that you have time to assess or work individually with other students.
• Bonus points if you can use books that students are reading in the classroom. (We can also select books to piggyback on topics being discussed in the classroom.)
• Feel free to repurpose and #worksmarter! You can use the same book with multiple groups.

So, how do you manage to give each student the support they need within a mixed group?

First, planning is super important. When you spend a little bit of time planning up front, your mixed group therapy sessions will run much more smoothly. You can find resources and activities in the SLP Now membership, on Pinterest, or on Teachers Pay Teachers.

Set expectations for the group and help your students understand that not everyone will be working on the same targets, but they all are there to get extra support on SOMETHING. Even though everyone in the group is working on something different, each student needs to respect the diversity in the room and know the expectations you have for them when you are working with another student.

OK, Marisha, this all sounds good. BUT, how does it work in practice?

Just like with any therapy session, I start out with visuals to help model the concept. We also use real-world examples. (Yes, we’ve been known to sit ON or UNDER the table!) #truth

Then, we dive in! There are plenty of opportunities to target each student’s goals as we read a book. I typically focus on one goal per child per session to make this a little more manageable. Let’s walk through a hypothetical group to see what this would look like.

We have a group of three second-graders reading Dragons Love Tacos, and we’re targeting describing, using pronouns, and answering what questions. I have the SLP Now vocabulary cards and visuals for each of these skills. I ask what questions using the describing visual (e.g., What color is the dragon? What is the dragon doing?). We’re able to target all of the students’ goals using this simple activity. Student A has the opportunity to describe items in the book, Student B has the opportunity to answer what questions, and Student C has the opportunity to create sentences using the appropriate pronoun. I use the visuals as placemats to remind the students (and myself!) what the focus is–and to scaffold when needed. Meanwhile, all three students are being bombarded with models of these structures from their peers.

The good news? That’s just one option! There are countless ways we could target all of these goals in a fun, cohesive way!

Yearning for more tips and tricks to make your life easier and your therapy sessions more productive? Register for the SLP Summit, our free online conference where more evidence-based strategies will help you improve your practice.

How to Organize a Book Unit

by 3 Comments

If you love literacy-based therapy as much as I do, then you’re probably also on the hunt for a hack to keep your book units organized. The more streamlined you can make managing your caseload, the more fun and productive therapy sessions are for YOU and YOUR students.

My a-ha moment was when I realized how much I could accomplish when I prepped book units up to six months at a time.

Are you thinking this must have taken over my summer? Nope!

Guys, it took just over an hour to organize six months of book units. And the benefit to my sanity? Priceless!

Now, all of my theme-based books are organized along with all the materials that go with the books to make therapy fun for my students. All I need to do is pull them out of their hanging file folder once it’s time for our session.

I developed this plan after my caseload doubled as a school-based SLP. I was drowning, and I knew there had to be a better way. I found the secret to my sanity was to use evidence-based strategies in my therapy sessions. And, I set out to create materials to help me do that.

I have hundreds of materials to support my literacy-based therapy (and those are available as part of the SLP Now membership).

The other key to keeping my head above water was to streamline my processes. THAT’s where my organization skills come in handy.

Categorizing book units by themes is a really great way to keep them organized. It’s important to pick themes that will be addressed in the classroom and that pair with the curriculum.

Finding the Materials

When I’m ready to create a book unit, I just search for a theme on the SLP Now materials page. The website then shows all the activities for that theme, and I can select the activities or support materials I’m interested in. Here’s a peek at what you might see:

It’s an excellent idea for SLPs to use themes to organize book units in speech therapy, but it can feel like a daunting organizational task. This blog post dives into a tutorial about how to organize a book unit using the materials available in the SLP Now membership. Click through to get insight on how to shorten your planning time!

The Theme at a Glance gives you a quick overview of the unit.

Every theme includes at least two books. For the snowman theme, we have Snowmen at Night and Sneezy the Snowman (two of my favorites!).

We have a guide for each book, which I like to refer to as the SLP’s cheat sheet. It breaks down the book for you, so it’s super easy to identify which books are best for your groups and so you have tons of targets right at your fingertips. Whether you’re targeting articulation, grammar, vocabulary, or language, we’ve got you covered!

We also have an activity pack for each book. This includes vocabulary cards, multiple choice WH question cards, and story grammar visuals.

We also round out each theme with supplementary activities, like crafts, reinforcers, and extension activities. The themed reading passages are great for older students.

Planning and Prepping

I favorite all of the materials that I want to use with my groups. (This makes it super easy when I’m actually creating my therapy plans. I can attach the resources to my plans!)

I don’t print a lot of materials, but there’s one big exception… I always print the book activities–the WH question cards, vocabulary cards, and story grammar visuals.

I put a plastic pocket at the end of each book to store the visuals, so I can grab a book and be ready to target and scaffold a variety of skills. I’m still using visuals that I prepped a few years ago! It’s the best feeling ever when I open up a book and find those resources ready to go!

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by SLP Now® (@slpnow) on

Check out this video for a closer look at how it all comes together:

Tips just like this will be part of the SLP Summit (a free online conference). I would love to see you there. Sign up today!

What hacks have you used to organize your book units?

How to Get Free Books for Literacy-Based Therapy

by 1 Comment

Since books are the key ingredients to literacy-based therapy, I’m always on the hunt for good books that are relevant for my students. Even though I do buy some (HELLO, Amazon Prime!), I love when I can get my hands on them for free! And, since SLPs have a never-ending need to find books that will engage our students so our speech and language therapy supports them in the classroom, FREE is fantastic, right?!

Here are seven of my favorite ways to get books for literacy-based therapy (and many are free!):

1. Library (School and Community)

Who doesn’t love the library? Most of the time, your school or community library will have the books you want, and the librarians are incredible resources to help you find what you need (and are clued into the books kids are excited about!). Many libraries are also connected to larger networks, so you might be able to borrow from other libraries.

And don’t forget about e-books! You can often check out digital books through your library using an app like Overdrive or Libby.

2. Epic

Have you tapped into Epic’s resources yet? It’s one of my favorite apps, and it’s FREE for educators—the perfect digital library for kids! Plus, one of the best features is that you can create a profile for each of your students so they will get personalized book recommendations (and rewards for reading!). Yes, please! With more than 25,000 resources, you can find just about anything you need!

3. YouTube

You can find thousands of books on YouTube for free!

4. Google eBookstore

Another fabulous resource for free (or very low-cost) e-books is the Google eBookstore. Great if you need to book a text in a pinch!

5. Scholastic

If you liked book orders when you were in elementary school, and if you work at a school, then you’re going to really love the program Scholastic has for teachers. Sign up for the Scholastic Reading Club to get really great discounts on books. Don’t forget to sign up to get notified of upcoming warehouse sales, as well, to get some incredible discounts.

And, check in with some of your teacher friends to see if they have any extra Scholastic points to share. When their classroom places a book order, Scholastic gives them points that can be redeemed for books or other supplies. There might be teachers at your school who have points to spare and will let you get free books for your therapy sessions that way.

6. Thrift Stores, Garage Sales, and Used Bookstores

I’m not going to lie: Some days, this can be like finding a needle in a haystack. But, one of my favorite places to find books, often for less than a dollar, is at Goodwill. Some days, I hit the jackpot. Other days, not so much. BUT, if you are patient and keep visiting thrift stores, garage sales, and used bookstores, you will eventually hit the mother lode.

7. Amazon

Yep, as I mentioned, Amazon is a favorite resource of mine, and they also have a great used book section. So, while it might not be free, there are definitely some deals to take advantage of.

No matter where I find my books, I make sure to always follow my top three criteria for selecting books to use in therapy.

I’ll be sharing even more tips and tricks like this at the SLP Summit, a free online conference for SLPs.

Now, it’s your turn! What would you add to my list?

Set Students Up to Win in the Game of Language and Life

by Leave a Comment

Take a deep breath. What I’m about to tell you will take a leap of faith: It’s time to toss your therapy decks aside in favor of contextualized language intervention.

I can almost hear your gasps of, “But why, Marisha!?”

Stay with me. I’m not saying NEVER use your therapy decks, but it is time for you to loosen your white-knuckle grip on them.

When we only practice skills with our students, we never give them a chance to make the shot (or apply what they learned in a real-life setting). I learned this lesson the hard way when I realized what I was teaching in my speech room with cute games and lots of fun activities stayed in the speech room. While “what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas” might be good for Vegas, it’s not good for our students when they don’t apply what they learn in a classroom setting.

The basketball analogy that really drove this home for me was shared in a presentation by Dr. Teresa Ukrainetz about contextualized language intervention. Her comparison really resonated with me.

In basketball, there are essential skills players must master to become champions, including dribbling, passing, and shooting. What would it look like if basketball players were relegated to only skills practice?

They’d head to the gym and dribble, pass, and shoot over and over. Dribble. Pass. Shoot. Dribble. Pass. Shoot. They might have different drills to mix it up, but they are always in the gym—dribble, pass, shoot.

While they will likely be able to acquire the skills necessary to dribble, pass, and shoot in the controlled environment of the gym, it’s unclear how they would transfer those skills to an actual basketball game for the win.

In our world, the drills are therapy decks, worksheets, and language activities that teach skills. Yes, some of these are very effective IN OUR SPEECH ROOMS, but what happens when a student goes back to the classroom? Are they set up to win there?

At the opposite end of the spectrum would be basketball players who try to learn the skills JUST by playing games over and over again. Coaches offer some feedback, but there aren’t goals established, or there isn’t a particular focus to help a player improve.

Hmmm, does this sound familiar in our world? Sounds like the enrichment and assistance we give students to help them complete classroom assignments.

What’s a better formula to be a champion?

In basketball, players learn and acquire skills through a combination of coaching, hands-on practice, and real-life application in the games.

At the beginning of the season, a coach assesses individual players in a causal intra-team scrimmage to determine areas of focus for practices. At practices, the team learns and enhances their skills while practicing the fundamentals of the game—dribbling, passing, and shooting.

They then put their skills into action when they step on the court to play in a game. Based on the performance of the game, coaches alter their next practice strategy to focus on skills that need further development. For example, if the team struggled to hit free-throw shots, the coach might implement a special drill to help the team improve. This cycle of learning and testing continues throughout the entire season.

With contextualized language intervention, skills matter but the “game is the aim”! We want our students to integrate their learning within the context of the classroom or in conversations with their peers or parents. Relevancy is key!

In my experience implementing literacy-based (i.e., contextualized) therapy, students were less distracted, I was less overwhelmed, and my students were making MORE progress!

Contextualized language intervention in action

In classrooms across the country, teachers expect students to engage in meaningful discussions related to the curriculum—from reviewing the results of a science experiment to analyzing Number the Stars. So, it’s the perfect example for us to see contextualized language intervention in action.

In this example, participating in a classroom discussion is the GAME for which we are preparing our students.

In order for students to successfully participate in a discussion, they need to be able to comprehend the teacher’s questions, understand the other students’ contributions, and generate their own responses—just to name a few. Skills we might target in the therapy room include answering WH questions, answering inferential questions, identifying relevant/irrelevant details, producing grammatically correct sentences, and speaking clearly.

Check out the video below to dive into more examples!

Are you ready to make the switch?

Yeah! I’m so glad you stuck with me. Here are a few things I learned when I evolved my therapy to a more literacy-based approach:

• It takes time: This transition won’t happen overnight. It’s hard giving up your therapy decks because they are tried and true. Take positive steps in the direction you want to go, and it’s totally doable!

• Communicate with classroom teachers: In order to make sure our work is meaningful and purposeful, the definition of providing contextualized intervention, it’s important to talk to classroom teachers and learn what students are working on in the classroom. This can vary from teacher to teacher in each grade level and from year to year.

• Trust your therapy toolbox and your clinical judgment: The therapy skills you worked so hard to acquire can be used in just about any context. And, there is a time and a place for your therapy deck and board game reinforcer. Your clinical judgment will help you navigate.

Want more tips on how to incorporate contextualized language intervention into your therapy? Pre-register for the SLP Summit today, a free online conference for SLPs!

Stepping Outside Your Comfort Zone with Lateral Lisp

by Leave a Comment

I’m so incredibly excited to hear from six amazing SLPs volunteered to share their experience when overcoming a challenge. These posts are filled with practical tips and tricks.

Next up is…Hilary! She’s sharing how she figured out how to help a student with a lateral lisp.

Tell us a little about you! Where are you from?

I am from Southern California, about 30 minutes from Disneyland. I have lived in California all of my life, mostly Southern California.

Tell us about your experience as an SLP! Where did you go to school? How long have you been an SLP? What settings have you worked in? Where do you currently work (e.g., setting, quick overview of caseload)?

I am currently in my sixth year as a school-based speech therapist. During the summers and holiday breaks, I have done some per diem work at a local clinic, as well. I attended the University of the Pacific for undergrad and the University of Redlands for graduate school. My current caseload consists of elementary and high school students; however, during my time as a speech therapist, I have worked with ages two through high school with a variety of different levels and abilities.

Describe the problem you faced. Tell us a little about the situation and how you felt tackling the problem.

Last year at the beginning of the year, while reading over my student goals, I noticed that one of my kindergarteners had a goal for /t/, /d/, and /n/. Upon reading the report and meeting the student, I learned that this student presented with a lateral lisp. I remember learning that lateral lisps were never developmental, but besides that I had never learned how to treat a lateral lisp. I quickly learned that not only were the /s/ and /z/ sounds affected, but the /sh/ and /ch/ sounds were, too.

Which resources did you use when solving the problem?

I consulted my supervisor, who told me about a trick using a straw and a cotton ball to teach proper airflow. I don’t know if it wasn’t that I wasn’t clear on this technique, but I couldn’t figure out what to do. I searched online on speech therapist blogs and on Teachers Pay Teachers for articles and resources for treating a lateral lisp and read many articles that described different techniques and suggestions. I found a video by Pedi Speechie that I watched and had some great ideas that seemed simple to implement.

What did you try that worked really well?

The technique that worked well for me was practicing a short “t” and then making a long “t” and using the term “long t” instead of “s” when teaching the sound. Initially, I was just creating my own activities using short t, long t, and final ts. I found and created word lists focusing on final ts and used these words in therapy. I found a resource on Teachers Pay Teachers by Pedi Speechie that had handouts and activities to go along with the technique I was using.

What did you try that didn’t work?

It didn’t work to try to teach forward airflow using a straw.

What did you do when things didn’t go as planned?

When things didn’t go as planned, I continued to do research and ask colleagues and other speech therapists for suggestions as to what may work.

What was the end result? Was it what you expected?

Unfortunately, I was just starting to work on this technique in phrases when it was the end of the school year, and I did not return to the school site in the fall. It was very frustrating that after all of my hard work, I wasn’t able to continue with working with this student.

What did you learn?

I was so proud of myself that I conquered this, and my confidence as a speech therapist increased. I am now more comfortable to work with other students with a lateral lisp and excited to assist other therapists in this area, as I have found a technique that worked for me. I learned that there may be many ways to teach a skill and that resources are there to help. I was reminded to ask others for their insight and ideas as to what has worked for them.

Stepping Outside Your Comfort Zone with Early Intervention

by Leave a Comment

I’m so incredibly excited to hear from six amazing SLPs volunteered to share their experience when overcoming a challenge. These posts are filled with practical tips and tricks.

Next up is… Kayla! She is a school-based SLP who stepped into a new setting–early intervention!

Tell us a little about you! Where are you from?

Western Kentucky

Tell us about your experience as an SLP! Where did you go to school? How long have you been an SLP? What settings have you worked in? Where do you currently work (e.g., setting, quick overview of caseload)?

I attended Murray State University for undergrad and graduate school. I am a 5th year SLP working in a very rural elementary school. I am currently serving on the executive council for the Kentucky Speech-Language-Hearing Association, and I have also dabbled in the world of birth-to-3 early intervention.

Describe the problem you faced. Tell us a little about the situation and how you felt tackling the problem.

I absolutely love working with young children, especially preschoolers. So, naturally, I assumed early intervention (birth to 3 years) would be a natural fit for me. Surprise! It wasn’t. I liked it, but I didn’t LOVE it. As much as I adored the family and the child, I came to realize that early intervention may not be for me. And, of course, I felt guilty! Guilty that I possibly let a family and/or child down. Guilty that I didn’t know everything there is to know about EI. Guilty that I was learning as I went. Guilty that I wasn’t doing enough because I was so out of my comfort zone. Guilty that I didn’t find a way to make myself love early intervention.

Which resources did you use when solving the problem?

I researched EI, and I researched it well. I became an active participant in early intervention Facebook group discussions, bought all of Laura Mize’s therapy manuals (I highly recommend these, by the way), and took multiple courses on EI through speechpathology.com. I would not have survived a year in early intervention without these resources.

What did you try that worked really well?

Kentucky uses the “Bagless Approach” for EI services, which means that we do not bring materials into the home (that can’t be left there). I really had to push myself to grasp this concept (after all, I do work in a school with tons of awesome supplies), but once I figured it out, I could definitely see the benefits of this approach! Why wouldn’t I want to use the materials that are always available in the child’s home?!

What did you try that didn’t work?

Lots of things! This was a very trial-and-error experience for me. It was the first time I had worked with a child under the age of 3, and it was also my first experience working with a nonverbal child. I tried multiple activities that I thought would be perfect and wonderful, and guess what — they weren’t! Young children do not always want to do what you want them to do, in case you were wondering!

What did you do when things didn’t go as planned?

Tried and tried again! I went home, planned better activities, asked for parent input, looked up more research — anything I could do to make my therapy services useful and beneficial for this child and this family!

What was the end result? Was it what you expected?

I decided early intervention wasn’t for me. I learned to appreciate the EI approach and process, but it wasn’t for me. At least not at this point in my life! Right now, schools are where I belong.

What did you learn?

My biggest suggestion would be to put in the work. Do the research. Ask for help when you need it. Don’t beat yourself up over not knowing it all, and certainly do not beat yourself up if you try something and do not absolutely love it.

Stepping Outside Your Comfort Zone with Hearing Loss

by Leave a Comment

I’m so incredibly excited to hear from six amazing SLPs volunteered to share their experience when overcoming a challenge. These posts are filled with practical tips and tricks.

Next up is… Karen! She’s sharing her experience with the auditory verbal approach and the hearing-impaired population.

Tell us about your experience as an SLP! Where did you go to school? How long have you been an SLP? What settings have you worked in? Where do you currently work (e.g., setting, quick overview of caseload)?

I have been an SLP for 17 years. I got my bachelor’s in Speech and Hearing Science from the University of South Alabama and my master’s in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Alabama A & M University. I have had 200+ hours of training in Auditory Verbal Therapy approaches, including hands-on practicum. I did my CFY in a SNF and have also worked in the hospital and outpatient setting. But, my heart belongs in pediatric speech therapy — specifically, working with the hearing-impaired population. I currently work in the public school setting and teletherapy. My caseload consists of hearing impaired, articulation, autism, and language delays. I love working with preschool and early intervention.

Describe the problem you faced. Tell us a little about the situation and how you felt tackling the problem.

I was placed at a school that had two children with cochlear implants. I knew how to do language therapy and articulation therapy, but I felt like I didn’t really know what else they needed to succeed. I asked fellow SLPs and noticed that many didn’t have a lot of information about how to work with hearing impaired (HI) students.

Which resources did you use when solving the problem?

I attended many trainings, conferences, and institutes regarding how to utilize an auditory verbal approach. I also started learning ASL.

What did you try that worked really well?

The auditory verbal techniques that I learned in training produced more progress with the students. I implemented some training with other SLPs, as well.

What did you try that didn’t work?

Trying auditory verbal approaches to profoundly deaf children who also had other disabilities proved to be difficult and challenging with slower progress.

What did you do when things didn’t go as planned?

I modified my strategy to include a hybrid approach using ASL.

What was the end result? Was it what you expected?

The result was less frustration for the student and for myself.

What did you learn?

Sometimes an auditory-only approach isn’t appropriate for a student. It is important to individualize and utilize/modify approaches to achieve maximum progress!