Our Picky Eating Progression allows parents to meet their children where they are while trying new foods! Think of these as stair steps you’re going to climb with your child! Start at the bottom and climb, climb, climb! Will you reach the top each time? …
For all the kiddo heroes out there! For the kiddo who stutters and fights anxiety every time they speak in class. For the kiddo who chokes on liquids and needs thickener added to their Chick Fil A lemonade. For the kiddo with Autism who wants …
Let’s talk prepositions!!
These core words make communicating easier for our littles in the home and school environment since they are apart of our everyday language!
Think about how many times a day you ask your kiddo to “Put their cup ON the table.” Or how often teachers ask kiddos to line up and stand “BEHIND your friend.” Understanding and using these words correctly make communication easy and seamless.
Kiddos typically begin to use simple prepositions, “In & On” by 24 months old. Additional prepositions (Next to, Under, Behind, In front of) are typically mastered by age 3.5-4 years of age.
When learning prepositions gets tricky I immediately pull out my toy train set! (Remember, we learn through PLAY, not flash cards!!)
Toy trains give you the perfect play opportunity to teach and use prepositions! “The blue car goes BEHIND the engine, the train goes IN the tunnel, the train is UNDER the bridge, the train is NEXT TO the train station.” The possibilities are endless!
This activity lends itself well to our visual and tactile learners as they are interacting with every aspect of the language they use! So pull out those trains and get your choo-choo “on”!
This is for all the bleary eyed mamas out there wondering what in the world to do with their freshly expressed breast milk- I see you, I’ve been you, you’ve got this!! There are so many sources for information these days- friends, mommy groups, google …
When it comes to bottle feeding some of our babies can eat seemingly upside down with complete independence while others need many supports and compensations when drinking from the bottle. Different level nipples can certainly help a baby who needs a slower/faster flow, however a …
Y’all! This game is GOLD!
If “Pop The Pig” isn’t a game in your therapy closet or home, you need this game ASAP! I’ve never met a child who doesn’t like playing this game!
What’s extra great about this game is that you can use it to work on speech sounds! It specifically lends itself well to the bilabial sound /p/.
These words have a CVC (consonant-vowel-consonant) structure which are the kinds of words we use to target speech sounds in the initial or final positions of words.
There have been multiple studies regarding working on speech skills during daily routines or play in order to increase the generalization or carry over of skills. When our kiddos learn to say sounds correctly during play (rather than using flash cards) they learn and retain their new skills faster!
Fun AND learning skills faster/retaining skills longer sounds like a win-win to me!
“I never knew swallowing was so intricate until we started having trouble with swallowing!” As an SLP specializing in feeding I hear this often! Eating and drinking are seemingly mindless tasks until someone starts having difficulty with them. Eating food and drinking liquids are two …
Toddler parents typically start to feel like short order chefs when their 2 year olds start to have an opinion about the food going in their mouths, but it doesn’t have to be that way! Toddlers are SIGNIFICANTLY better at self regulation than adults are …
“My child knows all of his letters, numbers and shapes!”
“So wonderful! BUT, can he ask for a drink when thirsty? Tell you when he’s hurt and needs a hug? Engage with others during play?”
Using language versus communication skills is such an important concept. We want our kiddos to have a FUNCTIONAL way to communicate-especially if their late to the talking game.
Are shapes, colors, letters and numbers important to know? Absolutely. Will they help a toddler communicate with others to avoid outbursts- probably not.
Think of it as adults learning a second language; you want to learn how to ask for help, how to order a drink, how to connect to others by knowing their name- essentially how to use your new communication skills to have your basic needs met. Listing shapes, colors and letters wouldn’t help you order food when you got hungry!
We need to focus on helping our toddlers acquire functional words in order for them to communicate with caregivers and friends. These communication skills help cut down on frustration between kiddo and adult during everyday activities!
Pretend play is so important for our kiddos but it’s not just for the imagination! Pretend play rich in PARENT-LED VOCABULARY helps our littles learn countless single and two-word phrases! Because our kiddos learn first words through repetition, doll houses and little people play sets …