What Happens During Speech Therapy
If your child has a disorder related to speaking or using the facial and throat muscles to swallow or chew, the speech pathologist first assesses the cause and severity of the problem. Our speech pathologists are specialists in caring for children and adolescents, so they can assess your childs issues in relation to typical development and skills for children their age.
First, your childs speech pathologist will carefully asses your childs current abilities and challenges, using your childs medical history and specialized testing. Your child may have video fluoroscopy or cine imaging to examine the anatomy and function of swallowing or the palate. If these tests are required, you will receive instructions about how to prepare your child for the visit.
For most speaking disorders, your childs speech pathologist uses age-appropriate techniques to teach your child to make certain sounds or to overcome problems such as pauses and stuttering. Your childs speech pathologist might teach your child alternative ways to communicate, such as sign language symbols, to overcome problems with being understood by others.
What Is Speech Therapy
Speech therapy is when a certified practitioner, known as a speech-language pathologist works with an adult or child who has a communication difficulty such as spoken and written language issues, speech difficulties, stuttering, voice disorders, reading, and swallowing. SL-Ps help to identify the disorder, evaluate it, and provide treatment for it. Education regarding specific communication disorders, how speech therapy can help and what you as a parent or caregiver can do is an important focus of assessment and treatment.
Important Information About The Coronavirus
Following guidance from central government, some of our regular clinical activities were paused or limited due to Covid 19 restrictions. We are making optimum use of telephone and video options and provide a range of online training courses.
The School and Early Years Speech and Language Therapy Core NHS Service documents have more details about what treatments the service provide and who they are able to treat:
Bristol & South Glos Services
Find details on how to contact the service for advice and information on the Children’s Speech and Language Therapy page.
For any other general enquiries, please contact your local Speech and Language area office using the telephone numbers below. Please note these lines are operated by administrators and they cannot offer any clinical advice:
- South Gloucestershire: 01454 862440
- Bristol North: 0300 124 5830
- Bristol East & Central: 0300 125 6909
- Bristol South: 0300 125 6265
North Somerset Service
To contact the service for advice and information please contact Drove Road office on 0300 1256710
Talk To Me campaign
You can support your child’s language development by chatting, singing, playing and reading to them throughout the day. Our Talk To Me campaign offers tips on ways to interact with your child so they can develop their communication skills.
Check out the resources at the bottom of the page to find out more.
Videos
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Down Syndrome Advice Clinic
The Childrens Therapies service is now piloting a therapy advice clinic for preschool children with Down Syndrome living within the East Hertfordshire area. Parents or carers can book into these clinics to access advice and informal assessment from a physiotherapist, occupational therapist and speech and language therapist. They do not need a referral and do not have to be currently open to the service in order to access it. Booking details can be found HERE.
What Can I Expect During My First Appointment
The appointment will last for approximately 45 minutes, longer for complex / specialist assessments.
- A speech and language therapist will usually start by talking to you about your childs early history and development and gathering some information about your concerns. Depending on the age of your child and the type of difficulty that they have they will do a number of different tasks and activities. For some children, particularly younger ones, the assessment may be done through the SLT playing alongside your child, or watching them play.
- The therapist will talk to you about your childs development. You will have the opportunity to discuss any concerns you may have about your childs communication skills
- During the session you may ask any questions about your childs speech and language development
- At the end of the session the therapist will discuss with you the best ways of supporting your child
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What Will Happen At The First Appointment
There are now a number of ways you may have your child’s first appointment with our team. When you ring in for an appointment these options will be discussed and you will be given the support you need to access this appointment.
The first appointment may be over the phone, via a video system called ‘attend anywhere’ or at one of our clinics face to face with a therapist.
At all first appointments the therapist will talk to you and ask questions about your child and your concerns. If the appointment is via video or face to face they will talk to your child and depending on their age may watch them playing or show them pictures. They may also carry out specific assessments of your childs speech and language skills. They will explain the results of these to you and discuss what help your child might need.
On some occasions the therapist may also ask that you send videos in of your child so that they can get a better understanding of your child’s needs. The therapist will provide you with a number to send this to and explain this process.
Why Choose Seattle Childrens Speech And Language Services
- Evaluation by compassionate experts
- Seattle Childrens speech-language pathologists work with a wide range of children, including those who are bilingual or have a tracheotomy, brain injury or other complex medical needs.
- Our experts specialize in fluency, augmentative and alternative communication, autism, selective mutism and other conditions.
- When you call for an evaluation, we ask for details about your child and any test results or therapy records you have on your child. Then we will review the information and schedule you with an SLP who specializes in your childs concern.
- For concerns about swallowing, we offer in-depth evaluation and a videofluoroscopic swallowing study. This test is done by an expert with special equipment that is not available in many places.
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Top Toys To Develop Language
Children learn important speech and language skills through play. You are the main language model for your child. The best toys are traditional ones rather than those operated with a battery. Do not try and lead their play, always follow the childs interest and what they show you. Have only 2/3 toys out at once to avoid flitting .
Follow your childs interests during play. These ideas will help to develop language
- Dolls : Label body parts and clothes. Make dolly do different actions like jump, sleep, cuddle, drink…
- Ball : Take turns to roll it backwards and forwards.
- Use words like fast / slow / bounce
- Tea Set: Say the names of the objects as your child picks them up. Use pretend food and label what they play with. Model the word more.
- Cars / Animals: Label the objects and make the noise e.g. Choo- Choo and Brum.
- Hide dummies, turn off the TV and remove other distractions before you play.
and remember to have FUN!
What Might Semantic Language Problems Look Like In A Child
- Have difficulty following verbal directions
- Use a limited number of words to express himself
- Experience difficulty asking and answering questions
- Struggle to understand the relationship between words, such as words in the same category and synonyms
- Find it hard to understand sentences containing figurative language
- Struggle to follow along and participate in conversations
- Overuse the words stuff and thing because specific names are difficult to retrieve
- Use non-specific referents in conversation
- Have difficulty getting a point across during conversation, often talking around in circles
- Find it hard to share spontaneous ideas in interactions with others
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How The Service Is Provided
The Speech and Language Therapy team work with CYP in the most appropriate setting to promote functional communication and/or eating and drinking skills. We work with families and education staff to empower them to be confident agents of change for the individual CYP. We routinely visit early years settings, mainstream schools and specialist schools. Some CYP may be seen at home or in a clinic according to clinical need. For those CYP with an identified need, an episode of care will be recommended. If required, the Speech and Language Therapist will work through an interpreter should a child or family have difficulty communicating in English.
We offer support in different ways:
Universal – something for all children, for example: raising awareness and increasing understanding of SLCN and eating or drinking difficulties
Targeted – something for some children, for example: working with families and settings to help identify and overcome barriers faced by CYP with SLCN or eating and drinking difficulties
Specialist – something for children with a defined clinical need, for example: where our input can make a significant contribution to a CYPs health and wellbeing
Not all children will require specialist support from the service as advice and support can be accessed through our targeted and universal offer.
Falls Church Social Skills Groups Falls Church Location Only
6231 Leesburg Pike, Suite 520Falls Church, VA 22044 703-685-1070
Childrens Speech and Language Services, Inc. in Falls Church is pleased to offer social skills groups.
PEERS® is a 16-week evidence-based social skills intervention for motivated teens in middle and high school who are interested in learning new ways of making and keeping friends. This internationally acclaimed program, used in over 35 countries, was originally developed at UCLA by Dr. Elizabeth Laugeson. During each group session, teens are taught important social skills and are given the opportunity to practice these skills in session during socialization activities. PEERS® may be appropriate for teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Anxiety, Depression or other social-pragmatic disorders.
PlayPals, groups for children ages 3-6, focus on the improvement of social language and social interaction skills, including turn-taking, verbally initiating interaction with and responding to peers, developing conversational skills, playing cooperatively with peers, and developing imaginative play skills. There will be 2-4 children per group.
Friendship Spies, groups for children ages 6-11, address building friendships, improving conversational skills, perspective taking, interpreting social situations, and developing self-regulation strategies. There will be 2-4 children per group.
Social Skills Groups Falls Church
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What To Expect From Your First Appointment
Once your childs referral to Specialist Speech and Language Therapy is accepted, you will be invited by text to phone in for an appointment. You will be phoned by a member of the team and asked questions about your child and your concerns.
Advice and recommendations will be given, and the next steps agreed.
We use interpreters for families when appropriate and have access to interpreters in a wide range of languages.
Speech And Language Therapy Students
As a team we regularly provide placement opportunities for student speech and language therapists from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. On occasion weve arranged placements in partnership with other universities, for example when a student lives in the North Tees area. If you are due to come on placement with us you can download our student induction pack below and we look forward to meeting you soon.
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What Is Speech & Language Therapy
Our NHS Childrens Speech and Language Therapy service provides specialist support to children with speech, language and communication needs across Bedfordshire and Luton. We are a team of enthusiastic and committed therapists, support practitioners and administrators.
To find out more information about who we are and what we do, visit our page.
How We Will Communicate With You
We will agree with you the most helpful way to communicate with you. This may be face to face, by telephone, video call, email, text message or a posted letter, and this may change depending on what we need to communicate.
We try to use telephone and email as much as possible as this is the quickest and safest way to get important information to you. It also allows us to help the environment and to save money. Patients and their families may request paper copies of information but these may take longer to reach you.
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Other Things You Need To Know
Please let us know as soon as possible if you cannot be available for your childs appointment.
You can refer back into the service if your childs speech and language therapy has ended and you have further concerns about their communication.
Speech and language therapy information regarding your child will be shared with other health professionals involved in their care. This is a part of our safeguarding young people policy.
Why Does My Child Need Speech Therapy
Communication and nutrition are important to your childs development and well-being. There are several types of delays or disorders an infant, child or adolescent may have that require the help of a speech pathologist, including problems with:
- Feeding or swallowing – Also called dysphagia, these disorders might affect an infants ability to suck as needed for breast or bottle feeding, or a childs ability to pick food up and close her lips around it. Speech pathologists with special skills can help diagnose and manage these problems so that your child can get proper nutrition.
- Articulation – Your child might not be able to produce sounds correctly so that others understand. A speech pathologist can work with your child on articulation of difficult sounds.
- Fluency – The speech pathologist helps a child who stutters, stops, or spends a long time on certain sounds when speaking.
- Voice – Also called resonance, this is an unusual pitch or quality to your childs voice that a pathologist can help your child or adolescent learn to control.
Some children also need help with language skills, such as use of words or composing sentences. For example, your child with Down syndrome usually understands much more of what he hears than he shows by words when he speaks. Your child could benefit from speech therapy to improve his spoken vocabulary, grammar and use of language.
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Csls & Good Beginnings Collaborate
Good Beginnings OTs and PTs work collaboratively to help your children and family achieve your goals, utilizing similar but distinct approaches. Pediatric Occupational Therapy focuses on assisting children with promoting independence in activities of everyday life, otherwise known as occupations. Childrens occupations include: reaching developmental milestones, engaging in play, performing self care , performing academic tasks , and socializing.
Pediatric Physical Therapists focus on optimizing movement for all children, from birth to adulthood. Our therapists will evaluate your childs movement abilities and create a plan of care to help your family achieve your goals. This may also include prescribing mobility and exercise equipment, orthotics, assistive devices, and developmental toys. All of our intervention is play based we make the challenges fun! Learn more!
Csls Therapy
Celebrating 42 years! Opened in 1980, Childrens Speech and Language Services has long provided parents support for their children with developmental and/or speech-language challenges.
Contact
- Falls Church Speech Therapy
- 6354 Rolling Mill Place #103Springfield, Virginia 22152
Childrens Speech And Language Therapy Service
The Childrens Speech and Language Therapy Service works with families, education staff and other health professionals to support childrens speech, language, communication and feeding skills.
We work with children aged from birth through to the end of their full-time statutory education whose speech, language, communication or feeding difficulties impact on their lives. We aim to provide practical advice and support to empower the child, and/or the people within the childs support network, to develop their functional communication and feeding skills. We are here to support families when they need us and our involvement with families will depend on their individual needs.
What to do if you are concerned about your childs speech, language, communication or feeding skills?
The Childrens Speech and Language Therapy Service is here to help you support your childs speech, language and communication skills. Our dysphagia team can offer advice and support regarding your childs feeding and swallowing skills.
Please click on one of the following links to guide you to the relevant advice for you and your child.
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What Happens Next
At the end of the session the therapist will advise you on one of three courses of action:
- Your childs communication skills are in line with their overall development or may be requiring minimal advice. No further appointments are necessary.
- Your child requires some specific activities and their development will be closely monitored and reviewed
- Your child would benefit from regular therapy input.
How Can We Help
Clinical studies and scientifically-proven techniques go a long way, but if you dont understand the specific needs of the client, it becomes more difficult to treat them. Many factors including genetics, personality, and family environment play a significant role in language and communication development. At the Speech Therapy Centres of a Canada we provide a holistic approach to speech therapy where we examine and attempt to understand all contributing factors in order to provide the best possible speech therapy assessments and speech therapy programs for our clients.
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