Have you got a child who has his or her own agenda?

Tace is 2 and a half. She doesn't look at or seem interested in her parents or anyone else. She loves wheels or anything that spins. She plays alone and likes running around the room. She cannot be persuaded to sit with the others for a story at nursery. She is very independent and shrugs off all attempts to help her. She will reach towards objects she wants. She has no words and will scream when she wants something.

Tace is a child at the 'Own Agenda stage' according to Hanen. Not all children will go through this phase but for parents of children who do, it is extremely frustrating and worrying.

Tace does not realise that she can affect other people so her communication is mostly at a pre-intentional stage.We can tell what she's feeling by looking at her body movements, smiles, gestures and screams. She has been referred to the paediatrician.

So what can we do about it? Most parents just want the child to talk, after all that's what they should be doing at this age, surely? However, the goal of talking is a long way off for Tace. We need to get the background factors in place first so we can move the child from this stage to the next. In Hanen terms, this would be 'the requester stage' which we'll look at next month.

The initial goals for a child at this very early stage of communication development are to increase the child's attention/interaction with you and to increase the understanding of activities. I know that sounds too simple but it is vitally important to pick the right targets or we won't be successful.

With Tace, therefore, we looked at activities which she enjoys and turned them into games with her mother. She loves spinning so we put her in a spinner chair. We started the activity each time with, 'Shall we spin?', then we spun her a few times before stopping. She laughed and moved her whole body to show she enjoyed it. To begin with she didn't realise she could make it happen again. Then when her mother said, 'shall we spin?', and waited a little, she moved her body and her mother began the game again. Her mother had added meaning to the body movement and interpreted that it meant she was to do it again. This happened a few times before Tace realised that by moving her body she could get her mother to repeat the activity. She now regularly 'communicates' to her mother that she wants to do it again. She realises that the chair coming out means its going to happen and shows excitement when she sees it. She is also looking at her mother as another indication that she wants the game to start.

Tace's mother made it fun by using facial expressions and fun noises.

They are now generalising this ability with other games e.g. spinning her around or singing with action e.g. 'Row, row your boat'. She will soon be moving on to being an early communicator i.e. she sees that her actions can have an effect on someone else.

Tace's mother didn't see the point of my suggestions at first. 'What has this got to do with talking?' she might have asked. 'That's pretty crap!' she actually said!! As speech and language therapists we need to be able to look at a child and work out where we are and what the next step is.  It can seem a world away from 'speech therapy' but it's essential we identify the right level so we can suggest the right way forwards.So please bear with us if what we say isn't what you want to hear. The whole process of communication is very complex and it's our job to un-pick it. Tace's Mum now says, 'I thought Libby was mad at first. She was very nice but wasn't saying what I wanted to hear. Fortunately, she convinced me to try and showed me the stages of communication we'd need to work through. I feel like we're getting somewhere now. I still hope that one day she'll talk.'

If you have a child like Tace, try using his/her interests to make simple games. Whether that's spinning like Tace or flapping, flicking, jumping..... make a game out of it so you can start the process of communication today.

www.hanen.org

Make sure your independent speech and language therapist has the right credentials

It's really important that you can trust the professional with whom you are entrusting your child or other relative. If the independent Speech and language therapist is a member of ASLTIP, they will automatically be members of the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists and be registered with the Health Care Professional Council. They will be fully insured and it also means that they will have access to professional supervision, which is essential for all professions.

You can use their website to search for a speech and language therapist in your area http://www.helpwithtalking.com/ You can also use the website to answer questions you might have.

You can find out if your therapist is registered with HCPC here http://www.hpc-uk.org/check/

The RCLST site has lots of info about all types of related issues  including career advise http://www.rcslt.org/

Small Talk Speech and Language Therapy are members of ASLTIP, HCPC and RCSLT  http://www.helpwithtalking.com/Member/Mrs-Elizabeth-Hill

Selective mutism

Selective Mutism is a ‘consistent failure to speak in specific social situations, despite being able to speak in other, more familiar situations’. It is now  ‘seen as a manifestation of social anxiety or phobia, occurring in temperamentally predisposed children who are unable to take normal life events in their stride, particularly when the reactions of others reinforce silence rather than speech,’ (Maggie Johnson, 2012).

It doesn't sound too big a  problem does it? Might even be a nice change to have a quiet one in the class, be better if more had it to make life easier for the teachers?

But for the thousands of children and their families who suffer from Selective Mutism, it can be a terribly debilitating condition and one that encompasses all aspects of life.

With this in mind we reviewed and improved what Small Talk Speech and Language Therapy can offer and we are delighted to announce our new  services:

• We have done the diagnosis and management training and extension level training by Maggie Johnson and Alison Wintgens, who are the UK leading experts in SM.
• We will soon be able to use animal assisted therapy using Ralph our lovely therapy dog. This can just be having him the room to reduce stress/take the focus away from the child or he can be involved in a  small steps programme as he loves to do obedience work. We have had training in using him from Humanima which included the theory behind and helped us to prepare the necessary paperwork such as policies/procedures and risk assessments when doing any form of animal assisted activity
• As older chidren benefit from CBT, we are now trained in this so we don't have to refer on to a counsellor. It is a shame to see a child or teenager, build a rapport, diagnose and then pass on. We have a good relationship with an excellent counsellor so we can refer if they need anything else such as EFT.
• We also have excellent links with a clinical psychology team

The therapy for SM involves the people the child's own environment so more often that not we are 'explainers' and facilitators. This means it's straightforwards to see children and families who may live outside Staffordshire and who are prepared to travel for a diagnosis and/or help. If you are concerned about a child please get in touch to arrange an appointment.

Ralph the trainee therapy dog

Do you have a pre-school child with ASD?

As a parent, you know how difficult it can be for your child with suspected or confirmed Autism Spectrum Disorder to interact meaningfully with others and connect with the world around him.

At Small Talk Speech and Language therapy we use The More Than Words Programme from Hanen. This was designed specifically for parents of pre-school children on the autism spectrum. Addressing the unique needs of these children, the programme provides parents with the tools, strategies and support they need to help their children reach their full communication potential.

More Than Words does this by empowering parents to help your child reach the following three goals:

1. Improved social skills
2. The ability to engage in back-and-forth interactions
3. Improved understanding of language

Here are some of the valuable things you’ll learn when we help you carry out the More Than Words Programme:

• How your child learns best and what motivates him to communicate
• Why your child behaves in certain ways, and what you can do to either increase or reduce those behaviours
• How to use your knowledge about your child to set realistic goals
• How to make interactions with your child last longer and be more meaningful
• Tips for using pictures and print to help your child’s understanding
• Tips on how to talk so that your child understands you
• Strategies for developing your child’s play skills
• Ways to help your child make friends

Practical strategies you can use in everyday situations

The More Than Words Programme focuses on your natural, day-to-day life with your child. You’ll discover how to take everyday activities like meal time, story time and bath time and use them to help your child improve his communication and social skills. And you’ll have fun together while you’re doing it!

The More Than Words approach is easy to understand and easy to put into practice. With every strategy you learn, you’ll be given ample opportunity to practice and discuss it so that you won’t forget it.

We have spaces from the middle of February. Register your interest: by contacting us info@smalltalk-ltd.co.uk

How to play with children to help develop speech and language development?

A guest blog post by Karolina Spałek from Poland

The following article is addressed to all parents of 0- to 3-year-old children.

A two-year-old child should use about 200 - 300 words, including the names of family members (mummy, daddy), toys, onomatopoeic words and basic verbs (eat, sleep, drink, walk, etc.). Every day, I have to deal with children who do not use words. They just do not speak at all. It seems worrying. It can even be said that a child who is not able to speak, is at the same time not able to think. The ability of using speech promotes the development of thinking. If you want your child to develop properly from the very first moments of his life, the most effective way is to take advantage of fun and learn through play. 

An excellent method of learning a language is to create communication situations in which the child feels the need to talk: the situations concerning desires, satisfaction and joy.

The factor of the quantity of words and the quality of language you use to communicate with your child has an invaluable impact on the speech development. We should not underestimate the fact that the speech and language development has a lot in common with shaping other skills, such as writing, reading and learning. Language facilities are also crucial in establishing contacts and relationships with other people.

You can easily influence the correct development of your toddler. The following list consists of some inspiring tips for the speaking manners and some pieces of advice concerning the proper use of toys while strengthening the bond with your baby:

1.       Talk to your child as often as possible: during everyday activities, walks, shopping, etc. Speak slowly, clearly and correctly. Keep the eye contact while addressing your child. When you show animals, things and people - call them. If your child is in a pushchair, remember to keep him facing you! By using this strategy, you provide the child with an opportunity to observe your facial expressions, emotions and the movement of your mouth!

2.       Provide sound stimuli: avoid or eliminate television completely. It unnecessarily stimulates the child and leads to sensory processing disorders. Instead, listen to the sounds of the environment. Ask and answer: What is it? A car, a dog, a cat...

3.       Have fun by imitating animals - show pictures of animals, imitate their noises (cow: moo, cat: meow, dog: woof, au). Enjoy walking like astork, speaking or jump like a frog, moving like a cat or swing like a monkey!

4.        Imitate the sounds of vehicles: car engines, trains, aeroplanes. It is a good idea to use toy vehicles and onomatopoeic words to show how the real ones move and sound. You can put some toys or objects inside: a doll driver or your child's favourite bear. Do not forget to ask questions during the play: What can you see? What is it? It gives the child an opportunity to make a choice what he or she wants the vehicle to carry. A ball or a teddy bear? A cat or a dog?

5.       Be a storyteller. Read or tell stories to your child every day before bedtime. Take advantage of illustrated books or fairy tales. Read a passage and ask your child what he remembers: What was the story about? Who is in the picture? What's happened?

6.       Present illustrations, ask questions and give your child a chance to come up with the answer: Who is it? What is he doing?

7.       Talk about experiences. Let the child express his emotions while talking about a kindergarten or a day spent with a grandmother. Allow your child to talk about shopping with his mother or the animals met during a walk.

8.       Enjoy counting with your child: How many cats can you see in the picture? How many animals are there in the car? How many apples has daddy bought? One, two, three! Three apples! Ask questions and count together with your child!

9.       Use the mirror: make funny faces, touch your nose or chin with your tongue, lick your lips. By following your behaviour, by repetition, your child creates a sense of awareness of his own body. With your guidance, he does it in a pleasant atmosphere. Remember to let your child act on his own initiative and try to mimic his gestures!

10.   Draw. Use crayons and markers - inform your child what you are drawing: Mummy is drawing a cat. What does a cat do? Meow! The child scribbles but later follows the scheme. This is a combination of speech development and the improvement of motor skills. It prepares your child to draw, colour and write.

11.   Practice breathing: whistle, use pipes, flutes, fans. Make soap bubbles, blow feathers, pieces of paper or ping pong balls. Blow a drop of water using a straw or let your child have fun by blowing the paint around the paper to create fabulously abstract works of art. This painting can be attached to the fridge with a colorful magnet clip!

If your child does not speak, encourage him by all means to do so!

300 - 500 words -this is an amount of active vocabulary of a three-year-old child who uses them to build his first sentences. Remember that the onomatopoeic expressions, such as 'woof' or 'meow' are ones that vary across cultures and nationalities! If you notice that your child lags behind his peers in his ability to talk, it is necessary to contact a speech and language therapist. However, before the first visit, do not waste your time and take matters into your own hands! Help your child to move forward! I wish you good luck in all actions you will carry out to encourage your little ones to use language!

Karolina Spałek

www.Logotorpeda.com

Translate: Aleksandra Kmieć

Please help AFASIC... and have some fun too! 'Zip It' for Afasic

As we enter a New Year, AFASIC are encouraging us to get involved in their latest challenge that should be a bit of fun, and also raise some money towards their work. They are often the only place a parent can turn when they have a child with SLCN and no-one else seems to understand that it affects the entire family.
 
They really need  help to ensure that Afasic has the funds it needs to provide this ongoing help and support for children, young people and their families who are affected by speech, language and communication disabilities now and into the future.
 
How to get involved
Please take part in the Afasic ‘Zip It!’ challenge this spring  - you can take part yourself, encourage your local school to take part, get people in the office to take up the challenge, or get the family to have a quiet and challenging evening at home!
 
The challenge is to stay silent and use only non-verbal methods of communication for a period that you can decide (it could be 5 minutes, an hour, a morning, a day etc.). For more information and to register for a full information pack go to  http://www.afasic.org.uk/support-us/fundraise-for-us/zip-it-challenge/

Are you looking for a career change for 2015? Our Smart Talkers franchises, may be for you

 

All children can benefit from our award winning  communication groups. They are designed to help develop confident, successful communicators. Spoken language skills are the basis for most educational tasks so the better the speech, language and communication skills the easier they will find it when they start school.

We use puppets, games, stories and songs to make it as fun as possible. We get great feedback from parents, carers and the children themselves! It's not really like working, as it's tremendous fun working with pre-school children.

We have lots of different groups: Small Talkers. Teeny Talkers. Baby Talkers, Chatter Tots and Stories and Songs. There are also lots of other packages for nurseries and projects for schools that we do.

We are looking for franchisees in many areas of the UK or further afield. No experience or qualification required as full training is given. Business support and back-up is an important part of the package. We also have licenses for speech and language therapists so they can run groups in their areas.

We have designated areas for franchisees, find out if your area is available by emailing info@smalltalk-ltd.co.uk

www.smarttalkers.org.uk