Can I tell you about SM: an excellent addition to the ‘Can I tell you about..’ series

Title:   Can I tell you about selective mutism 
Author:  Maggie Johnson and Alison Wintgens
Publisher:  Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Selective Mutism (SM) is still a largely unknown and mis-understood condition, and to date the majority of books are written primarily from an academic point of view. ‘Can I tell you about Selective Mutism’ is an excellent addition to the ‘Can I tell you about..’ series of books and has been effectively written in two parts. The first half of the book is written from the point of view of a young girl named Hannah, who describes what it is like to live with SM and how it affects her relationships with other people; creating a sensitive and personalised undertone throughout the book. The second part of the book provides functional and practical strategies that can be used by parents, carers and teachers. Maggie Johnson and Alison Wintgens are pioneers in the world of Selective Mutism and have worked with this unique client group for over 20 years; they currently work with the leading UK charity SMIRA to support families of people with Selective mutism. 

The informal style of this book makes it an accessible and invaluable aid to all readers and I highly recommend it as a fantastic introduction when first learning to understand the condition. I have used it many times with families that I have worked with; as an engaging resource to read with the child when helping them to understand and explain the internal world they experience every day. ‘Can I tell you about Selective Mutism’ helps to dispel common myths that Selective Mutism is a refusal to talk by providing a powerful first-hand insight. There is still much debate about whose professional remit SM falls into and I recommend this book to be read by any professional supporting a child with the condition including speech and language therapists and psychologists.

It is available from www.speechtherapyactivties.co.uk

Natasha Hallam

Natasha Hallam, Specialist SLT, Small Talk SLT
Rating:  5
ISBN-10: 978 1 84905 289 4

Are you wondering if the More Than Words course is for you?

If so, listen to this to help you make up your mind.

https://audioboom.com/boos/4430176-more-than-words-course?t=0

Don't forget they start on monday 18th April:

1. Rising Brook Fire Station, Hsketh Rd, Stafford Stafford 7-9pm

2. Tamworth Fire Station, Marlborough Way, Tamworth 7-9pm

Look forwards to seeing you there!

Children’s Choice Therapy Centre open events

Children’s Choice Therapy Service Ltd are a group of specialist Occupational Therapists (including sensory integration accredited therapists), who provide independent services to special and main stream schools, health and social care as well as charities and individuals.  

Children’s Choice Therapy Centre is a new unit providing assessment, treatment and training.  The centre includes training facilities, opportunity for group work, specialist Occupational Therapy, and a full Sensory Integration based Occupational Therapy treatment room (built in association with ‘Spacekraft’ – sensory equipment providers).  This gives us the opportunity for more complex assessments and interventions, and to train and work alongside carers and parents to help embed treatment principles in to daily life to impact the child’s / young person’s every day tasks.

All are very welcome to attend / drop in on our open events, to see this new facility, and to learn more about our services.

Friday April 8^th: 3pm – 6pm

Saturday April 9^th: 2pm – 4pm

11D Lancaster Park

Needwood

Staffs

DE13 9PD

  

Alison Hart,

Sarah Sheffield, Samantha Armitage, Jessica Quinn, Sandra Town,

Mel Homan, Kikidyn Matemba-Belli

childrenschoicetherapy@gmail.com

www.childrenschoicetherapy.co.uk

07855234668

Makes me so sad........

One of the things we do at Small Talk, is to see children who are having behaviour issues at school or at home and people are seeking the answer as to why they behave as they do.

It's so sad how so many children are being misunderstood. Time and time again, we see this scenario: 

The child who doesn't understand social clues and cues, may not be good at reading facial expressions, doesn't understand abstract language such as sarcasm, or people's intentions. They probably don't always remember that they need to modify their language according to the listener i.e. you don't talk to the teacher like you would your mum. They develop a strong sense of right and wrong to help them cope. They may be aware of their difficulties and be anxious.

Then, at lunchtime, someone knocks into them, they refuse to say sorry as it was 'an accident', they may try to explain that or just run off laughing. The child knows that you must tell if someone does something wrong but is sent away by the dinner lady or teacher on duty as 'he didn't mean it'. This upsets the child who gets more frustrated and wants to get his point across. He ends up shouting at the member of staff and is then sent to the headteacher. He is really fed up, frustrated and down right angry, so shouts at the headteacher too....... result: excluded for the next 2 days!

These children may be on the autistic spectrum but they might not. Social understanding is hard for many children.

The solution is simple:

1. A Social thinking programme with behaviour mapping for the child (Garcia Winner)
2. Training for staff

Why is that so hard to understand?

Just ‘Scene and Heard’ of a fantastic new AAC app!

The more complex cases we receive each week at Small Talk speech and language therapy, the more there is an increasing need for efficient and universal communication aids. ‘Scene and Heard’ is a fantastic app by Therapy Box, that has been created as a seamless transition between both low and high tech AAC. The diversity in speech and language difficulties we target on a daily basis including; ASD, non-verbal clients, those with reduced communication breakdowns or limited language abilities means it is vital we are able to use resources that not only universal target the range of interventions we provide, but that also bridge the prominent gap between therapy and generalisation of learnt skills to everyday life.

‘Scene and Heard’ comprises of a library of over 12000 useful Widgit Symbols, which can be effectively added with photos into personalised, printable communication books for each client. The ability to tailor these resources into visual timetables gives everyone the opportunity to independently plan their own lives. An important factor during the speech and language therapy process is supporting the child or adult to take responsibility of their own learning and daily routines, the easy-to-use features means that this AAC devise can be readily adapted by child, parent, teacher and therapist.

‘Scene and Heard’ can be used to creatively develop step by step instructions for everyday activities, using both the in-app accessible scenes or the new added feature of being able to draw a scene ensures that the designing of these tools is a flexible, fun stage of the therapy process. Each in-app scene consists of a range of interactive media ‘hotspots’ that allow personalised audio recordings, video recordings, spoken text and symbols to be inserted into the activity to provide information through multiple modes of communication; further highlighting ‘Scene and Heard’ as a universal and accessible tool for anyone.

As well as those who struggle with receptive and expressive language, we regularly work with people who also have limited narrative skills. In addition to the augmentative and alternative communication functionality of this app, I have personally found the customised scenes a very useful resource to use when creating a sequence of events. The ability to upload new photos means I can create scenarios and social stories that can be accessed by the diverse population that I work with. Many people we work with at Small Talk have some addition behaviour needs, typically as a consequence of the speech and language difficulties; Scene and heard incorporates a countdown timer into the activity to support behaviour management, easier transitions between tasks and increasing individual independence.

The all-in-one functionality of ‘Scene and Heard’ creates an AAC device that can be both low and high tech, ensuring that intervention can be continuous and seamless as progress is made. The attention to detail in the apps settings to prevent double taps, allows even those with limited fine motor skills to take full control of their learning. Further highlighting how this app is truly a universal and functional communication aid and has recently become an everyday staple in my speech and language therapy toolbox.

Natasha Hallam

Speech and Language Therapist

 www.private-speech-therapy.co.uk

What are you giving up for LENT? Feel pious AND make a difference to children's lives!

Better than chocolate or alcohol!

Zip It for Afasic this Lent!    Thinking of giving something up for Lent? Then why don’t you ‘Zip It’ for Afasic and give up talking, whilst raising some much needed funds for Afasic? Don’t panic, we aren’t asking you to give up talking for 40 days! But why not give up talking for a few hours, a day, two days or even a whole week to raise awareness of speech and language disabilities? Alternatively, you can donate £5 today by texting 'LENT60 £5' to 70070.  Find out more about how you can Zip It for Afasic or make a donation below! Your support really does make an enormous difference to their work with children, young people and their families affected by speech, language and communication disabilities.

Staffordshire Early Years SLCN Conference

Come and join us for our first annual Staffordshire SLCN Conference

Sat 16th April
The Conference CentreJohn Taylor High school Dunstall Rd, Barton-under-Needwood, Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire DE13 8AZ

Registration - 9.30am

Selective mutism:  the way forwards Libby Hill is a consultant speech and language therapist and one of the very few in the UK who is trained to work with children with selective Mutism. With 1 in 150 being diagnosed with the condition, we all need to know how to deal with it. Libby will discuss how to identify SM from reluctant talkers and practical ways to manage in your setting.

Behaviour is communication: Kathryn Stinton is a specialist early years teacher who has worked in mainstream and specialist settings for twenty years. Kathryn will look at the typical development of social skills and factors which can impact on this, as well as the role of the environment in promoting positive behaviour for both adults and children.  A range of practical strategies will be discussed.

The development of language for learning: a Blank solution Natasha Hallam is a speech and language therapist who works in mainstream and special schools settings. Natasha will look at the development of children’s language for  learning and give you practical ways to both assess the children’s levels and tailor your activities accordingly.

2 year olds not talking; how to measure what they can do Margaret Gomm and Georgina White are both speech and language therapists with a great deal of experience of working with younger children in children’s Centres and Nurseries. They will look at the common issue of 2 year olds who cannot talk. They will give you practical ways to record communication before words and tips for working with non-verbal children.

Closes - 3.30pm

Buffet lunch provided

FEES & PAYMENT £85 per delegate £65 early bird until 28th February 2016. 

Places are limited to 50 so please book early to avoid disappoinment.

Payment and booking is all managed online: BOOK HERE

For more information: Libby Hill Small Talk SLT Ltd 

office@smalltalk-ltd.co.uk www.private-speech-therapy.co.uk