Are you working with a child or teen who stutters?

In today's episode, Carrie breaks down four simple, research-supported exercises that help school-age children and teens communicate more effectively. This episode is action-packed, full of exercises and strategies that you can use in speech therapy right away or at home to support a child or teen who is struggling.

We're moving beyond theory. We're diving in with real-life strategies that actually help children and teens understand and accept their stuttering and learn to manage it so they can communicate effectively with others.

Need some ready-made therapy programs for these skills? Our Fluency Curriculums provide you with easy-to-use therapy plans, materials, and skill progressions. We've taken all of the guess work out of it and provided you with a customizable template that you can use to help each child or teen that you work with excel.

Access our Fluency Curriculum and Materials at https://hub.speechandlanguagekids.com/

What should we focus on in middle school and high school speech/language therapy?

In today's episode, I'll share with you a practical, no-fluff framework for supporting teenagers on real-life communication skills through our speech/language therapy sessions.

We'll cover the four big areas that matter most for helping adolescents thrive in school, work, relationships, and independence:

• Executive Functioning Skills Working memory, cognitive flexibility, emotional regulation, planning, task initiation, and the self-monitoring teens need to actually use their communication skills in the real world.
• Communication for Academic Success How to shift from basic language goals to higher-level skills like discourse, figurative language, vocabulary learning strategies, and synthesizing complex information.
• Social Communication Skills Perspective taking, navigating disagreements, repairing breakdowns, using nuance, and advocating for their needs in social and academic settings.
• Life Skills (a.k.a. "Adulting Skills") Practical communication for communicating with others in real-world situations, problem-solving, time management, and understanding personal strengths and accommodations.

If you've ever wondered whether you're targeting the right skills for your older students, or you want a better roadmap for helping adolescents with the skills that really make the biggest difference, today's episode is for you!

Get ready for a totally transparent, behind-the-scenes walk through how I actually run speech and language therapy. No jargon, no overthinking, and definitely no fluff.

In today's episode, I'm breaking down my entire therapy system from start to finish. You'll learn exactly how I choose goals, organize materials, run sessions, and streamline data collection using the SLK Curriculum and Goal Packets. Whether you're overwhelmed by your caseload or just want a cleaner, simpler way to plan therapy, this episode gives you the full roadmap.

Hop in and grab our SLK Curriculum, goal packets, and planning resources at Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com Start your free trial today!

Whether you've inherited a messy caseload…

…or you've simply been in survival mode so long that things are a bit chaotic….

Our Caseload Makeover will help you clean up your caseload and get rid of inefficiencies.

This month, join us on a journey to streamline your caseload, fast track clients who are close to dismissal, and make your planning process smooth and easy.

In this episode, we kick off our Caseload Makeover series by tackling the very first—and most important—step: the caseload audit. If your schedule feels overloaded, if certain students seem to be "lingering" on your list, or if you're just not sure where to focus next, this simple process will give you the clarity you've been missing.

You'll learn how to audit your caseload during your regular therapy sessions (no extra paperwork time required!) and how to quickly sort students based on their current progress as well as any additional needs they have. We talk about why this step matters, what patterns to look for, and how this single exercise sets the stage for faster progress for clients and a more manageable workload for you.

Grab the Caseload Audit Checklist inside the SLK Curriculum at Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com

How Do We Help Non-Speaking Children?

Helping an autistic child learn to speak can feel overwhelming—it's so hard to know where to start. But these 6 simple strategies are easy to use and create big impact for our autistic clients and children.

Whether you're a speech-language pathologist in the therapy room, a parent at home, a teacher in the classroom, or a childcare provider, these strategies give you a clear, concrete place to begin with any non-speaking child.

And the best part?

They work whether a child is a gestalt language processor, an analytic language processor, or a child who needs alternative ways to communicate, such as AAC.

If you want an approachable, neurodiversity-affirming starting point for supporting communication, this episode lays out exactly what to do next.

In today's episode, I'm diving into one of the most important communication skills we can teach our neurodivergent children and teens: conversation.

Some children are natural conversationalists, while others need more support—and neither way is "better." But when a child struggles with the nuances of back-and-forth interaction, they deserve tools that help them feel confident, understood, and connected.

This episode breaks conversational skills into three teachable levels: Level 1: Initiating and responding Level 2: Maintaining and managing conversations Level 3: Navigating more complex interactions like repairing breakdowns, disagreements, and self-advocacy

We'll also talk about using AI to generate personalized social scenarios, how to encourage self-reflection, and why staying in a growth mindset matters.

How does your client/child score? Our interactive scorecard will tell you where a child or teen needs additional supports --> Take the free Neurodivergent & Thriving Scorecard at SLKScorecard.com.

And for an easy, ready-to-go therapy plan that you can start today, grab the Conversational Skills Goal Packets inside the Hub: Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com.

Too many SLPs feel pressured to bring brand-new activities to every session—but that actually slows progress and burns you out.

In today's episode, I explain why sticking with one structured teaching activity (like the workbooks inside our Curriculum) creates better, faster results… and how AI can fill in the gaps with unlimited, customized practice.

We walk through a real example targeting vocabulary skills—from early word learning all the way up to advanced word-attack strategies—and I show you exactly where AI fits in to boost engagement and mastery.

You'll learn:

• Why you don't need endless activities to teach a skill (goodbye late nights scouring TPT!)

• How to build a start-to-finish plan that uses skill progressions to systematically teach skills

• When to pause and provide more practice before moving on

• How AI can instantly generate custom materials: word lists, images, prompts, stories, social scenarios, and more

• How this approach keeps therapy fun, consistent, and effective without adding extra work to your plate

Whether you use my Curriculum or your own materials, this episode will help you simplify your planning, reduce burnout, and keep clients excited to learn.

Listen in and learn how to make AI your new therapy sidekick!

Is it actually OK to teach perspective-taking to autistic youth? In this episode, Carrie breaks down the current controversy, explains why so many SLPs feel confused about whether they're "allowed" to teach these skills anymore, and unpacks how traditional Theory of Mind instruction became entwined with masking, judgment, and deficit-based thinking.

You'll learn what the real issue is (hint: it's the double empathy problem, not a lack of empathy in autistic individuals) and why perspective-taking is still a valuable, empowering skill when taught through a neurodiversity-affirming lens.

Carrie shares her stance: all brains work differently, and autistic kids deserve information—not pressure to conform. Today's perspective-taking work is about helping youth feel safer, more secure, and more confident navigating the world their own way.

We then walk through how the new SLK Perspective-Taking Goal Packet teaches these skills without enforcing neurotypical norms, shame, or "correct answers," focusing instead on safety, understanding, curiosity, and real-world meaning.

If you've ever wondered how to teach perspective-taking in a respectful, ND-affirming way, this episode will clarify exactly how to do it.

Check out the Perspective-Taking Goal Packet inside the SLK Curriculum—available to all members (with free trial options): https://hub.speechandlanguagekids.com/

Today I'm giving you a behind-the-scenes look at a HUGE upgrade coming to the SLK Curriculum: data probes for all 84 of our speech, language, and communication goal packets!

In this episode, I share why I'm adding these probes (including my recent experience in a rural school district), what the new system looks like, and how these quick assessments will help you set goals, track progress, and streamline therapy all year long.

You'll learn exactly how to use the updated packets, from choosing a goal, collecting baseline data, printing and organizing your materials, running monthly probes, and knowing when a child has officially mastered a skill.

Whether you're an SLP planning a full caseload, a parent or teacher working on one goal at a time, or a professional who wants ready-made clarity, these new data probes are going to make your life so much easier.

Grab your updated packets inside the SLK Curriculum: Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com

And check out the new Neurodiverse & Thriving Scorecard at SLKScorecard.com to see where your learners need support.

It's Caseload Makeover January, and today I'm giving you a behind-the-scenes look at what's happening on my end. This month, I'm not only helping three amazing SLPs inside my private coaching program overhaul their systems—I'm also doing a full caseload makeover myself after taking on a surprise "caseload takeover" at a rural school.

In this episode, I share: ✔️ How I stepped into another SLP's caseload with fresh eyes ✔️ What I'm learning as I match student goals to my new SLK Curriculum goal packets ✔️ Why my "data day" revealed the need for better data probes ✔️ Why I'm now printing full packets instead of choosing objectives one-by-one ✔️ The wins, surprises, and real-life challenges from this first week

Everything I discover this month, between my own takeover and my coaching clients' makeovers, will filter directly into the SLK Curriculum so you can clean up your caseload this winter right alongside us.

Want the goal packets or to follow the makeover? Visit Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com