In this special announcement episode of the Speech and Language Kids Podcast, Carrie Clark shares exciting news about what’s happening this summer inside The Hub. If you’re a school-based SLP, SLPA, or SaLT looking to get your systems in place before the school year chaos returns, this one’s for you!

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Is your organization ready to simplify therapy planning and improve outcomes across the board?

Our SLK Teams Program is designed for schools, clinics, and teletherapy companies that want every SLP, SLPA, or SaLT on the same powerful system. When your team uses our research-backed framework together, you’ll see:

Bonus: Organizations that join the Teams Program also receive exclusive marketing opportunities and recognition in our SLK-Certified Directory.

Ready to get your team signed up?

Email [email protected] today to reserve your spot for the 2025–2026 school year!

Go to hub.speechandlanguagekids.com

We’re putting a pause on our podcasts and live webinars for the Summer while we run our Summer camp and get ready to launch our Teams Program! We’ll be back with new podcast episodes, live webinars, and a BIG launch of our Teams Program in August—designed to help whole teams of SLPs get better therapy results with less stress.

The post Special Announcement! appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

Getting ready for kindergarten doesn’t have to be overwhelming! In this episode, Carrie dives into what it really means to be ‘language-ready’ for the big K and how you can help little ones build those crucial communication skills over the summer—without pressure and with lots of fun.

Whether you’re a parent, teacher, or SLP, you’ll walk away with practical tips you can start using right away to boost your child’s expressive, receptive, and social language abilities. We also share a fantastic summer resource you won’t want to miss!

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Carrie kicks things off by defining what it means for a child to be “language-ready” for kindergarten and reminds us that all kids develop at their own pace. You’ll hear:

In this section, we talk about what children should ideally be able to express before starting school, including:

Helpful Tip: Focus on just one expressive goal each day or week to build skills gradually and naturally

Understanding is just as important as speaking! We discuss how to help your child:

Reading every day is HUGE—and Carrie gives you more tips to build literacy foundations the SLP way, including:

Top Tip: Don’t worry about letters—work on hearing and playing with sounds instead. That’s the real reading foundation!

Social skills are a must for kindergarten success! In this part of the episode, Carrie shares how to help your child:

Pro Tip: Practice “hearing no” and waiting their turn—it’s a big part of life in the classroom.

Want a structured, low-pressure way to practice these skills all summer long? Check out our Language Catch-Up Camp! It’s perfect for caregivers who want a roadmap:

Camp starts June 2nd!

Learn more and sign up at: https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com

Join our free community, The Hub, to ask questions, connect with other caregivers and professionals, and get support from Carrie and the team.

Sign up for free: https://hub.speechandlanguagekids.com

Let us know what you’re working on with your little one this summer! And remember—language growth happens step-by-step. You’ve got this.

The post Get Kids Language-Ready for Kindergarten! appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

In this short and exciting update episode, Carrie Clark announces two brand new virtual summer camp experiences inside the Speech and Language Kids Hub—one for parents & caregivers, and one for SLPs and related professionals! Plus, get an exclusive sneak peek at the upcoming SLK Teams Program, designed to support speech teams with tools, training, and marketing benefits.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Two interactive, themed camps—one for parents and one for professionals:

The post Announcing: Summer Camps and Teams Program appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

Do you want to help your child improve their communication skills at home but aren’t sure where to start? Whether you’re on a waiting list for services or just want to boost your child’s progress between sessions, this episode is for you.

Carrie Clark, SLP and founder of Speech and Language Kids, breaks down exactly how to do speech therapy at home without feeling overwhelmed. She walks you through how to figure out what to work on, how to break it down into bite-sized steps, and how to sneak practice into your daily routine (even with a busy schedule).

This episode was recorded live inside the SLK Hub, and you’ll hear about how the tools and resources inside the Hub can make this whole process even easier.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

If you’re not sure where to begin, Carrie shares a simple framework to help you narrow down your child’s communication challenges. She explains the six main areas of communication:

Not sure which one fits? Grab the free screening checklist included in the free Hub membership to help you pinpoint where your child needs support:

hub.speechandlanguagekids.com

Once you’ve identified the general area, it’s time to zoom in on a single skill. Carrie explains how to pick a specific, meaningful skill that will have a big impact—like answering “where” questions or producing the R sound.

You’ll hear why it’s important to:

Carrie explains how to make practice feel easy and doable:

She also explains how to apply this to both speech and language goals, using real-life examples like:

Inside the full SLK Hub membership, therapy plans are laid out step-by-step for each skill, but Carrie shows how to do this process on your own, too.

You don’t need hours of therapy time. Carrie recommends:

And yes, it’s okay if it doesn’t go perfectly! Carrie reminds us that working with your own child is way harder than working with anyone else’s. Do what you can, when you can—and take breaks when needed.

Want more structure, support, and fun this summer? Join us for the Virtual Summer Camp for Parents inside the SLK Hub! Here’s what you’ll get:

Whether your child needs to catch up or get a head start on next year, this is your chance to make summer count!

Stay tuned—registration opens soon at:

www.speechandlanguagekids.com

Got questions or want support on what to work on at home? Join us in the Hub and post in the discussion board—we’re here to help!

The post How to Do Speech Therapy at Home appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

Does your child (or student) struggle to follow directions? You’re not alone! In this episode of the Speech and Language Kids Podcast, Carrie Clark, SLP and founder of SpeechAndLanguageKids.com, walks you through how to teach children to follow directions—step-by-step. Whether you’re working with toddlers just starting to understand basic commands or older kids struggling with multi-step instructions, this episode has got you covered.

You’ll learn practical strategies for teaching one-step, two-step, and even complex multi-step directions, plus how to support kids using play, visuals, repetition, and more. We’ll also dig into why following directions is hard for many children (even those without speech or language delays!) and what you can do to help them succeed.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Following directions requires listening, understanding, memory, attention, and execution—sometimes all at once! Carrie explains why even neurotypical kids can struggle and how communication delays, ADHD, or autism can make this even more challenging.

Start here with your toddlers and early learners! Carrie explains how to teach:

Once kids are getting the hang of simple directions, it’s time to build up! Learn how to teach:

Now we’re stepping it up with:

This is where the rubber meets the road. Carrie covers how to help students follow complex directions in:

This episode was recorded live inside the Speech and Language Kids Hub. Join us in the Hub to attend future live episodes and ask your questions in real-time!

Learn more and join by clicking here.

The post Teaching Children to Follow Directions appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

Do you work with children who use communication devices or systems to express themselves? Whether it’s a high-tech talker, sign language, or picture boards, AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) comes in many forms—and it’s essential that we know how to support kids in using it effectively. In this episode, Carrie shares how to build therapy plans for children who use AAC, including practical strategies and step-by-step guidance based on the AAC Pathway inside the Speech and Language Kids Hub.

You’ll also hear answers to live listener questions about AAC devices in the classroom, choosing apps, and working with parents and teachers to support communication across environments.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Carrie starts by explaining what AAC is and the many ways children may use it to communicate, from low-tech tools like picture boards and gestures to high-tech devices with eye gaze or text-to-speech features. She also dispels the myth that AAC prevents speech development—spoiler alert: research says otherwise!

Helpful resource: What is AAC?

Before jumping into therapy planning, Carrie shares the two biggest takeaways for anyone supporting a child who uses AAC:

She explains why goals should center on meaningful interaction (not just button-pushing) and how modeling AAC use builds confidence and understanding.

At this stage, the focus is on helping the child communicate basic wants and needs using core vocabulary. You’ll hear:

Inside the Hub: Visual aids with core word boards and low-tech AAC tools

Once kids can express some wants and needs, it’s time to expand! Carrie discusses:

At the advanced level, AAC becomes a tool for full participation in classroom and social life. Learn how to support:

Carrie briefly touches on how some AAC users may learn in chunks rather than word-by-word. She shares how you can support GLPs by incorporating full phrases and familiar scripts into AAC devices.

Listeners asked some fantastic questions, including:

The Hub Mobile App

Looking for low-tech AAC boards, full lesson plans, or more support? Join us inside the Speech and Language Kids Hub where you’ll find everything from downloadable materials to expert-led courses.

The post Building Therapy Plans for Children with AAC appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

Cycles Approach for Language: Treating Multiple Areas of Language Simultaneously

When a child is struggling in more than one area of language, how do you decide what to work on first? In this episode, Carrie Clark, SLP and creator of the Speech and Language Kids Hub, shares her approach to tackling this common challenge—using a cycles approach for language therapy. Inspired by the classic cycles method for phonology, this flexible strategy helps SLPs target multiple areas of language without having to pick just one.

Whether you’re working with Tier 2 kids, students with mild mixed delays, or children with more complex needs, this method can help you move the needle on progress without feeling scattered or overwhelmed. Keep reading (or listening!) for practical tips, real-life examples, and tools to get started.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Carrie introduces the idea of cycling through different language goals—just like we do with phonology. Instead of zeroing in on one skill until mastery, you rotate through a set of 2–4 key targets, giving students repeated exposure over time.

Perfect for:

This method mirrors how language naturally develops and aligns beautifully with how school curriculums revisit and build on skills over time.

Carrie shares stories of two students who inspired her to rethink how she structured therapy. Both had mild delays across multiple language domains—but no single “big weakness” to focus on. Instead of choosing one goal and ignoring the rest, she tried a cycles-based approach… and it worked!

Carrie highlights a study (from the ‘80s or ‘90s) that compared three therapy models: simultaneous targeting of phonology and language, block scheduling, and a cycling approach. Spoiler alert: cycling came out on top, reinforcing the value of this method for supporting progress across multiple skill areas.

Carrie describes a research study comparing three therapy methods:

The winner? The cycles model—students made more progress when targets were rotated!

Not sure where to start? Here’s Carrie’s simple setup:

There’s no “one right way” to do it—customize based on the child’s needs and your style!

Goal writing can feel tricky with a cycles model, but Carrie offers two great options:

Inside the Hub, you’ll find screening checklists, rubrics, and goal-writing guides to make this super manageable.

A Look Inside the Core Language Program

Carrie’s Core Language Program is a full-blown example of this approach in action. It’s a 16-week curriculum that cycles through every oral language skill for one grade level, with built-in foundational skills like:

Each lesson includes therapy activities + homework pages for families and teachers.

Available inside the Hub (separate purchase required)

The cycles approach to language therapy is a flexible, effective way to support students with mixed needs—and it fits beautifully with how children learn naturally. Whether you’re brand new to this idea or already cycling through goals without realizing it, this episode will give you fresh ideas and next steps.

Give it a listen, and let us know what you think!

The post Cycles Approach for Language – Treating Multiple Areas of Language Simultaneously appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

In this episode, Carrie shares the story of a sweet 5-year-old boy named Ahmad (name changed for privacy) and his journey with childhood apraxia of speech. From using AAC to working through early speech sounds, Carrie walks through the specific framework and strategies that helped Ahmad go from frustration to finding his voice.

If you’re working with a child who struggles to speak but clearly has a lot to say, this one’s for you.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

Carrie kicks off the episode by explaining what childhood apraxia of speech is—a motor speech disorder where the brain knows what it wants to say, but the message doesn’t make it clearly to the mouth. Ahmad had CAS along with other developmental and medical challenges, which made early intervention even more important. Carrie talks about what apraxia can look like in a preschooler and how it can affect speech production in unpredictable ways.

Learn more about Childhood Apraxia of Speech

Carrie walks through how she applied the Speech and Language Kids Framework to Ahmad’s case. The first step? Identifying the areas of communication that needed the most support. For Ahmad, that meant:

From there, she explains how they chose two primary therapy pathways:

Grab the SLK Therapy Framework

Ahmad’s story isn’t just about the therapy—it’s about the people involved, too. Carrie shares how she encountered resistance from Ahmad’s mom about using AAC, particularly because of concerns around manipulation and behavior due to reactive attachment disorder.

Instead of pushing her agenda, Carrie modeled collaboration by calling a team meeting. Together with a behavior specialist and the family, they developed a plan: Ahmad could use the AAC device, but would also be encouraged to attempt speech with each use. This balanced approach honored everyone’s concerns while still supporting Ahmad’s communication.

Related Resource

With AAC in place, Carrie focused on Ahmad’s expressive speech. She used a motor speech approach, starting with simple word shapes like consonant-vowel (CV) and vowel-consonant (VC) patterns. Key strategies included:

Try the Motor Speech Therapy Plan

Carrie describes how she used brief, frequent practice opportunities—like greeting Ahmad at the classroom door and reviewing his core words by his backpack. These mini-sessions, combined with play-based speech therapy and consistent home carryover, helped Ahmad make meaningful progress.

Key Tip: Kids with apraxia benefit from distributed practice—short bursts of practice multiple times a day are more effective than one long session.

If you’re working with preschoolers with CAS or complex needs, you’ll find loads of practical gems in this episode.

SLK Therapy Framework

Motor Speech Therapy Plan in the Hub

AAC Overview for SLPs and Parents

Apraxia-KIDS.org

Ready for more? Join the next live podcast recording inside The Hub!

The post Ahmad’s Story – Childhood Apraxia of Speech and the Motor Speech Pathway appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

How do you know where to start with a preschooler who’s hard to understand? In today’s episode, I’m walking you through a real-life case study of a sweet little one (we’ll call her Arianna) who had significant speech and language challenges. I’ll share the exact process I used to figure out what to target first and how I built a therapy plan that made meaningful progress possible—even with limited time and resources.

This episode is perfect for SLPs, teachers, and parents working with preschoolers who have unclear speech, multiple delays, or difficulty getting their message across.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

We started by figuring out which areas of communication were causing the most trouble. For Arianna, that meant:

Tip: Narrow down to the areas that will give you the most bang for your buck—the ones that will make everything else easier once they improve.

SLK Screening Checklist (Free inside the Hub!)

Once we knew her biggest challenges, we used SLK’s progress monitoring checklists to pinpoint where she was breaking down:

These checklists helped us move from a broad area (like “speech”) to the exact patterns to target in therapy.

Progress Monitoring Tools

We mapped Arianna’s goals onto SLK’s structured therapy pathways:

This helped create a clear, step-by-step plan that fit her level and needs.

From there, we picked specific therapy goals:

These were the skills that would have the biggest immediate impact on her intelligibility and communication success.

Since Arianna was just 4 years old, we kept our sessions fun and flexible:

We also collaborated with her teacher and sent simple homework activities home for carryover.

In the second half of the episode, we tackled listener questions about similar preschoolers:

I shared how the same SLK framework helps guide those decisions so you can confidently know what to target first.

Join the Speech and Language Kids Hub – Free & Paid Plans

SLK Screening Checklist

SLK Progress Monitoring Tools

Therapy Pathways & Materials ($25/month or $250/year)

The post Arianna’s Story: Preschool Speech and Language appeared first on Speech And Language Kids.

Are you looking for the simplest, most effective way to teach communication skills to children and teens?

Well, search no farther!

I’m speech-language pathologist Carrie Clark and in today’s episode of The Speech and Language Kids Podcast, we’re diving into exactly how to make the most of virtual speech sessions so we can work on closing these gaps, one child at a time.

You can listen to the full podcast episode below:

To Access the Specific Progress Monitoring Tools, Click Here!

Articulation – Individuals with articulation challenges have difficulty with specific speech sounds, producing them incorrectly or with noticeable distortions. Choose the articulation pathway for traditional sound-by-sound therapy that targets one speech sound at a time.

Phonology – Individuals with phonological challenges demonstrate consistent patterns of speech errors, such as omitting sounds at the beginning or end of words or struggling with whole categories of sounds (e.g., back sounds like /k/ and /g/). Choose the phonology pathway to teach sound patterns and eliminate phonological processes such as fronting, stopping, final consonant deletion, etc.

Motor Speech – Individuals with motor speech difficulties have inconsistent speech errors, struggle more with longer words, appear to have difficulty physically producing speech sounds, and may sound choppy and robotic. Choose the motor speech pathway to treat motor-based speech disorders, such as apraxia, by teaching specific word structures, such as CV, VC, CVC, and multisyllabic words.

Mumbling Pathway – These individuals may speak too quickly, too quietly, slurs their words, or are able to produce sounds correctly in isolation but become harder to understand in conversation. Choose this pathway for a structured approach to teaching over-articulation and increasing awareness of when they are not understood.

To access these Therapy Pathways and the corresponding Therapy Plans, click here!

Following Directions Pathway

Individuals with following directions challenges have difficulty understanding and carrying out one-step or multi-step instructions. They may become easily distracted when given directions or struggle to process spoken information. Choose this pathway to target skills like following verbal and written directions, improving attention to instructions, and processing spoken language efficiently.

Asking and Answering Questions Pathway

These individuals have difficulty responding to basic WH-questions (who, what, where, etc.), struggle to ask meaningful questions, or have trouble answering questions about something they just heard. Choose this pathway to build skills in answering WH-questions, formulating clear and relevant questions, and improving comprehension through question-based interactions.

Sequencing & Retelling Pathway

Individuals with sequencing and retelling challenges have difficulty organizing events or stories in logical order. They may start retellings in the middle without context, leave out key details, or struggle to recall events accurately. Choose this pathway to focus on skills like sequencing steps, retelling stories with key details, and structuring a story clearly.

Grammar & Sentence Complexity Pathway

Individuals with grammar and sentence complexity challenges have speech that contains frequent grammar errors, sounds choppy and incomplete, or relies on shorter or simpler sentences than expected for their age. Choose this pathway to strengthen grammar use, expand sentence length and complexity, and improve overall sentence structure.

Foundations for Literacy Pathway

Individuals with literacy challenges have difficulty with early reading skills, such as phonological awareness, understanding written texts, or developing reading fluency and comprehension. Choose this pathway to build phonological awareness, strengthen early literacy skills, and improve reading comprehension and fluency.

Abstract Language Pathway

Individuals with abstract language challenges struggle to understand figurative language, such as idioms, sarcasm, and metaphors, or have difficulty making inferences from conversations and texts. Choose this pathway to develop skills in understanding and using figurative language, interpreting implied meanings, and making logical inferences.

Vocabulary Pathway

Individuals with vocabulary challenges have difficulty understanding and using new words, rely on vague or imprecise language, or struggle with remembering and using the correct words. Choose this pathway to enhance word knowledge, improve word retrieval, and build precise and meaningful vocabulary use.

To access these Therapy Pathways and the corresponding Therapy Plans, click here!

Social Awareness and Interaction Pathway

Individuals with social awareness and interaction challenges have difficulty responding to others, understanding different perspectives, and engaging appropriately in social situations. Choose this pathway to build skills responding to others, joint attention, turn taking, topic maintenance, and perspective taking.

Emotional Regulation & Self-Advocacy Pathway

Individuals with emotional regulation and self-advocacy challenges have difficulty expressing their needs, managing emotions, and coping with social stressors. They may struggle to communicate boundaries or self-regulate in overwhelming situations. Choose this pathway to develop skills in emotional awareness, self-advocacy, coping strategies, and effective self-expression.

Conversational Skills Pathway

Individuals with conversational skills challenges have difficulty initiating, maintaining, and appropriately ending conversations. They may struggle to take turns, stay on topic, or understand conversational rules. Choose this pathway to improve an individual’s ability to initiate conversations, keep them going, and adapt them to a variety of situations.

Abstract Language Pathway

Individuals with abstract language challenges struggle to understand figurative language, sarcasm, idioms, and implied meanings in conversations. They may take things literally or have difficulty making inferences. Choose this pathway to strengthen skills in interpreting figurative language, understanding implied messages, and making logical inferences in conversations.

Selective Mutism Pathway

Individuals with selective mutism can speak in some situations but experience anxiety or difficulty speaking in specific social settings (such as speaking freely at home but remaining silent at school). Choose this pathway to build confidence in verbal communication, reduce anxiety around speaking, and support gradual exposure to new speaking environments.

To access these Therapy Pathways and the corresponding Therapy Plans, click here!

Foundations for Fluency Pathway

Individuals with fluency challenges may struggle with maintaining smooth, natural speech flow. They may benefit from strategies that support breath control, emotional regulation, and confidence in speaking. Choose this pathway to work on coordinating breathing with speech, increasing awareness of stuttering, and dealing with negative emotions or reactions related to stuttering.

Stuttering Pathway

Individuals with stuttering challenges experience interruptions in speech, such as repetitions, prolongations, or blocks. They may feel frustrated or anxious about speaking. Choose this pathway to develop structured strategies for smoother, more confident communication and to reduce tension associated with stuttering.

Cluttering Pathway

Individuals with cluttering challenges speak too quickly, in a disorganized way, or with reduced clarity, making their speech difficult to understand. They may struggle with self-monitoring and pacing their speech. Choose this pathway to improve speech clarity, regulate speaking rate, and enhance overall communication effectiveness.

Word Finding/Word Retrieval Pathway

Individuals with word finding challenges struggle to retrieve the right words, leading to frequent hesitations, pauses, or substitutions in conversation. Choose this pathway to strengthen word retrieval skills, reduce speaking delays, and increase ease and confidence in communication.

To access these Therapy Pathways and the corresponding Therapy Plans, click here!

Early Interactions Pathway

Individuals with early interaction challenges may need support with basic social engagement, responding to their name, following simple directions, and participating in early social routines. Choose this pathway to build foundational communication skills, increase social engagement, and support early language development.

Analytic Language Processors (ALP) Pathway

Individuals who are analytic language processors learn language through individual words and phrases. They may need help using words and short phrases effectively across different situations. Choose this pathway to teach a child to use short words for functional communication, build up their vocabulary, and begin to expand their utterance length to longer phrases.

Gestalt Language Processors (GLP) Pathway

Individuals who are gestalt language processors learn language through echolalia, scripts, or repeating chunks of language. They may need structured support in moving toward self-generated speech. Choose this pathway to guide the progression from echolalia to meaningful, spontaneous language use.

Augmentative & Alternative Communication (AAC) Pathway

Individuals who use AAC (such as picture boards, speech-generating devices, or gestures) may need support in developing functional and meaningful communication. Others may struggle with speech intelligibility and need alternative ways to express themselves without frustration. Choose this pathway to help a child learn to communicate using alternative means, such as pictures, sign language, or communication devices.

To access these Therapy Pathways and the corresponding Therapy Plans, click here

Foundations of Healthy Voice Use Pathway

Individuals with challenges in healthy voice use may experience vocal strain, fatigue, or difficulty maintaining a strong and clear voice. They may need to improve vocal hygiene, breath support, or voice care habits. Choose this pathway to build healthy vocal habits, reduce strain, and strengthen breath support for better voice production.

Voice Pathway

Individuals with voice challenges may struggle with vocal quality due to strain, tension, or inefficient voice use. Their voice may sound hoarse, breathy, or weak. Choose this pathway to improve vocal quality, develop better vocal control, and reduce strain or tension in speech.

Resonance Pathway

Individuals with resonance challenges may experience hypernasality, nasal emission, or other resonance differences that impact speech clarity. Choose this pathway to improve speech resonance, enhance clarity, and support balanced vocal tone.

Prosody Pathway

Individuals with prosody challenges may have difficulty with pitch, volume, or speech rate, leading to speech that sounds monotone, robotic, or unnatural. Choose this pathway to develop expressive, natural speech patterns by improving pitch variation, volume control, and pacing.

To access these Therapy Pathways and the corresponding Therapy Plans, click here!

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