What if teaching describing could feel simpler and more effective? In this episode, we break down evidence-based strategies and share practical tools you can start using right away. From visual supports to vocabulary journals, you’ll learn how to build stronger describing skills with confidence.

In this episode, you’ll learn how to:

• Teach key attribute categories using clear, structured supports
• Use contrastive examples to boost understanding
• Build vocabulary with journals and scaffolded visuals
• Support generalization through sentence frames

Sign up for the free trial at slpnow.com/pod to download the Describing Helper and start using it in your sessions today!

Show Notes: slpnow.com/238

In this episode, I’m sharing five simple, research-backed strategies you can use to target basic concepts in a way that really sticks. You’ll learn how to keep instruction focused, embed concepts in meaningful contexts, and use gestures and visuals to boost understanding. I’ll also walk you through how to put it all together with one of my favorite books, Zoe Gets Ready, using a literacy-based therapy framework.

Tune in to discover practical ways to target basic concepts while keeping therapy fun, functional, and evidence-aligned.

Go to slpnow.com/trial to download the skill pack and therapy plans! It's free!

Access the Sentence Pack (for free!) here: slpnow.com/pod

Show Notes: slpnow.com/237

In this episode, we’re diving into five evidence-based strategies to boost your students’ Mean Length of Utterance (MLU) — in a way that’s fun, functional, and easy to track! 🎯

You’ll learn how to:

✅ Use language samples to identify targets and monitor progress

✅ Embed MLU practice into play, books, songs, and routines

✅ Model just above the child’s level for natural growth

✅ Use sentence frames and visuals to support longer utterances

✅ Give students space with contingent responses and wait time

Plus, I’ll show you how it all comes together in a Little Blue Truck therapy plan.

✨ Resources Mentioned

Free Language Sample Sheet: slpnow.com/free-language-sample-hack

Sentence Pack: slpnow.com/materials/sentence-pack/

Therapy Plans (including Little Blue Truck): slpnow.com/pod

Show Notes: slpnow.com/236

Even our youngest students use complex syntax, but what happens when they don’t? In this episode, Marisha breaks down why syntax matters (even for kindergartners!) and shares practical strategies to assess and target structures like passive voice, relative clauses, and adverbial clauses. You’ll learn evidence-based techniques such as focused stimulation, sentence combining, and sentence decomposition — plus how to easily embed these skills into your literacy-based therapy sessions using SLP Now resources.

Help your students master compound sentences! In this episode, Marisha shares five evidence-backed strategies—from visuals and sentence combining to movement and classroom collaboration—that make teaching conjunctions clear, fun, and effective.

Full Show Notes: slpnow.com/234

In this episode, Marisha shares six practical, evidence-based strategies to target following directions. From pinpointing the right foundational skills to collaborating with teachers and planning for generalization, you’ll walk away with clear, actionable ideas you can use in your sessions right away.

• How to assess and identify the root causes of direction-following difficulties
• The power of recasting and corrective feedback
• Why incorporating movement boosts comprehension
• How to explicitly teach and model strategies like rehearsing and visualizing
• Ways to partner with teachers for greater carryover
• How to plan for generalization from the start

🎧 Tune in for practical tips you can apply this week!

Full Show Notes: slpnow.com/233

WH questions are foundational for language, literacy, and classroom success—but teaching them effectively can feel overwhelming. In this episode, Marisha shares six practical, evidence-backed strategies to help your students master WH questions using the Assess–Teach–Practice framework.

You’ll learn how to assess to find the right starting point, teach question words with visuals, scaffold instruction through a hierarchy, focus on one question type at a time, embed practice in meaningful contexts, and provide high-repetition practice for generalization.

Go to slpnow.com/trial to download the WH Questions Skill Pack. (It's free!)

Fall is the perfect time to bring seasonal books into your therapy room, and one of my favorites is Apple Trouble! In this episode, I’ll share how to use this story to target WH questions, narratives, vocabulary, articulation, and more.

Whether you already have the book in your library (or plan to use a YouTube read-aloud), you’ll walk away with practical therapy ideas you can use all month long.

Here’s what you’ll learn in this episode:

• Why Apple Trouble is a versatile book for K–2 therapy sessions
• How to use literacy-based therapy steps with this story
• Examples of WH question, narrative, and vocabulary activities
• How to integrate grammar, articulation, and syntax goals
• Tips for home practice and carryover

✨ Want ready-to-go materials? Start a free trial at slpnow.com/trial and grab a set of materials to try with your students this week!

Show Notes: https://slpnow.com/blog/231-5-evidence-backed-strategies-to-teach-past-tense-verbs/

In this episode of the SLP Now Podcast, Marisha breaks down five research-backed strategies you can use to help students master past tense verbs. Many of our students have goals in this area, and if progress feels slower than expected, these strategies can give you practical tools to try in your next session.

You’ll also hear why marking tense is such an important communication skill, not just for storytelling and effective communication but also as a reliable diagnostic indicator of language impairment (Guo & Schneider, 2016).

Whether you’re looking for new ideas, reminders of tried-and-true techniques, or support in boosting student progress, this episode has you covered.

Mentioned in this episode:

5 FREE Therapy Materials

Go to 🔗 slpnow.com/pod 🔗 to download 5 evidence-backed therapy materials for FREE!

In this episode, I’m joined by returning guest Lacee Johnson—a school-based SLP. We dive into how she transformed her referral process from post-it note chaos to a streamlined, brain-friendly system using the Workload feature in SLP Now.

You’ll hear:

→ What her referral process used to look like (and why it wasn’t working)

→ How she customized a task list that actually fits her district’s workflow

→ Real talk about cognitive load, parent communication, and keeping it all straight

Whether you're a CF or a seasoned SLP, you'll walk away with ideas to make your own referral process more manageable and way less stressful.