Unbabbled

With an estimated 15-20% of the population showing signs of dyslexia, it is the most common cause of reading, writing and spelling difficulties in children and persists throughout life. Yet, there is still a lot of confusions among the public, including parents and teachers, when it comes to understanding this learning disability. In this episode, we sit down with reading specialists Alison Edwards and Meagan Rosales to discuss dyslexia, including the red flags to look for, when and how to get a diagnosis, ideas parents can implement at home and best practices for intervention. We also debunk some of the most common dyslexia myths.

About Our Guests
Alison Edwards is a Licensed Dyslexia Therapist (LDT) and a Certified Academic Language Therapist (CALT) in Houston. With more than 23 years of experience in the school setting, she offers dyslexia intervention for struggling students and consulting services to parents and teachers. Alison helps navigate the daunting questions raised when children struggle in the classroom. She provides dyslexia therapy both in-person and online to help students reach their full potential. 

Meagan Rosales, MEd, is a Reading Intervention Specialist at The Parish School. She earned her Master’s in Education from the University of St. Thomas in 2014. She also holds teaching certifications for Special Education EC-12, Generalist EC-6 and Reading Specialist EC-12. Meagan has a special interest in teaching children with learning differences how to read. She loves being at The Parish School because she has space to incorporate a variety of strategies to meet the needs of individual students.

Related Links:

• Alison Edwards' website
• Houston Branch of the International Dyslexia Association

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If there is one thing we’ve learned since March 2020, it’s that the rules of our society are frequently changing! The way we grocery shop, go out to eat, attend school, have birthday parties, and even interact with family members have all been altered. With changes to the social rules and expectations occurring in almost every aspect of your child’s life, it’s important to address these adjustments and teach your child how to figure out the new rules and also adapt to them. 

During this bonus Unbabbled episode, Meredith and Stephanie discuss ways to support your child through the ever-changing social norms during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on front-loading situations, looking for clues in new situations, and problem solving when new changes occur.

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Have you ever sent a text asking someone how they’re doing and received the reply “great.” You may have interpreted it as your friend is having a wonderful day. However, they might have actually been having a horrible day and meant “great” sarcastically. Understanding a person’s meaning behind their words (otherwise known as pragmatic language ability) often requires knowing a lot of contextual clues, including tone of voice, body language and facial expressions. “Great” with an eye roll is vastly different from “great” with a smile. These subtle clues can be difficult to detect in many pragmatic language assessments, yet they are a large factor in determining if a person has a social communication disorder and pragmatic language difficulties. 

In this episode, we speak with Dr. Adriana Lavi about her new video-based pragmatic language assessment, the Clinical Assessment of Pragmatics (CAPs). She discusses her clinical background, what led her to develop the assessment tool, and why this assessment can be more accurate in detecting pragmatic language disorders. This interview can help parents and educators understand why their child may have scored well on other language assessments, yet they struggle with reading these ever-important social cues in real situations.

About Dr. Lavi
Adriana Lavi, PhD, CCC-SLP, is a practicing licensed school-based speech-language pathologist with more than 15 years of experience working with children and young adults who present with a variety of communication disorders. She currently supervises speech-language pathologists in three school districts in Southern California. Dr. Lavi developed the Clinical Assessment of Pragmatics (CAPs) and founded the Lavi Institute for Research and Professional Development, where she completes research and develops a variety of treatment programs. She has also served as an assistant professor at the Department of Communicative Disorders at Loma Linda University. Her primary research interests focus on pragmatics, and the assessment and treatment of culturally and linguistically diverse students with communication disorders. Dr. Lavi is also a mother of four young, highly energetic little boys, ages 6, 5, 4 and 18 months. 

Related links:  

• The Lavi Institute for Research and Professional Development - Lavi Institute 
• Lavi Institute Video Resources - Lavi Institute on YouTube 
• Lavi Institute Instagram 
• Where to find the CAPs - Clinical Assessment of Pragmatics 

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Raising a child in a bilingual household? Hear from bilingual speech-language pathologist, Jacquilyn Carcamo, as she discusses language development and the many common misconceptions held by families, educators and even therapists in supporting children learning to speak more than one language. She provides guidance in determining whether a bilingual child is struggling with a language disorder or if their difficulties are due to learning a second language. In addition to her clinical expertise, Jacqui touches on her personal experience growing up in a bilingual family.

About Jacqui

Jacquilyn Carcamo, MA, CCC-SLP, is a certified and licensed speech-language pathologist at The Parish School and The Carruth Center in Houston. She has experience in pediatric and adult settings, working with patients with a variety of communication, swallowing and feeding disorders, as well as working with culturally and linguistically diverse populations. She is Hanen-certified in “It Takes Two to Talk” and “More than Words.”  She enjoys furthering her education in communication disorders and staying current with research-based practice. Jacqui has a passion for naturalistic intervention and family collaboration. In addition to her work at The Parish School, Jacqui provides freelance consulting, training and resources to speech-language pathologists who work with culturally and linguistically diverse populations through Habla Cadabra SLP.

Related Links

• Find Jacqui on Instagram: Habla Cadabra SLP
• American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Information Page: ASHA Bilingual Service Delivery
• ASHA’s Speech-Language Pathologist Search Page: ASHA ProFind

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Being told that your child has childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) can be shocking and confusing. Since this speech/sound disorder is so rare—occurring in 1-2 children per 1,000—many doctors, educators, professionals and even speech-language pathologists have minimal understanding of it. In this episode, we speak with speech-language pathologist and childhood apraxia of speech expert, Jennie Bjorem about the characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of apraxia. She also provides tips on where parents can find a speech pathologist with CAS experience and other reliable resources.

About Jennie
Jennie Bjorem, MA, CCC-SLP, has been a practicing SLP for over 20 years. Jennie’s areas of expertise include early intervention, parent education and childhood apraxia of speech. She is recognized by Apraxia Kids for Advanced Training in Childhood Apraxia of Speech, and travels the country presenting on the rare disorder. She owns a private pediatric clinic in Kansas and founded Bjorem Speech Publications, where she developed a variety of products to support speech/sound development at home and in therapy. Jennie is passionate about working with parents to help encourage their children in all areas of development.


Related Links

• Apraxia Kids Website
• A Parents’ Guide to Apraxia
• Follow Jennie on Instagram
• Bjorem Speech Publications
• Jennie’s pediatric clinic, Children’s Therapy Services
• Jennie’s YouTube Channel

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When a child’s speech is difficult to understand, there can be many underlying causes. Their difficulty could be due to an articulation disorder, childhood apraxia of speech, a phonological processing disorder or something else entirely.

This episode, we discuss speech sound disorders with speech-language pathologist, Jessica Carter. Jessica defines what phonological processing disorders and articulation disorders are and explains how they differ from childhood apraxia of speech. We then discuss common warning signs that parents and educators can look for, as well as therapy recommendations for each diagnosis. She also lets us know what parents can expect when they go in for an assessment.

About Jessica

Jessica Carter, MS, CCC-SLP, is a bilingual speech-language pathologist and clinical faculty member at the University of Texas at Dallas’s School of Behavior and Brain Sciences, where she teaches a variety of pediatric courses including Preschool Assessment and Intervention Methods, Pediatric Motor Speech Disorders, and Bilingual Speech Assessment and Treatment. Jessica also coordinates a joint initiative between UT Dallas and the Dallas Independent School District. Prior to joining the faculty at UT Dallas, she worked in public schools, private practice and home health.

Helpful Links

• Jessica Carter Faculty Page
• What is a Speech Disorder
• Information on Speech Sound Disorders from ASHA

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Does it seem like some days your child is bouncing off the walls? Or maybe the noises, lights and activites taking place at home are causing your child to feel overstimulated? Getting children to sit through online lessons, shared book readings, or even just lunch can feel like an impossible task when they're struggling with dysregulation.

Pediatric Occupational Therapist, Sibi Samuel joins us this episode to discuss sensory-based activities and their power to help regulate emotions. Additionally, she provides simple methods for incorporating these activities at home.

About Sibi
Sibi Samuel, OTR, MOT is a licensed and registered occupational therapist at The Carruth Center. She received her master's of occupational therapy degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch in 2014 and a master's in childhood education from Herbert H. Lehman College in 2009. After working as a teacher, Sibi obtained her master's in occupational therapy after realizing the field combines her love for working with children with her continuously growing interest in healthcare. She has practiced in a variety of settings, including a sensory integration clinic, outpatient clinic, and home health. In addition to her work at The Carruth Center, Sibi and her certified therapy dog, Jax, volunteer with Faithful Paws.

Top recommended activities:

1. Silly animal walks: bear crawls, frog jumps, crab walks, horse gallops
2. Sensory bins: shaving cream, dried rice or beans
3. Magic carpet rides
4. Play-dough
5. Fort building

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With so many of us at home likely doing more cooking and cleaning than ever before, this episode explores how to turn these everyday activities into language-rich lessons for our children. Additionally, we discuss ways to build early academic skills into our everyday lives. Two fantastic Parish teaching staff, Amy Lerman and Elsie Torres-Verdejo, join us as guests.

About Amy and Elsie
Amy is a certified speech-language pathologist and the Community Outreach and Social Thinking Specialist at The Parish School. On top of that, she is the lead teacher for one of The Parish School’s youngest classrooms. She has over 15 years’ experience working with the pediatric population and has a strong passion for early intervention. 

Elsie is an early childhood educator at The Parish School. She began her nearly 20-year career at Parish as a paraeducator in 2000, before moving into her role as an educator. She has worked in both the elementary and early childhood programs. Elsie holds a master’s degree in education and is a certified special education teacher.

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Stay-at-home orders are now in place for much of the U.S and the world. This may leave many parents feeling stressed about keeping children entertained and busy. One simple  way to keep your kids active while home is to introduce loose parts play.

Jill Wood, MLIS, explains what loose parts play is, how to implement it in your home, and the importance of play in a child’s day. She also provides ideas for everyday household items that can be used to start your loose parts play at home. This conversation will empower parents to embrace boredom and spark a bit of creativity in their child’s day.

About Jill Wood
Jill Wood is the Director of Adventure Play at The Parish School, as well as the school’s librarian. She holds a Master of Library and Information Science from the University of Texas at Austin. Jill has been the Director of Adventure Play at The Parish School since 2008. Outside of The Parish School, Jill is the co-founder of Bayou City Play, an organization that sets up inclusive loose parts playgrounds at Shriner's Hospital for Children and pop-up playgrounds throughout the city of Houston. Jill believes that play is an integral part of a child’s educational and developmental experience, and, like exploring library shelves, it’s much better when there are a lot of choices and no one is telling you exactly what to choose!

Related Links:

• Parish School blog article: Loose Parts Take Part in Early Childhood Play
• Fairy Dust Teaching article: Loose Parts 
• Collection of play related articles relating to Corona virus: Play Whales Article Round-Up

Loose Parts Materials:

• Cardboard tubes and boxes
• Milk crates
• Egg cartons
• Plastic bottles and caps
• Fabric – small scraps large enough for capes or fort-building are both great
• Pieces of string or ribbon
• Clothespins
• Pool noodles
• Cardboard packing material of odd shapes
• Oatmeal containers/other empty and washed food containers, including soda bottles
• Wooden spoons
• Mixing bowl
• Saucepan, cooking pot, muffin tin, bowls
• Corks
• Wrapping paper
• Tennis balls

Activities to try with and without loose parts:

• Den building
• Pirate Adventure: See Jill's Video
• Playing "store" or "hospital"
• Marble maze
• Potion-making in the yard 
• Extended bath time with loose parts that float and hold water
• Wrestling
• Tree climbing
• Bike rides
• Long walks
• GoNoodle, dance parties, Cosmic Kids Yoga

 Podcasts for kids:

• https://www.storynory.com/
• https://www.npr.org/podcasts/532788972/circle-round
• https://www.storypirates.com/podcast

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Talk of COVID-19 has been everywhere for weeks. But how can we speak with our children about this global pandemic without evoking fear or anxiety? We speak with Lily Yoder, a Licensed Professional Counselor and Registered Play Therapist about how to talk to children about COVID-19, as well as how parents can support their children's mental and social-emotional health through this time.

About Lily Yoder
Lily is the Director of Student and Family Services at The Parish School. She earned her BA in Psychology from Baylor University and her MA in Psychology from Houston Baptist University. Before joining The Parish School in 2018, Lily had over 10 years of experience providing counseling and play therapy to children and families in a variety of settings. She has significant experience with young children, ADHD and anxiety disorders, and is a member of the Sam Houston Chapter of the Association for Play Therapy.

Links:
Germ Salt and Pepper Video: https://youtu.be/HulpYYaQ2Dg
GoNoodle: https://www.gonoodle.com/

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