Building Parents’ Capacity

At Speak, Learn & Grow we truly believe in empowering parents to be a key part of their child’s therapy journey.

By helping parents’ build their skills and knowledge, we ensure they can support their child’s communication in every environment, not just within our clinic walls.

We do this through several focused approaches:

• Coaching parents in how to use strategies at home
  • We give parents practical strategies to seamlessly integrate therapeutic activities into their daily routines.
• Coaching parents in how to build engagement and interaction first
  • We guide parents in creating meaningful interactions and engaging activities, which are crucial as a base for effective communication.

• Building parents’ understanding about communication and recognizing it as more than just words
  • We help parents see that communication includes nonverbal cues, gestures, and social skills, not just spoken language.
• Teaching parents to model language and provide their child with a language-rich environment
  • We show parents how to model language consistently and create an environment filled with language opportunities.
• Teaching parents specific techniques so they can provide intervention at home
  • We equip parents with targeted techniques and resources to continue to support therapy goals right at home.
• Giving parents ideas about how to target language concepts, structures, and articulation every day
  • We offer practical tips and activities for parents to help develop their child’s vocabulary, grammar, and clear speech daily.
• Building parents’ knowledge about word attack skills and phonics rules
  • We enhance parents’ understanding of literacy development, including phonemic awareness and decoding skills, to support their child’s reading and spelling.

Empowering parents in this way is crucial because it fosters a consistent and supportive environment for the child, which is essential for effective communication development. When parents are actively involved and well-equipped, they can reinforce and expand on the benefits of therapy in everyday life. This holistic family-centred approach ensures that progress made in the clinic is maintained and enhanced, leading to more significant and lasting improvements in the child’s communication skills.

Child Led Play

At Speak, Learn & Grow we strongly believe in the power of child-led play as a fundamental component of effective speech therapy.

Child-led play allows children to take the lead in their therapy sessions, making them active participants in their own learning process.

This approach is rooted in the understanding that play is a natural and motivating context for children to develop their communication skills.

We emphasize the importance of child-led play through the following strategies:

• Creating a safe and engaging play environment
  • We provide a welcoming and stimulating space where children feel comfortable to explore and express themselves. We acknowledge that play can look different for every child and we honour all types of play.
• Following the child’s lead
  • We observe the child’s interests and preferences, allowing them to choose activities and direct the flow of the session. This also involved considering their sensory preferences and a versions
• Incorporating therapy goals into play
  • We skilfully integrate specific speech and language targets into the child’s chosen activities, making learning both fun and relevant, without needing to sabotage or withhold favoured items or activities.
• Encouraging spontaneous communication
  • We aim to build an an environment where children feel free to communicate naturally, offering their own ideas and creativity.
• Promoting problem-solving and critical thinking
  • We design play activities that challenge children to think, reason, and solve problems, which enhances their cognitive and communication skills.
• Building social skills through interactive play
  • We use play as an opportunity to teach and reinforce social communication skills, such as turn-taking, sharing, and collaborating with peers.
• Providing space to move
  • We give kids lots of opportunities to run, jump, dance, wriggle, and roll! Moving helps children to imprint the things they are learning.

Child-led play is essential because it respects and nurtures the child’s natural curiosity and motivation. When children are allowed to direct their play, they are more engaged and invested in the activities, leading to more meaningful and effective learning experiences, and better therapy outcomes.

This approach also helps build a positive and trusting relationship between the child and the therapist, making us play partners rather than play directors. Here at Speak, Learn & Grow we firmly believe in building authentic connections, not just building compliance. By embracing child-led play, we create a dynamic and responsive therapy environment that supports each child’s unique communication development journey.

Family Centred Therapy

At Speak, Learn & Grow we believe that family-centred therapy is the heart of what we do.

We understand that families play a crucial role in a child’s development, and by involving the whole family in the therapy process, we ensure that the support extends far beyond the clinic.

Here’s how we put this belief into action:

• Collaborating with families
  • We work hand-in-hand with parents and caregivers, valuing their insights and weaving their perspectives into the therapy plan. We know that parents know their children and their family best.
• Setting joint goals
  • Together with families, we set therapy goals that truly reflect the child’s needs and the family’s priorities.
• Providing family education and training
  • We give families the knowledge and tools they need to support their child’s development at home, empowering them to be active partners in the therapy journey.
• Offering flexible therapy options
  • We understand that life is busy, so we offer various therapy formats, including in-home sessions, preschool sessions and teletherapy sessions, to fit the family’s schedule and preferences.
• Supporting the whole family
  • We recognize each family has its strengths and challenges and grow best when we make use of those strengths. We also consider the challenges families may face and offer resources and guidance to help them through every step of the process.
• Encouraging family involvement in sessions
  • We welcome family members to join therapy sessions, providing them with hands-on opportunities to learn and engage in their child’s progress.
• Providing consistent communication
  • We keep the lines of communication open, ensuring families are always informed about their child’s progress and involved in decision-making.

We know that children learn and develop best through everyday interactions. Family-centred therapy taps into the strengths and resources of the entire family, leading to more meaningful and lasting outcomes for the child.

This collaborative approach builds a sense of partnership and shared responsibility, ensuring the child receives consistent support both in and out of the clinic. By embracing family-centred therapy, we help build stronger, more resilient families who are ready to support their child’s growth and success.