Children who receive speech therapy may have difficulty with articulation, stuttering, or other issues related to speech and language development. The good news is that there are things you can do at home to help your child practice and improve their skills.
Here are 11 tips to help your child’s speech therapy practice:
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Make a Schedule Or Routine For Speech Therapy Sessions
Providing structure will help your child know what to expect and be more successful in their practice. This could include setting aside a specific time each day for speech therapy or creating a visual schedule to help them follow along.
Incorporate Speech Therapy Into Daily Activities
Finding ways to work speech therapy into your child’s daily routine will make it more likely that they will stick with their practice. This could involve practicing articulation during meal times or working on speech and language development while doing puzzles or reading books together.
Use Speech Therapy Apps And Games
There are many speech therapy apps and games available that can be used to supplement at-home practice. These can be a fun way for your child to work on their speech and language skills while also providing some variety to their practice. Your speech therapist should also have a speech therapy practice management service to help with speech therapy resources and other speech services.
Use Positive Reinforcement
It’s important to provide positive reinforcement when your child is practicing their speech skills. This could include praise, stickers, or other small rewards. Avoid using negative reinforcement, such as scolding or punishment, as this can have a negative impact on your child’s motivation to practice.
Create a Speech Therapy Progress Chart
Tracking your child’s progress can be motivating and help them see the fruits of their labor. This could involve making a simple graph to track their progress on specific goals or keeping a tally of the number of words they produce each day.
Encourage Carryover of Speech Therapy Skills
It’s important to encourage your child to use the skills they are learning in speech therapy in their everyday life. This could involve using a specific word or phrase during conversation or practicing a speech sound while reading out loud.
Make Practice Fun
If your child is reluctant to engage in speech therapy, try to make it more fun for them. This could involve using speech therapy games or rewards for practicing. You could also let them choose the activities for speech therapy sessions.
Model Speech And Language Skills
One of the best ways to help your child improve their speech and language skills is to model these skills yourself. This means using proper grammar and vocabulary in conversation, as well as demonstrating correct pronunciation of speech sounds.
Seek Professional Help If Needed
If you’re having difficulty working with your child on speech therapy at home, don’t hesitate to seek professional help. A speech-language pathologist can provide guidance and support to help you and your child be successful.
Stay Positive And Consistent
It’s important to maintain a positive attitude and be consistent with speech therapy at home. This means speech therapy should be seen as a positive experience for your child and something that is done on a regular basis.
Have Realistic Expectations
It’s important to have realistic expectations when working with your child on speech therapy at home. This means understanding that progress may be slow and there will likely be setbacks along the way. Be patient and persist with speech therapy practice, and you will eventually see progress.