All posts filed under: Apraxia Monday

THE GRUMPY FRUMPY CROISSANT helps with kids anger management, plus a baking activity, how it might help with apraxia, more

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By Leslie Lindsay  A sip of milk and ten deep breaths: anger management for kids to help calm angry minds and soften misunderstandings. ~Apraxia Monday|Always with a Book~ Spotlight: Children‘s Literature & Emotions Croissant isn’t happy and he’s taking it out on the rest of the breakfast plate! Toast, Scone, and Milk think he’s being mean, but Croissant feels they’re being mean to him! So take a sip of milk, ten deep breaths, and everyone and calm down and be more open.  THE GRUMPY FRUMPY CROISSANT by Mona K. and illustrated by Korey Scott, is a delightful and quirky children’s book with bold, colorful, hand-drawn illustrations easy for any child to grasp. Here, kids learn that simple communication is often the best way to solve problems.  The book even contains a delicious recipe that parents and caregivers can make with their kids, plus full-page coloring activities featuring characters from the book.  Why it might be helpful for kids with apraxia:  It’s frustrating for kids to have ideas they want to communicate, but can’t. They may …

Toe-tappin’ Hip-Hoppin’ Llama Glamarama is all about marching to the beat of your own drummer, celebrating differences, feeling left-out, PRIDE and more

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By Leslie Lindsay  A bright and colorful rhyming story with a powerful message about celebrating differences, LLAMA GLAMARAMA is the perfect Pride picture book for everyone. ~Books on MondaY|Always with a Book~ Spotlight: Children‘s Literature Meet a dazzlin’ dancin’ llama who learns to march to the beat of his own drum by strutting his stuff with Pride (and a funky feather boa)! Larry the llama loves to move and groove! But will his friends all disapprove? Larry lives a slow and quiet life at the barn with all the other llamas, just the way they like it. But at night when everyone has gone to bed, Larry loves to dress up in bright costumes and DANCE! He has to hide this from the others, for fear that they won’t approve of his raucous ways. One day, he stumbles upon the Llama Glamarama, a carnival full of music, laughter, and yes – dancing! Will this vibrant celebration give Larry the pride he needs to bring his dance back home? Kirkus calls LLAMA GLAMARAMA (Scholastic/Orchard Books, June 1, 2021) …

Apraxia Monday but on a Talking Tuesday: Leslie Lindsay, Author of Speaking of Apraxia, Narrates Audiobook

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By Leslie Lindsay You guys! May has been a huge month for me. I am so grateful, honored, and humbled to have had the opportunity to record the audio version of Speaking of Apraxia: A Parents’ Guide to Childhood Apraxia of Speech. A Timeline of SPEAKING OF APRAXIA: When my first-born wasn’t speaking like other children her age, I worried. When her pediatrician said, “I think she might need an assessment from a speech-language pathologist (SLP), I gulped. Really?! Not my kid. Just shy of her third birthday, she was diagnosed with moderate-severe Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS). What is CAS? Quick definition: a neurologically-based motor speech disorder in which kids know what they want to say, but have have difficulty organizing the movements needed for speech. It is not something kids outgrow, but requires frequent, intense speech language therapy, often for many years. I wanted a book. Few were available, with the exception of some graduate-level textbooks, a chapter here and there, a mention in parenting or child development book. I wanted a book …

Hands-on, no art skills needed, Claynguage is a multi-sensory approach designed by a semi-retired, school-based SLP, Hinda Rubin, to elicit language development with…clay

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By Leslie Lindsay A multi-sensory clay-based–and evidence-based!–approach to speech-language therapy. ~ApRaXiA MoNdAy|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Special Guest: Hinda Rubin Merging Pottery Skills with Language Development I am so delighted to welcome the lovely and talented Hinda Rubin, CCC-SLP to the Apraxia Monday Series. Hinda first trained as a medical SLP. As a school-based SLP, she provided evidence-based speech and language therapy to help improve articulation, receptive and expressive language skills, pragmatic language skills, auditory processing skills, fluency and voice. But she’s also a ceramicist, Bubby (aka Grandma), loves reading, exercising, and crafting. She believes that children need to see parents balance work and family while making family a priority. Sharing Claynguage with them, as well as with the children in a variety of daycares and preschools, is truly a passion. A bit about Claynguage: Claynguage activities were founded in an art classroom and provide a meaningful, fun, and naturalistic context in which children learn new words and improve speech and language skills. Claynguage® is guided by several evidence-based strategies used by speech-language pathologists to enhance children’s language …

Author-illustrator duo talk about their new children’s book, LET LIBERTY RISE, which is darling–about coming together for the collective good, the immigrant experience, color palettes, more

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By Leslie Lindsay  Fascinating and inspiring tale of how the American people came together to crowd-fund one of America’s biggest icons, the Statue of Liberty. ~BOOKS ON MONDAY|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Writers Interviewing Writers March Spotlight: Historical (Children’s) Fiction I LOVED this book! LET LIBERRTY RISE: How America’s Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty (Scholastic, March 2 2021) by Chana Stiefel (with warm, tender illustrations by Chuck Groenink) is an equally gorgeous, inspiring tale rooted in history and goodwill. I seriously cannot love this book any more. This book is a gem. The writing is smart and thoughtful, with obvious research and attention-to-detail, as are the illustrations. I learned so much about the American icon in this children’s book than I think I’ve learned about it through the course of my life. Seriously. I knew it was a gift from the people of France, but I didn’t realize it came to America in so many pieces (350, to be exact), that it weighed more than 40 elephants, and that the pedestal was to be created by the people of …

Apraxia MondaY: Keeping kids engaged with speech-language therapy after the therapy session through reading, I-Spy, Scrabble, more, plus tips on apraxia, teletherapy, more.

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By Leslie Lindsay  Speech-language therapy doesn’t stop at the speech clinic. Here are some ways you can enhance & support what your child is working on at home.  ~APRAXIA MONDAY|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Spotlight: BETTER SPEECH.COM EXTENDING SPEECH WORK IN EVERYDAY PLAY & GAMES I’m so delighted to welcome this guest piece from the folks at Better Speech, an online portal for speech-language teletherapy, recognized by American Speech-Hearing Association (ASHA). As most you know, I am a big proponent of making speech fun while working it into everyday routines. There is so much that can be expressed and taught in your own home, out-and-about town, and even in nature. That said, we’re all spending much more time at home–not just because of the pandemic, but because it’s winter and the middle of the school year. Here are some great tips and ideas of things you can do right at home, probably with items you already have.  5 Ways to Support Your Child’s Speech Therapy at Home When your child is working with a licensed speech therapist, speech …

Apraxia Monday: TALK YOGA creators Amy Roberts & Kim Hughes, both speech-language pathologists and certified yoga intructors talk about the value of kids, speech, & yoga

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By Leslie Lindsay  Yoga + Kids + Speech = some of my very favorite things.  ~APRAXIA MONDAY|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Spotlight: TALK YOGA  I am so delighted to introduce you to two fabulous speech-language pathologists, Kim Hughes and Amy Roberts, both certified yoga instructors and pediatric SLPs. Their practice, TalkYoga is mentioned in the updated, 2nd edition of SPEAKING OF APRAXIA (Woodbine House, 2020) and with good reason—I love yoga! For years, I have practiced, but it wasn’t until the last five years or so that I really became a yogi. Before that, my daughter, Kate, now 15 with resolving CAS, participated in yoga-like poses during her combined ST/OT sessions. Kate is what we might call a ‘sensory seeker’ and so the movement—and the dedication—yoga provided important feedback and stimulation. Here, I ask Kim and Amy a few questions about how yoga practice can help kids with speech development. Please join us! Leslie Lindsay: Kim and Amy—welcome! I am so pumped about your yoga for kids, TalkYoga program. Can you tell us a bit about …

APRAXIA MONDAY: Dr. T shares her super-fun, hands-on activity kits to supplement her lift-the-flap book, LOLA KOALA’S TRAVEL ADVENTURES

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By Leslie Lindsay Adorable lift-the-flap books designed by a pediatric SLP helping developspeech and communication skills in children, plus the added adventure oftravel. ~APRAXIA MONDAY|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Spotlight: Dr. Tinita Kearney LOLA KOALA ADVENTURE KITS: EGYPT  2020 National Parenting Products Award Winner It’s hard to believe that we are in month eleven of this pandemic. Whilehope—in the form of a vaccine—is on the horizon, many of us have been confined to our homes (and our local region). If you’re anything like me, you might be feeling a little stir-crazy. And kids are no exception! I spoke with Dr. T back in September 2020 and wanted to invite her backbecause she has a new product that pairs nicely with her LOLA KOALA’S TRAVEL ADVENTURES book #1: Egypt—themed Koala Kits! But first a bit about the book– Lola Koala is an explorer who loves to travel the world. Join her on manyadventures as she helps your child to develop foundational language skills along the way! Hi! I’m Lola Koala and I LOVE to have fun learning new …

APRAXIA MONDAY 2/4: Karli PRESS, CF-SLP joins us for a primer on Childhood apraxia of speech, sequencing, her fabulous infographics, why teletherapy is so great, toys for enhancing communication, more

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By Leslie Lindsay  ~APRAXA MONDAY|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Spotlight: Sunflower Speech Therapy 2/4 Welcome, Karli Press, CF-SLP to the Apraxia Monday series! I am delighted to chat with Karli because she is so cool and positive and digs kids speech. Here, she put together this super-informative infographic about childhood apraxia of speech (CAS), which I shared recently, and it’s been making big waves among the folks who follow my SPEAKING OF APRAXIA Facebook page. I am so grateful for this because it really breaks things down. CAS is a complex disorder—unless you’re a practicing speech-language pathologist with additional skills and training, it’s a relatively rare speech disorder (typically) only briefly touched on in graduate programs. Still, there are researchers who are studying it and others, too who continue to learn about this sometimes baffling and rare motor-speech disorder. That’s why I love this graphic so much. It really breaks it down. Karli lives and works as a teletherapist in south Florida and the name of her speech clinic, SUNFLOWER SPEECH—I just love. Her tagline: “Never …

APRAXIA MONDAY series 1/4: does my child have apraxia of speech (CAS)? plus, leslie lindsay reads from speaking of apraxia, hints & Tips for selecting an SLP, more

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By Leslie Lindsay  Author of SPEAKING OF APRAXIA reads from the first few pages of of the book, discusses how to find a speech-language pathologist (SLP).  ~APRAXA MONDAY|ALWAYS WITH A BOOK~ Spotlight: Does my child have apraxia of speech (CAS) 1/4?  Years ago, as a new mom, I was so, so eager to hear those first, tender words from my first child. When they didn’t come, I worried. But then I thought, “kids develop at different rates, it’s no big deal.” When others–my mom-friends, the neighbors, the pediatrician–raised an eyebrow, I was even more worried. After all, Kate could hear and seemed to understand everything we said. So what was the problem?  Here, I read a bit from the first few pages of SPEAKING OF APRAXIA (Woodbine House, 2020), which might help put things in perspective.    #1 Amazon bestseller in communication disorders/special education “So impressed with this awesome work! Every chapter was SO easy to get through and jam-packed with gold nuggets for parents and caregivers!” Your next step, if you’re truly concerned about …