TheraCare Talks

Allyson Beary, M.S. CCC-SLP, TheraCare Outpatient Clinic Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP), is not only a highly skilled SLP but a therapist that focuses her professional attention and time around helping students with communicating their wants and needs. With her unique skill set, she has helped over a dozen local school districts receive access to consultation, evaluation and device education (if applicable) to ensure that no child is left without the ability to communicate needs.  One of the best things about it—it’s at minimal cost to the district. She joins hands with the educational team, including on-site SLPs, to confirm that any measures taken are in alignment with the goals of the multidisciplinary team. Let’s learn more about the amazing services Allyson is providing!  

When a student with dyslexia is struggling in their classroom or learning environment, we typically don’t take their individual learning skills into consideration. But even if we do, it is just as important to consider external sources that could be accommodated in order to improve learning and increased chances of academic success.

1. Consider seating student near the teacher, as well as away from windows and doors to reduce distractions. 

For individuals with Dyslexia, traditional learning methods, like sitting in a classroom listening to a teacher talk, are not always the most effective. Multisensory learning strategies may provide the best way for those with dyslexia to learn and retain information — plus, its fun!

Multisensory learning can integrate any combination of visual, auditory, tactile (touch), and kinesthetic (movement) elements. Here are some ideas to get started:

1. Trying to memorize a list? Put the items to the 

A few years ago, someone shared with me a great system they used for buying Christmas gifts in their family. They bought only three things for each person: something they needed, something they wanted, and something to read. I put a little twist on this idea to share with you a list of items you might consider if you have someone in your life that has a child with special needs.

Summer is just around the corner. Almost time for cook outs, pool parties, ice cream trucks and a whole lot of speech and language therapy.  Wait…what?

Did you know that TheraCare is offering an intensive speech and language therapy program this summer in TWO locations?  Here are five answers to our most frequently asked questions about TheraCare’s Intensive Summer Program:

When we talk about speech therapy, people often look at us with a sweet, smiling face and say things like, “Oh, it is so wonderful that you help kids say their ‘r’ and ‘s’ sounds!”  Don’t get us wrong, we can definitely help your child stop calling that furry animal with long ears a “wabbit”. But did you know that speech-language pathologists work with school-age children in many other areas outside of resolving errors with speech sounds?

Written By: Molly Duggins – MT Intern at Musical Bridges

Hello, my name is Molly and I am the intern at Musical Bridges music therapy. Theracare is one of the amazing facilities I am privileged to be working at. I am proud because of their unique blend of services offered to families. Not only do they provide a connection with occupational and speech therapists, but also my specialty, music therapy! This creates an exciting opportunity for whole health outcomes through co-treatment. You may be wondering what co-treatment looks like and that is what I’m here to shed some light on.

Written by: Leslie Jones,MMT, MT-BC

Can you imagine a world without music? A week without it? Even a day with absolutely no music? Even if you can, you probably don’t want to because you are like majority of human beings, who love music. Music is a part of our culture, our daily routines, significant life events, even a part of our biological make up. If you think about it, we all breathe to a rhythm, speak with rhythm and pitch, and our hearts are a continuous rhythm filling us with life. We enjoy music so much because we are inherently made of music!

Written by: Allison Slone 

We all know that music is good for our kids. In fact, it can improve virtually every area of development: intellectual, social, emotional, motor, language, and literacy. But what if you’re not one of those Pinterest-y moms who enjoys creating rainbow sticks from tree bark and freshly-squeezed berry juice? Fear not, parents. Here are three songs you already know with a few easy ways to punch it up a notch—while keeping your sanity.

Written by Allison Slone, MS, CCC-SLP

The month of January TheraCare is spotlighting Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). What is AAC? According to the American Speech-Language Hearing Association, AAC “includes all forms of communication (other than oral speech) that are used to express thoughts, needs, wants, and ideas.”

Maybe you’ve come across a man who has lost his ability to speak due to a disease like ALS, who now uses something that looks like an I-Pad to talk and communicate. This is considered “high-tech” AAC. Keep in mind though, it’s also considered AAC when you wrinkle your nose as your wife walks into the room eating chips with French onion dip. The facial expression of a wrinkled nose is conveying the message, “Hey! Your dip smells bad!” without needing to say the words.