Speech and Articulation

• Not being understood can negatively impact overall communicative effectiveness
• For your kiddo this can be: sharing exciting news, difficult emotions, questions
• For some no be able to communicate clearly can impact feelings of self/perception of others
• In speech therapy, skills such as sounds and sequences are often practiced
• However, improving self-confidence, independence, and compensatory strategies are just as important

Language and Pragmatics

There are 3 areas of language that speech therapist focus on: Expressive, Receptive, and Pragmatic

Expressive/Reception

• In speech, therapist encourage articulating needs, wants, and gratitude 
• The power to say “no” is more powerful than asking for “more” and is one of the first communicative acts often learned
• Whether that is through words, signs, or assistive technology - SLPs work hard to be sure that they give kiddos the best chance of communicating their wants/needs as effectively as possible. 

Pragmatic

• This is social language! Conversation skills, inferencing/perspective shifting skills, and overall understanding of how others think/feel
• SLPs work with a lot with kiddos who may have difficulty connecting with peers/others due to pragmatic challenge
• We work on much more than conversation skills or reciprocal play. SLPs take on the roles of being friend/teacher/mentor/play-mate while building up confidence to continue trying these learned skills. 

Tip* We have social groups for kiddos of varying ages with pragmatic deficits to learn/practice their skills and make new friends at PMC. 

Fluency

• Fluency is more known to the general world as “stuttering
• SLPs are transitioning to a much healthier way of approaching fluency disorders in the past few years
• SLPs provide fluency strategies, seeing which ones are the most effective (and liked), and practicing those strategies in a way that they feel comfortable with
• Allowing kiddos to be self-paced in their journey decreases the negative stigma associated with fluency disorders from stutterers, professionals, and the community as a whole.