Umbrella Speech Pathology

03/12/2021

I’m off on bae-cation! Thank you all for your support this year, it’s been my favourite year yet ☺️ I’m hoping to be easing back to therapy sessions in mid-late 2022 … I’ll keep you posted! In the meantime I’m going to learn all the things you already have on how to be a parent 🤱🏼

Wishing you all a very happy Christmas break 🎄

07/10/2021

“My child can sing the alphabet, say the colours and count to 10”.

Unfortunately, all that means is that the child has rote learned some frequently repeated, predictable patterns of words. What we want them to do is be able to match the names of colours to objects of that colour. We want them to count objects using their number knowledge. AND, we need our kids to know what SOUNDS those alphabet letters can represent.

The English language has 26 letters which combine in various ways to represent the 44 spoken sounds that we use. Next time you’re looking at the alphabet, try emphasizing the sounds (not the names) of the letters 💡 That is one of the most important steps to learning reading and spelling.

28/08/2021

SPEECH PATHOLOGY WEEK. Did you know that 1.2 million Aussies require communication, feeding and swallowing support from a Speechie each year? It’s little wonder there aren’t enough of us!

Communication is a fundamental human right, and therefore so is access to support. A big passion of mine is helping children to have a fun and successful time at day care and school.

Accommodations are made for children who can’t see, or walk, because we are outwardly reminded of their needs. But more needs to be done for our kids who find communication challenging. Leaving them to go about their day in silence and isolation isn’t okay. It all starts with education; so, ask your child’s educator, ‘Can we talk about ways to support my child’s communication while they are here?’.

08/06/2021

Thank you to all of the lovely new families who have called me needing a Speechie. I am currently at capacity, but you never know when a vacancy will arise.
I have been really snowed under lately (both freezing cold and busy!), and would find it really helpful if you could email your enquiry to chloe@umbrellaspeech.com. Useful information to include is your child’s age, suburb you live in, any days/times you prefer, and what areas of support you are looking for. All of that helps me to know what times in my schedule might suit in the future.
Thank you again - I hear you, see you, and value you all!
Chloe

23/04/2021

Good choices ✅ vs. bad choices ❌. Can we skip these terms?

Kids often do things without having the skills to anticipate the outcome of their choice. Therefore what they do is often not what they meant to do ...

I prefer to use the language of EXPECTED vs. UNEXPECTED choices.

It removes the negativity and judgement about unintended behaviour while our kids are still learning to predict, inference, problem solve, and draw on their experiential memory.

For example, it’s expected that we say “Can I have a turn?”, and it’s unexpected to push someone when wanting a turn. You can use this language to talk about the more expected choice to make next time.☀️

11/04/2021

This Easter I was excited to see so many parents (or Easter Bunnies) substituting bunny chocolates with bunny books! What a great idea to keep literacy alive over the holidays. I can’t go past the classics 🐰

12/03/2021

I love this! But a huge factor missing in this diagram is COMMUNICATION. Challenges with communication can result in unexpected ‘behaviours’ at home and school.

If I couldn’t understand what anyone was saying in my classroom, I’d probably be rolling around on the floor trying to occupy myself too! We need to look deeper at ‘behaviours’ to find out why they are really happening.

04/03/2021

The power of a Kmart garbage truck 😆 It has pulled us through hours and hours of therapy this week, and helped us say hundreds of target words and sounds. Therapy should be FUN and motivating for every child. If that means pretending to be a garbage truck driver with an immense passion for junk, then let’s do it!

20/02/2021

Mouth breathing (like the baby pictured)?Drooling? Poor sleep? Snoring? A baby that can’t latch properly to feed? Milk supply quickly running out? Reliance on a dummy or thumb sucking? Reflux? Hyperactivity? Lisping in speech? TMJ pain? Tension headaches? All of these things (any so many others) are signs that there may be a structural and functional issue to do with the teeth, tongue, lips, jaw, airway, and/or oral musculature.

This week I trained in Orofacial Myological Disorders across the lifespan. I cannot believe what I’ve learned and how much it will change the way I work with families! If you’re worried about any of the above, I can help!

08/02/2021

Last week I was reminded with several clients about the importance of regular hearing checks for kids. Frequent ear infections can impact on hearing and disrupt speech, language and literacy development. More alarming is that many kids have ‘glue ear’ (wax and fluid build up) which can have no symptoms at all! Many schools offer free hearing screening in Prep. However, there’s no minimum age to get a hearing check, and no referral needed. Better to be safe than sorry - book in with an audiologist for peace of mind!

29/01/2021

I am passionate about dispelling myths around developmental difficulties and disabilities, and helping the world understand our children better. This article in the BBC in my opinion is spot on! Happy reading.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20151006-its-time-we-dispelled-these-myths-about-autism

These four misconceptions about autism are damaging and in desperate need of debunking, says Steve Silberman.

18/01/2021

Did you know that babies who eat home-cooked purée foods have a much higher intake of fruit and vegetables at 7 years of age, compared to babies who only eat commercially prepared foods? It has to do with the natural variability in taste and texture of home-cooked food, allowing greater acceptance of a wider variety of foods in the long run. It really is food for thought! 🥕

This week I’m becoming accredited in the SOS Approach to Feeding (for picky eaters and problem feeders). I’m so excited to have a new skill set to offer my families. With up to 30% of children having food challenges at some point in their development, I’m sure it will come in handy!

Just another 300 pages of content and six exams to get through first 😆

14/01/2021

What an exciting week I’ve had!! I’ve started seeing clients, and have been getting used to wheeling my box of resources around and life as a mobile therapist. It’s been so much fun being out and about; I can’t wait to see how many goals we can tick off this year 😁

I still have a few spaces left during school hours, so if anyone you know is in need of a traveling Speechie, I’m here to help 😊

Take care and stay well!!

Chloe

www.umbrellaspeech.com

16/12/2020

As holidays approach, clients usually have one of two thoughts. 1. 💭Thank goodness, a break is coming! .... or 2. 💭 Oh no, all of our hard work is going to come undone if we stop therapy for a few weeks.

While every child is different, generally a break is fabulous for progress! It allows the child to consolidate all of the skills they’ve learned, and practice them at home and in play (where communication matters most!). It also lets them have a change of routine, which can mean they are re-energised and better engaged when they return to therapy in the new year. I should also say, your therapist needs a break too! We’re all human.

So sit back and relax this Christmas and New Year. You deserve it 🥂🎄🌴

26/11/2020

Did you know that a simple game like ‘Pop-up-pirate’ can help build communication skills?

Games like this require us to take turns. This is an essential skill when having conversations. See how many back and forth turns you can get with your child - it will help their social communication skills later on!

20/11/2020

“What is your favourite book to use in therapy?”

You know what, I love ANY book with great pictures! The whole point of reading is to understand what it’s about. ‘Reading’ the words (sounding out, decoding) is only one half of what’s needed to understand the text. You also have to know what the words mean!

Talking about the pictures is so important for building this understanding of word meanings. Try: Discussing what the characters are doing, thinking, saying, feeling; using describing words to talk about the pictures e.g. “There’s a squishy caterpillar!”; predicting and inferencing what might happen next; and linking the book to your child’s own experiences e.g. “He’s at the park. Hey we went to the park yesterday too!”.

Before even looking at letters and printed words, using language to talk about the pictures will put your child well on their way with reading.

Don’t be afraid to go off script and not read it word for word! You can make every book your own (this can be more fun too 😁)

For an example of a book with great pictures, check out ‘Bamboozled’ by David Legge.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1765917.Bamboozled

A fun-filled subtext is delivered in the illustrations of this warm, witty picture book about a young girl's weekly visit to her eccentri...

11/11/2020

“Why do I talk to my baby with that funny high-pitched and exaggerated voice? It just comes out of my mouth!”

Don’t feel silly! It’s called ‘parentese’, and there is a reason you do it.

Speaking with a very melodic tone and exaggerated intonation, using bold facial expressions and saying repetitive words/phrases, helps your baby tune-in and pay attention to you. They are listening to the sound constructs of our language (right from when they are born), which is laying the building blocks for their first words later on.

If you are a parent who feels uncomfortable speaking this way, don’t stress! Babies are most responsive when you are communicating with them in a way that feels natural to you.

To learn more ideas for talking to your baby, see this link:http://www.earlyliteracylearning.org/cellpract_parent/infants/PG_1_I_Talk2Me.pdf

03/11/2020

On this page I am going to address a ‘Question of the Week’. If there is something you want to know about paediatric communication or feeding, let me know!

One of the first things parents say to me is “I just don’t know if it’s normal”. There are lots of different websites and references out there about childhood development ... but I always trust the resources from my governing body Speech Pathology Australia. Their resources are based on high quality research, and formulated with Australian children in mind.

To answer the question of ‘what’s normal?’ check out this brilliant chart on communication milestones: https://speechpathologyaustralia.cld.bz/Communication-Milestones-A4-sheets/2-3

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