South Lakes Speech & Language Therapy

30/08/2025

Children learn communication through everday interactions. Laundry time can teach new vocabulary and concepts as well as be an opportunity to play a game 😀

If you have concerns for your child's communication, please get in touch!

Image credit: Too Small to Fail

27/08/2025

Ready for School?

Basic concepts are a regular part of our communication with young children, and even more so in a classroom environment. Because of this, a child’s understanding of and ability to use basic concepts when communicating is important for early school success.

If you would like to learn more about early vocabulary development and readiness for school, we would be happy to answer your questions. We offer a free telephone consult, and if you have specific concerns about your child’s communication and/or feeding, South Lakes Speech & Language Therapy provides home, school and clinic-based Speech, Language and Feeding assessments and therapy. Please get in touch!

25/08/2025

Some ideas for the 'picky eater' at your table.

If you have concerns about your child's feeding and would like support with mealtimes, please get in touch!

Image credit: Elizabeth Pantley

23/08/2025

Speech & Languge Therapists help children with both their Receptive (understanding of) and Expressive (use of) Language.

Receptive language includes following directions, understanding questions, and recognizing words in conversation. Expressive language is how a child communicates their thoughts and involves using sounds, gestures, spoken and/or signed words, AAC, and body language, including facial expressions.

A child may understand far more than they can communicate, which is why it’s important to support both skills!

If you have concerns for your child's communication, please get in touch 😀

Image credit: Build Up Michigan

22/08/2025

'Ready, Steady... Go!' games support the development of early attention and communication skills. Have a go with your child. 😃

If you have concerns for your child's communication development, please get in touch.

Image credit: Coventry Children's Speech & Language Therapy

20/08/2025

Thinking about how to help your toddler learn colours 🌈

Image credit: Tiny Talkers

19/08/2025

For children who don't yet have a word to ask for "help," teaching the sign is a great way to support their communication! Model the sign while saying "help" each time your child leads you or does something to let you know that they need your assistance.

If you have concerns for your child's communication, please get in touch!

Original image: Coventry Children's Speech & Language Therapy

17/08/2025

Key Milestones in the Social-Emotional Development of 3 to 5 year olds; language underpins so many of our social-emotional skills!

Image credit: Build Up Michigan

16/08/2025

Waiting expectantly is an important way to support an early communicator's language development. More information from The Hanen Centre.

If you have concerns for your child's communication, please get in touch!

15/08/2025

Thank you to everyone who joined me and Kendal Parent Network last night to learn about Fussy Eating. It was wonderful to meet all of you!

This is one of my favourite 'fun' studies about how to support a young child with eating vegetables - fun food names!

Children should eat a variety of colorful vegetables prepared in healthy ways, but statistics show that most kids aren't getting enough. The USDA suggests that 2- and 3-year-olds eat a cup a day, and 1 ½ cups for 4-8-year-olds. With most toddlers and preschoolers, that can feel like a hopeless chal...

14/08/2025

I love this post from Tiny Talkers about Verbal Routines!

Verbal Routines are a fantastic way to support your child's communication and particularly effective in helping late talkers start to use words 😀

If you have concerns about your child's communication, please get in touch!

✨ Did you know that verbal routines can get your little one to communicate?⁣
⁣
A verbal routine is something you say a LOT. You say it SO much that your child knows exactly what you are about to say. The reason we love this for encouraging communication is that if you leave off part of something your child knows, guess what? Your child will likely try to finish the phrase for you! For example, if you say, “Ready . . . set . . . and then PAUSE while giving your child an expectant look, they will likely try to communicate the last word (“GO!!”)! ⁣
⁣
Toddlers love routine, and verbal routines are precisely that. So, when you don’t finish saying something your toddler is used to hearing, they want it finished!⁣
⁣
👉 In this post, the verbal routines listed are examples of things you can say while outside. However, there are many things we say throughout our day that work as well! For example, saying, “Rise and shine!” every time you greet your child in the morning would be a verbal routine. Since little ones hear the same words repeatedly and in the same order, they become very predictable! This familiarity makes them ideal for encouraging new words!⁣
⁣
For a verbal routine to encourage communication, they have to be engaging and repeated often! 👉 The “trick” is to then 𝗽𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 during a predictable and exciting moment! Since your child will know the statement well, the pause will encourage them to fill in the blank! See some examples below!⁣
⁣
✰ Scooters: One, two, threeee!⁣
✰ Picking up rocks/flowers/sticks: (Calling out) Rock! Rock! Where are you?⁣
✰ Blowing bubbles: Blowing bubbles . . . POP! POP! POP!⁣
✰ Stroller walks: STOP and GO! FAST and SLOW!⁣
✰ Running: Ready, set, goooooo!⁣
✰ Swinging: Up, up, down! Or “Hiiii! (When the swing comes toward you) Bye!! (As the swing moves away)⁣
✰ Digging: This is the way we dig up dirt . . . dig, dig, dig.⁣
⁣
⁣
✨ 𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲? 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗯𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆!⁣

13/08/2025

Are you worried or do you have questions about Fussy Eating with your child? If so, please join me and Kendal Parent Network tomorrow evening, Thursday 14 August, to learn about Fussy Eating in children and strategies to end mealtime battles.

Contact Kendal Parent Network to book your place. I look forward to seeing you there!

🥦 Mealtimes feeling like a battle?
You’re not alone - and help is at hand.

Join us on Thursday 14th August for our Parent Workshop: Fussy Eaters.

This will be a relaxed, practical workshop on fussy eating, led by experienced feeding therapist Libby Thompson, South Lakes Speech & Language Therapy. Whether your child won’t touch vegetables, refuses entire food groups, or struggles with mealtime routines, this session is here to support you.

You'll leave with:
✨ A better understanding of why fussy eating happens
✨ Simple, realistic strategies you can try at home
✨ Reassurance that you're not doing it wrong

📍 Outside-In
🎟️ Tickets by donation – pay what you can
👉 BOOK NOW
https://kendalparentnetwork.org/whats-on/events/parent-workshops/parent-workshops-with-libby-thompson-south-lakes-speech-language-therapy/

Let’s make mealtimes a little less stressful 💚