Speech Unbound

Speech Unbound We are a speech and language clinic who loves to get families involved!

We want to know, what book are you reading right now?? Comment below!
03/20/2026

We want to know, what book are you reading right now??
Comment below!

03/19/2026

This video is a masterclass in using books for language growth. By reading the same story multiple times, this little learner is:
Building a robust vocabulary.
Perfecting articulation through familiar sounds.
Strengthening recall via cloze prompting (Mom leaves the last phrase/sentence of the page for him to 'read'!).

Reading isn't just about the story—it's about the bond! ❤️

03/19/2026

Story Champs! A tool we love to use at Speech Unbound to teach narrative language skills. This program mainly supports learning story elements such as character, problem, emotion, action, and ending.
Comment a 📝 if you use Story Champs too!

03/19/2026

What’s Ms. Amanda’s favorite childhood book!?

💡 Weekly Q&AQ: Why do we model phrases and not just single words?A: While it’s exciting to hear those first nouns (like ...
03/19/2026

💡 Weekly Q&A
Q: Why do we model phrases and not just single words?
A: While it’s exciting to hear those first nouns (like "ball" or "doggy"), we start modeling phrases early because that is where true communication lives. By combining a verb (action) with a noun (thing), your child moves from just naming the world to interacting with it!

What the research says:

The 2-Year Milestone: According to ASHA, most children should start combining two words (like "more juice" or "bye-bye Daddy") between 18 and 24 months. By modeling these phrases early, we are preparing their brain for this jump.

The "Verb" Advantage: Research indicates that a child’s verb vocabulary is a massive predictor of later grammar. Specifically, the number of different verbs a child knows at 24 months is a stronger predictor of their sentence complexity at 30 months than just their total number of nouns (Hadley et al., 2016).

Acoustic Highlighting: Modeling a phrase like "Push... CAR" uses natural rhythm (prosody) to make the key words stand out. This helps a child’s brain filter out background noise and focus on the "map" of the sentence (Fernald & McRoberts, 1996).

Try this at home: Whatever your child says, just add one "action" word or descriptor to it!

They say: "Car." 🚗
You model: "Go car!" or "Fast car!"



ASHA (n.d.): How Does Your Child Hear and Talk? (Developmental milestones for 1-2 years specify combining two words).

Hadley, P. A., Rispoli, M., & Holt, J. K. (2016): The Building Blocks of Early Grammar: The Role of Lexical Diversity. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. (Specifically finding that verb diversity is a key growth driver).

Fernald, A., & McRoberts, G. (1996): Prosodic Bootstrapping. (Research on how the rhythm of phrases helps babies identify word boundaries and meanings).

03/18/2026

Open up the clinic with Mrs. Jhay-lah!

We love our reading community!Comment a 🫶 if you're a reading family too!
03/18/2026

We love our reading community!

Comment a 🫶 if you're a reading family too!

03/18/2026

🐾 Pawject Manager Report 🐾
According to my calculations, if a therapist is holding a book, that is the perfect time for a "treat break."

This week, I conducted several "unannounced audits" during storytime. The results were conclusive:
- If I sit directly on the book, the human has to look at me instead. 10/10 effectiveness.
- I’ve mastered the art of nudging the page with my nose. It’s not "Dialogic Reading," it’s "Dog-alogic Reading."
- Engagement level s are high. The therapists are laughing, the kids are smiling, and I am getting maximum attention. Mission accomplished.

I’m working on the P.A.W.S. method:
🐾 Pause the reading.
🐾 Ask for treats.
🐾 Wiggle on the floor.
🐾 Steal the spotlight.

Don't worry, we are still on track for our 80-book goal—I’m just making sure we take some mindful (and goofy) breaks along the way! 🎾📖

03/17/2026

LiPS
The Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing Program for reading, spelling, and speech.

Excellent program for students learning to read and spell. Specifically designed to support children who have speech/language delays/imapirments.

-Verbal, visual, tactile awareness
-Oral-motor planning
-Auditory feedback
-Reflexive questioning/feedback

Have you heard of LiPS?

03/17/2026

Why can a hand not be 12 inches??

Mindful Monday: Narrative language isn't just for kids—it is a fundamental human need. For adults recovering from a stro...
03/16/2026

Mindful Monday: Narrative language isn't just for kids—it is a fundamental human need. For adults recovering from a stroke or living with aphasia, rebuilding the ability to tell a story is a key part of regaining independence and identity.

Narrative Recovery:
→ Using "Script Training" (Cherney, 2008) on personal narratives allows patients to communicate their most important needs and memories with greater fluency through intensive repetition.
→ Engaging in storytelling activates multiple regions of the brain simultaneously—language, emotion, and sensory memory—which encourages the brain to find and strengthen pathways for communication.
→ Having a clear structure (Character, Problem, Action) provides a "mental map." This structure helps the brain organize thoughts even when specific words are hard to find (Whitworth, A. 2011).
→ Sharing stories is how we connect. For patients with aphasia, working on "scripts" for their own life stories helps preserve their sense of self and reduces social isolation.

Whether you’re 3 or 83, being able to say "This is what happened" is at the heart of being human.


Cherney, L. R., et al. (2008). Interactive Oral Reading: Reconnecting with Literature in Aphasia. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology.
Whitworth, A. (2011). Using narrative as a bridge: Linking language processing models with real-life communication. Seminars in Speech and Language, 32(3), 241-255.

🧠 Mindful Monday: LiPS & Story Champs 📖This week, we are diving into two powerhouse programs that bridge the gap between...
03/16/2026

🧠 Mindful Monday: LiPS & Story Champs 📖
This week, we are diving into two powerhouse programs that bridge the gap between "hearing" sounds and "telling" stories: The LiPS® Program and Story Champs®.

👄 The LiPS® Program
Sometimes, the biggest hurdle in reading or speech is that a child’s brain isn’t "tuning in" to the subtle differences between sounds (like /p/ vs. /b/). LiPS incorporates oral-motor feedback, auditory feedback, and verbal-visual modeling to support phonological awareness learning.
✨ Instead of ONLY listening, kids learn to identify sounds by what their mouths are doing. Is it a "Lip Popper" (/p, b/)? A "Tongue Tapper" (/t, d/)? Or a "Skinny Air Sound" (/s/)?
→ This tactile feedback gives kids an added awareness to speech sounds. If they can’t hear the difference, they can feel the difference in their muscle movements.

🗣️ Narrative Language: Story Champs®
Once we have the sounds and words, we need to build the structure! Story Champs® is all about the "Story Grammar"—the skeleton that holds a narrative together.
✨ We use visual icons to help kids identify the essential parts of a story: the Character, the Setting, the Problem, the Feeling, etc.
→ By mastering these elements, children move from "and then... and then..." to organized, complex storytelling. This structure is the secret sauce for both oral speaking and later written expression.

✨ Mindful Connection
When we combine phonological awareness (the sounds) with narrative structure (the story), we give people the tools to not only communicate clearly but to share their unique experiences with the world.

Have you heard of LiPS and/or Story Champs?? Comment below!

Address

36358 Garfield Road, Suite 1-2
Clinton Township, MI
48035

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 6pm
Tuesday 9am - 6pm
Wednesday 8am - 6pm
Thursday 8am - 6pm
Friday 8am - 6pm

Telephone

+15862210705

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