Joleen R. Fernald Pediatric Therapy Services

07/21/2025

As a cofounder for REC, I love our mission and vision for neurodivergent kids!

07/14/2025

Let’s Talk AAC & Language Exposure! 💬
By 18 months old, most babies have heard around 4,380 hours of spoken language—and we don’t expect them to be fluent speakers yet. 👶

Now imagine this:
If an AAC user only experiences symbol modeling twice a week for 20–30 minutes, it would take them 84 YEARS to get the same exposure to language as that 18-month-old.

📣 Consistency is key. Just like with spoken language, AAC must be modeled frequently throughout the day—in play, routines, mealtimes, and beyond.
Let’s make every moment a language opportunity for our AAC learners. Every child deserves to be heard. ❤️

07/07/2025

🎉 50 trips around the sun. Half a century of love, growth, laughter, and a few tears along the way.

Today, I turn 50—an age I once thought sounded impossibly far away. And yet, here I am: a wife of nearly 30 years, a mom to two incredible daughters (now strong, beautiful women with lives of their own), and a clinician who has had the privilege of turning passion into purpose.

I carry this milestone with both joy and a touch of heartache. I miss my parents deeply and wish they could be here to see all of this—what they started, what they shaped. I feel them in every celebration, every quiet moment, and every lesson I pass down.

I look at the life I’ve built with deep gratitude. My husband has been my constant through it all—my teammate, my calm, my cheerleader. My daughters are my proudest accomplishments, and watching them build their own lives is one of my greatest joys.

And professionally? What a journey. I’ve been blessed to work with families, make a difference, and never stop learning. I’ve checked off dreams I once whispered to myself quietly—and I still have so much more I hope to do.

Here’s to the next 50 years. (Okay… maybe just the next 30 😄). I’m not done growing. I’m not done dreaming. I’m just getting started.

05/27/2025

✨Client Win✨

One of my former clients just did something incredible: she sang Taylor Swift’s Love Story in her school’s talent show 🎤💖

Yes, sang. On stage. In front of her whole school.

This is the same child who, not long ago, faced daily challenges communicating due to selective mutism. Using the DIR-SM model—grounded in connection, emotional safety, and developmental support—we met her where she was and followed her lead. 🎨🧠💬

Together with her family and school team, we created an environment that honored her pace, celebrated tiny steps, and supported her sense of self. That’s how confidence grows. That’s how love stories begin—with you believing in yourself. 🌱💫

From silence to singing—this is what’s possible when we lead with relationship.

05/26/2025

Fellow SLPs and caregivers - if you’re able to donate, my sweet friend is in need of your support. She’s an incredible SLP and colleague who owns a therapy business while caring for her family, like so many of us! Please help out if you can.

Hello everyone, On behalf of the Amurgis family, I am reaching out with a heavy but … Angela Lebanik needs your support for Support for the Amurgis Family

05/21/2025

🌞 More Summer Tips for Kids with Selective Mutism
👕 Focus: Sensory Comfort & Emotional Safety

Summer activities can be full of sensory surprises—bright sun, new spaces, noisy groups. For kids with selective mutism, creating a sense of safety and predictability is key. Here are some gentle, supportive strategies to help:

✨ 1. Small Groups First
Start with quieter, more predictable environments. One or two kids is plenty. Smaller groups reduce sensory overload and help a child feel seen—without pressure to speak.

✨ 2. Arrive Early
Let your child enter a calm space before the hustle and bustle begins. It’s much easier to regulate when the environment is still and they can watch the energy build around them, rather than being dropped into the middle of it.

✨ 3. Surround with Familiar Faces
Bring along a trusted friend, sibling, or adult. Familiar people act as emotional anchors and help reduce the unpredictability of new settings.

✨ 4. Reduce the Pressure
No forced hellos, no expectations to join right in. Follow your child’s cues. Let them just be in the space. Safety grows when a child feels accepted exactly as they are.

✨ 5. Focus on Felt Safety
Pay attention to sensory triggers—itchy clothes, loud echoes, bright lights. Adjust what you can. Comfort = confidence.

💛 Summer is a time for connection, not performance. When we slow down and meet kids where they are, we make room for real growth—in their time, in their way.

05/20/2025

If Thinking Goes to School and Visual-Spatial Portals to Thinking, Feeling and Movement have taken up residence at your place… they’re kindly requesting a ride home.

They’ve had their adventure—now they’re ready to return to their rightful shelf (and I’d love to reread them too).

No judgment, just a nudge.

05/20/2025

Informed consent matters!

After receiving an Autism diagnosis, parents are told by their doctor to get their child into ABA. They trust their doctor.

Is the doctor telling them about the controversy of ABA? Most often, no!

Are doctors telling them that the "therapy" (the providers are not therapists) is going to be provided mostly by someone who only had 40 hours of training? No, they're not.

ABA done by an RBT is not skilled care. RBTs are not therapists and do not have the training to address communication skills, ADLs, or sensory processing challenges, but they're billing for it! And their billing a lot for it!

I always assume behavior technicians are good people who mean well and want to help autistic children and their families. However, they are also not competent to address the issues they claim to be able to address.

This is an inconvenient truth. Parents are desparate to get help for their kids. They're not being told the truth, and the system leaves them few options outside of a very controversial intervention that many autistic people speak out against.

The ABA industry keeps trying to re-brand themselves. They are not telling the truth when they say ABA has changed, because the education and underlying theory has not.

They claim to be trauma-informed. They are not. In fact, many claim they are trauma-inducing.

They claim to be play-based and child-led. Using favorite toys to continue the operant conditioning is not child-led, and using toys to get compliance is not play-based.

They say "ABA has evolved". This is also a falsehood. They are trying to be OTs and SLPs. They are not and never will have the skill set of OTs or SLPs. While they are "evolving", there are already evidence-based, ACTUAL therapies that are already doing what they are trying to "evolve" into.

Sensory issues? Challenges with Activities of Daily Living? That's OT. Ask your doctor for an OT referral and tell them what you know about ABA. Enlighten them.

Communications concerns? Ask your doctor for a referral for speech (and possibly audiology).

Parents deserve to know the TRUTH about ABA, not just ABAs talking points to try and re-brand themselves.

Thank you Therapist Neurodiversity Collective for creating this infographic. You can download the printable for free on their website.


https://therapistndc.org/education/free-neurodiversity-printables/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKVsFdleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHkQvrSODmYnNj3tYd76FW8_cCLeev3k4CH_Om7YCDRNpsNZERRv_GiAcgsRl_aem_56T0ICILvbT-a7pMb7V6-g

05/18/2025

🌟 Happy Speech-Language Pathologist Day! 🌟

I’ve been a speech-language pathologist for nearly 30 years—and what a journey it’s been! From early intervention to adolescence, every child, every family, and every breakthrough has shaped who I am, both as a therapist and a human being. 💬❤️

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) do so much more than help with speech sounds. We support communication, connection, and confidence across the lifespan. Here are just some of the areas we treat:

🧠 Receptive and expressive language
🗣 Speech sound disorders
📚 Literacy and language-based learning
🧍‍♀️ Social communication and pragmatic language
🎤 Voice disorders
💭 Fluency (stuttering and cluttering)
🍽 Feeding and swallowing
🧒 Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)
🧠 Cognitive-communication after brain injury or developmental conditions
🤝 Neurodivergent support, including autism and selective mutism
😶 Selective mutism

It’s an honor to do this work. Here’s to all my fellow SLPs—may we continue to empower communication in all its beautiful forms. 💬💛

02/07/2025

If you’re seeking respite, this may be an option.

02/07/2025

🌞 Summer Camp at Reconnections Education! 🌞

Reconnections Education Center is a school designed for children with unique abilities, providing a supportive and engaging environment where every child can thrive. This summer, we’re offering enriching programs tailored to meet the diverse needs of our students!

📢 Not currently a student? We welcome new families to explore our summer program! However, to ensure the best fit for each child, we require a minimum 2-3 hour session for evaluation before enrollment.

📍 Contact Us for More Information:
📧 Email: info@reconnectionseducation.org
📞 Phone: 727-279-5371
👤 Contact Person: Lilibel Bernhardt

Spots are filling quickly! Reach out today to learn more about how we can support your child’s growth this summer! ☀️📚🎉