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New #SensoryWall! Visit my website to find links to the supplies on my blog.

#SLP #zonesofregulation #sensoryprocessing

The #orbeez have returned! #slp #sensorybin #zonesofregulation

Expertise.com has ranked us as one of the top Speech-Language Pathologists in Albuquerque from 2017-2023! Visit our website to find the link and see the criteria for their rankings.

Zooey got an early "Hoppy" #Easter! She loved her Easter treat from @mollysbarkery! She even ate all the crumbs! #AnimalImplementedIntervention #SLP

Visit our bio link to register for the FREE first session of The Hanen Centre®’s TalkAbility™ Program. This evidence-based 12-week program improves children's social skills by teaching their parents ways to develop conversation skills, foster friendships, teach perspective-taking, and enhance play skills. Join us to see how the program works, learn strategies to help your child use eye contact and follow eye gaze, and decide whether the program is a good fit for you and your child.

#HanenCentre #Autism #SLP #Talkability

🍀 Happy Saint Patrick's Day! 🍀 My patients are LOVING the newest addition to #TocaLifeWorld from @tocaboca! It's been great for kids to practice their speech sounds and langauge when telling me what to do to design the restaurant and for them to follow directions while I tell them what recipes to make for customers.

My new window birdfeeder looks like a Muppet face! These are an easy way to implement "#animalassistedintervention"! I can't tell you how many of my patients say, "bird," or "look" as their first words in my room! Visit my website in my bio to read more about Animal-Assisted Intervention in speech & langauge treatment. #SLP

My patients LOVE Toca Pet Doctor from @tocaboca and I love using it to work on social skills like inferencing emotions ("How's the frog feeling?"), inferencing the cause of emotions ("What made the frog sad?"), and social problem-solving ("What can the frog do to help him feel better?"). You can find a video tutorial on how I do this on my blog (located at the link in my bio).

#SLP #socialskillsforkids #naturalisticinterventions

I forgot to put a pillow on the uncovered chair. Time for the lint roller. I'm grateful my patients' parents are always understanding about Zooey's "glitter."

Zooey loved her #ValentinesDay dog treat! Adorable dog cookies like these are from @mollysbarkery and are available at Target!

Window birdfeeders are an easy way to use #AnimalAssistedIntervention for speech & language treatment. I can't tell you how many of my patients used their first words by commenting on mine! The only problem is that you need a window (I didn't have one for HALF of my treatment rooms).

#SLP #BackyardBirding

These new masks are biodegradable! No purple, but I'm loving the colour variety pack! @shopvida

New tiny space #coffeestation & #teastation!

A patient and I made this video as their reward for their hard work. #SLP #animalassistedintervention

This is just a snapshot of my "to do lists." 🥴 I use Google Keep to make these and only "pin" the ones I need each day (so I don't get overwhelmed by the rest!). I regularly go through these lists and re-evaluate any tasks that I don't NEED to do. As a part of #MentalWellnessMonth I posed about this and other #SelfCare tips for #SLPs here: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/11/01/slp-self-care-tip-regularly-re-evaluate-your-workload/

New #QuietCorner light! I got this star "Nursery nightlight" from Amazon. The kids love that they can take it off the wall (I used command strips to mount it) and I love that I can give them single-step directions when they have the remote!

#SLP #ZonesofRegulation

#HappyNewYear from Zooey and Mrs. Amy! 🎊

Zooey liked her headband SO much more than her antlers!

#SLP #AnimalAssistedIntervention #2023

#HappyHolidays from Mrs. Amy and Zooey (who did NOT like her antlers)! ⛄🦌

#SLP #animalassistedintervention

⛄Happy Holidays!❄️

One of my favorite ways to keep treatment fun and engaging is to do "spirit days." This week is sweater week! Kids can wear a silly/ugly/fun/holiday sweater and I'm wearing one, too - even in #TocaLifeWorld! I keep the kids' holiday celebrations and religions in mind when planning our lessons so their traditions are included in our celebrations and discussions.

#SLP #holiday #naturalisticintervention

Zooey's loved her advent calendar from @traderjoes! I've taken pictures each day to share with the kids who aren't able to be on their appointment when she opens a door.

#SLP #animalassistedintervention #adventcalendar

Join our FREE orientation session for
@thehanencentre's More Than Words® program on January 4th. Visit my bio link to register.

The More Than Words® program from @thehanencentre helps parents of young children who are struggling with social and communication skills. The program teaches parents how to improve their child's skills during toy play, people play, reading, and peer play.

Parents in New Mexico, California, and Maryland who are interested can visit the link in my bio.

Spots are limited!

#SLP #earlyintervention #parentimplementedintervention

Happy Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Day!

#SLP #animalassistedintervention #thanksgiving

#TBT to my corn alphabet sensory bin. I filled the bin with popcorn, added "translucent letters" from @lakeshorelearning, and an item for each letter (example: the pink unicorn is for "U"). I had the kids sanitize their hands before and after using the bin, but that didn't stop some kids from putting the corn and toys in their mouths (which is why I still don't have a sensory bin since #COVID started). #SLP #sensorybin

With the evolution of #COVID into a more mild virus and no #PPE in our local schools I've switched my focus to keeping parents informed about the spread of COVID, flu, and RSV. I'll continue to wear a mask during appointments to encourage any kids who need to do the same based on recent illness or their parents' preferences.

You can find links to my community spread resources at https://www.slpatoz.com/covid/

The “Donkey Hodie™ Froyo Stand” game from @pbskids is a FREE multi-step direction game available on the iPad, android, and even via website! I love that the game keeps visuals for each step, which is really helpful for many of my patients! Visit my blog to learn more: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/11/01/free-multi-step-directions-game-donkey-hodie-froyo-stand/

#SLP #NaturalisticInterventions

🎃 Happy #Halloween! 👻

#SLP #AnimalAssistedIntervention

My patients are loving the new DIY haunted house feature in #tocalifeworld from @tocaboca !

So far I'm just using it as a reward - the kids use their best speech and langauge skills to tell me how to make the haunted house just the way they want it.

I'm also using the Haunted Mansion to practice trick-or-treating with my online patients.

#SLP #NaturalisticInterventions #Halloween

My patients LOVE using Toca Life World from @tocaboca during treatment and I LOVE that it's FREE! Visit my blog for ideas on using Toca Life World to work on following directions: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/10/01/using-toca-life-world-for-following-directions/

#slp #NaturalisticInterventions #tocalifeworld

#SLP #SelfCare Tip: incorporate your interests!

October is #adhdawarenessmonth.
Individuals with #ADHD experience hyperfocus with their interests and “hypo-focus” with many things outside their interests. For this reason, incorporating our patients' interests can be extremely effective when working with kids who have ADHD, but this technique can also be helpful for us providers.

Visit my blog to read more: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/10/01/slp-self-care-tip-incorporate-your-interests/

I made this "safe space" for my speech therapy dog, Zooey. Any patient who works with Zooey knows that when she goes into this gate she needs some time to herself (which usually only happens if there's thunder or she's VERY sleepy).

Visit my blog to read more: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/09/01/aai-activities-for-speech-language-treatment/

#SLP #AnimalAssistedIntervention

#TBT to Zooey's first week as a #SLP #TherapyDog in 2018.

#AnimalAssistedIntervention

This treat puzzle is a great way for me to work on expressive language using #AnimalAssistedIntervention. For more #SLP AAI ideas visit my blog: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/09/01/aai-activities-for-speech-language-treatment/

#SLP #SelfCare Tip: Unplug! I try to spend my Sundays away from screens. Read my blog for more: https://www.slpatoz.com/2022/09/01/slp-self-care-tip-unplug/

I'm excited to be running 3 programs from The Hanen Centre® ONLINE starting in the spring.

Each program is 12-weeks long and includes 3 individual visits where I can help parents tailor the program’s tools to their child's individual needs. Parents can attend from around New Mexico, California, and Maryland.

To learn more or register go to https://www.slpatoz.com/about-our-services/

Inside the tune-in corner (with the curtains closed).

(reposted since the multiple-pictures doesn't work with my website's widget)

#NoFilter #SLP #ZonesOfRegulation #NoDramaDiscipline

Inside the tune-in corner (with the curtains closed).

Scroll to see the outside.

#NoFilter #SLP #ZonesOfRegulation #NoDramaDiscipline

https://www.instagram.com/slpatoz/

Read "The Imperfect SLP"

Regulation Tool: Sensory Wall!

May 24, 2023

My patients love to move around the sensory circles and even place them on the mirror and window. My patients and I are loving this new sensory wall! It's renter-friendly, too! I ordered these sensory circles, which stick to glass and plexiglass, but can be...

Reduced Blogging

April 1, 2023

In 2021 I found that my graduate student clinicians were having a hard time learning all the treatment techniques I use on top of all the activities I use. I started this blog to help them by creating an organized database of techniques and activities....

Using Toca Kitchen Monsters for Speech & Language Treatment

April 1, 2023

Toca Kitchen Monsters is another FREE app from Toca Boca. In this one we get to choose a monster, choose different ingredients, and try to prepare food that the monsters will eat. Here are some ideas for using Toca Kitchen Monsters as a naturalistic activity during speech...

FREE Narrative Retell/Creation Worksheet

April 1, 2023

I made this FREE digital narrative grammar worksheet based on this 5-finger story retell strategy. I love this strategy since kids always have their fingers with them and they can use them when telling their parents about their day. I use this worksheet with a...

Following Directions with Webber® HearBuilder®

April 1, 2023

This is the activity I use most often for following directions. One of the things that makes the $199 annual fee for this program so worth it is that it's very customizable. You can set the difficulty from preschool to adult. I tell my older...

Expressive Language with Animal-Assisted Intervention

March 1, 2023

Please visit my original post here to learn the basics about therapy dogs and animal-assisted intervention in speech-language pathology. Expressive langauge skills are the easiest to address with AAI. You simply have the animal do things (or wait until they do things) then use common...

Narrative Recall with 5-Minute Stories

March 1, 2023

Before I found Disney shorts I used 5-minute stories for narrative recall. Most of these stories have good narrative structure, even though they take as little as 5-minutes to read. Of course, when the child is reading them they often take a bit longer, but...

FREE Emoji I Spy Slides for Articulation/Phonology

March 1, 2023

Some of my patients love these articulation I Spy slideshows! Having a patient guess my emoji is often the easiest way to get them to say lots of words. When I'm targeting sentences I find making terribly wrong guesses of the child's emoji works best....

Social Skills with Toca Pet Doctor

March 1, 2023

Here’s my video tutorial on how I’ve been using Toca Pet Doctor with more details on the least-to-most cueing hierarchy I use when I’m targeting these skills. A special note: When inferencing the cause of emotions I prefer to ask “what made him feel sad?” rather than...

Narrative Recall with Disney Shorts

February 1, 2023

For years I struggled to find stories that were short enough to fit into appointments, yet had solid narrative structure. Many Disney shorts have a good narrative structure, yet they're often under 10-minutes. To work on narrative recall with Disney short videos I watch the...