“Flex” your social skills!

Were you ever in public with your child and his/her behavior made you wish the floor would open and swallow you whole?  Ever been without words following your child’s painfully truthful comment? Remember that time when no matter what you said or what you offered your child she/he could not and would not get his/her mind off of the one little thing that made them upset and therefore ruined the event/day/situation?

We have have experienced these ‘moments’ in life and for most these situations are not a daily occurrence, however for some these ‘moments’ happen daily.  The ability to communicate, verbal or non-verbal, as well as interact with those in our environment in a socially acceptable manner is called social skills.  Social skills are typically not taught in an out right manner, rather a child ‘picks’ up these rules and skills by watching adults interact. For example, chances are you were never sat down and given a full explanation as to why when you meet someone, you extend your hand.  There’s a pretty good chance that you had seen this occur enough times that without really thinking about it, you appropriately responded when an adult extended their hand to shake yours. All children require some level of direct instruction (formal or not) when being ‘taught’ social skills.  How many times have you said under clenched teeth in an audible whisper, “Get your finger OUT of your nose immediately. HERE is a tissue!” or “Please, when you are at your grandparent’s house, please to not burp at the table, please!!! For some children (and adults) these social nuances are not easily ‘seen’.  For some, these social skills, social graces, manners, whatever you want to call them, are very difficult skills to learn, remember and execute.

We are proud to offer the small group program based on the Superflex: A Superhero Social Thinking Curriculum by Stephanie Madrigal and Michelle Garcia Winner.  Your child will experience the adventures of our hero Superflex conquering the dastardly Team of Unthinkables such as “Rock Brain” , “WasFunnyOnce”, and “Glassman”.  All of the villains embody different challenges or behaviors that your child may experience everyday. Using ‘Superflex” as an example, your child will learn techniques and acquire ‘super powers’ to manage these villains!

Julie Ruddy will be leading our band of Superflex Heroes into battle against the Team of Unthinkables.  Julie brings 24+ years of experiences working with children with special needs grades K through 12 as an Intervention Specialist.  Julie received her Masters in Curriculum Instruction and is a proud graduate of Ohio University. Julie has super powers of her own which she will share at Lakeshore’s Superflex Main Command Room in a six week program on Tuesdays from 6:30pm – 7:30pm.  Class size is limited to 6 SuperHeros in training. Registration is open until Wednesday, September 12, 2018. Find more information at https://www.lakeshorespeech.com/events/ .

Yours in Speech,

Lakeshore Speech Therapy, LLC

Sit down, Stay a while!

Summer not only is a time to travel, but a time when others may be traveling and staying with you!  While these visits are important and eagerly anticipated, having Gramma and Papa or Auntie and Uncle staying in with you can really create situations where you and your child may not be at your best.

For some children, upsetting the routine at home can create a rather unsettling feeling that may last for the day, the week, or the month.  Children may ‘express’ these feelings verbally, vocally or physically. Working through daily meltdowns is not a vacation for anyone – parent or visitor.

Proactively planning for visitors, no matter the length of the visit, should not only include cleaning and food prep, but working with your child AND your visitors so everyone can enjoy the time together.

Location….. If you child will be sacrificing their bedroom to Gramma and Papa or Auntie and Uncle you may want to :

  • Weeks ahead of the visit warning your child verbally of the change
  • Having a ‘pretend’ visitor (a nice use of that entirely too large of a stuffed animal living in your attic) stay in your child’s room; giving them the opportunity to sleep in the location they will be sleeping in when the ‘real’ visitor is in town.
  • Have your child help in preparing their room for the visitor
    • let them pick out the color sheets that will be on the bed
    • Make a ‘game’ of hiding toys/games, etc.

Routine…. Without a doubt your child’s routine is going to be ‘off’ while there are visitors in your home.  You may want to consider:

  • Getting the daily routine down on paper (use pictures, words, etc)
  • Reach out to your visitors and share the ‘typical’ daily routine and explain to them the importance of them understanding the routine, not that they will need to follow it minute to minute, but to realize how or why your child might be acting differently (ie: Typically after lunch, your child has rest time, however while visitors are in town, he/she may not get rest time until later in the day – this change MAY result in a meltdown.)
  • Practice changing up the daily routine weeks prior to the visitors arriving.
  • Give ample time for your child to process the ‘change in routine’ (some children will require a warning days prior to a major changes, others manage the change given a moments notice).

Have a Plan…. Life is life, so anticipate there will be a time and place while your visitors are in town when everything is going along well and BOOM your child unexpectedly melts down. You may want to consider:

  • Having an “emergency melt-down kit” at the ready.  A small bag that contains a favorite snack, fidget toys, favorite smells (ie: cinnamon candy, cotton ball with your perfume/colgan, etc), a ‘lovey’ or stuffed animal), etc.  
  • A playlist on a device (probably your phone) with favorite or soothing music
  • Willingness to leave a location until your child is feeling better (ie: go to the restroom, go outside, take a walk away from the area)
  • Talk less, act more – less is more in these instances. When your child is experiencing difficulty managing, having everyone talking to them could actually increase the confusion and escalate the melt-down. Stay calm, talk less, and move quickly to enact the plan may result in a shorter less dramatic event.
  • Let EVERYONE know the plan.  If you do not want or need help to execute the plan – LET EVERYONE KNOW.  Your visitors, while meaning well, may try to help and in doing so create a larger issue.

Enjoy your time together and create memories that last a lifetime!

Yours in Speech,

Lakeshore Speech

“Are we there yet?”

While Cleveland is a ‘go to’ destination for many people during the Summer months, you may be leaving for a get away of your own.  Whether basking in the sun, sleeping under the stars or reading every historical marker/plaque across the country is your idea of a vacation, it’s easy to weave in a few moments of language enrichment or practice.

Enjoying time with family and friends does not necessarily mean you can’t work on your speech-language skills.  If your child is working on articulation, listen for correct production of sounds and use reminders to help correct errors.  If your child is working on language, use these games to practice vocabulary. If your child is working on following directions, these games are perfect for working on those skills (not to mention passing time in what can feel like and endless car ride!).

I Spy…“I spy with my little eye, something blue.” Directions: One person spies something and recites the line, ending in a clue. Everyone else takes turns trying to guess the mystery item.

I’m Going on a Picnic/Trip/Space Adventure….. Directions: The first player says “I’m going on a picnic/trip/space adventure (or whatever interests your child)  and I’m putting in my suitcase…” followed by something that begins with A (apple/air/ape). The second player repeats what the first person said, but adds something that begins with B (“I’m going on a trip and I’m putting in my suitcase and apple and bermuda shorts.”). And so on with C, D, and the rest of the alphabet. If someone forgets an item, he/she is out OR you can allow everyone to chime in to help OR the next person just starts over with A.

Add-on Storytelling…..One person starts a story with only one or two sentences and stops in the middle of the next sentence (“Once upon a time, there was a lovely princess.  The princess lived in a huge…..”). The next person starts their story where the previous person left off (“igloo on a mountain. The princess has long brown hair and her eyes were …..”) You cannot negate or poo-poo another’s idea, you can only build on the story (“on the top of her head.  She was a martian princess from the land of ….”)The stories are sure to start get everyone giggling. An adaptation to this game could be an adult tells the full story and the children add the descriptors/objects/verbs when the adult pauses.

20 Questions …… Directions: One person thinks of something (you may want to determine a category or area to narrow the choices for beginners), and everyone else has only 20 YES/NO questions to ask to try to guess what it is. If someone guesses correctly before the 20th question, that person get to think of an item and ANSWER the yes/no questions. If no one figures it out, the person answering gets to go again.

Category Naming Game…. Directions: The ‘announcer’ (typically a parent) sets a time limit (ie: 60 seconds), that person announces “Name all the pick a category you can think of starting NOW!” The player starts naming all the items in that category.  If the player names an incorrect item, the announcer starts counting down from 10, if the player cannot come up a correct item in the category by the time the announcer gets to 1, it’s the next players turn.

Safe Travels!

Yours in Speech,

Lakeshore Speech

Summer is HERE!!!

School’s OUT …….Summer’s HERE……and within two  seconds, the kids are bored! Nothing says Summer like the sweets sounds of “There’s nothing to do” and “I’m bored” seeming on loop from most children’s mouths.  AND if they are not outright saying it, you know they are thinking it by the glazed look in their eyes when they are offered a suggestion of how to fill the ‘endless’ hours of a day.  

Believe it or not, most children crave schedules and structure.  Seems completely against all that the lazy days of Summer imply, but on the whole, children (and most adults) are more productive and have fewer meltdowns when a schedule is in place.  I have no empirical data to offer on the previous statement, just years of experience at home, in school and in the clinic watching the change in those around when even the simplest schedule is laid out.

Toddlers to Teens to Twenties and older benefit from knowing what’s happening, what is expected and how long it will last. This is not to say every minute of every day of every activity needs to be spelled out, but here are 2 techniques that might be worth a try in mapping out the days of Summer.

The Verbal Set-up: Simple, easy and always with you.  This schedule techniques is used by millions, yet has never been given the credence  it deserves. At breakfast (no tv on, no digital devices, just their little eyes focused on Y.O.U), lay out how the day is going to roll. Chunk the day up because that’s a lot to think about and chances are you will not have had all the necessary cups of coffee yet for maximum functioning ability!

“Good morning, here’s our morning: We are going to finish breakfast. Then change – don’t forget to brush your teeth. We have 2  places we need to go to – the store and the library. First we’re headed to the library – this will be a SHORT visit. We need to run in and get the books I have on hold.  We will not be going to the children’s section, THIS TIME. I will need someone to help carry my library card going in and someone to carry the books – volunteers? Then we are headed to the grocery store.  I will have a list of what we need. This isn’t a LONG visit, we should be able to get what we need and get out quickly. I will need help finding some of the stuff and I know I can count on you all. After the grocery store, we are coming right home.  We will all put the groceries away. Once the groceries are put away you can go outside (or play or whatever they can do at that time).

Pictures Speak Louder than Words: A little more involved, but might be just what is needed. You know the type of pictures your child tunes into most (photos, your artistic renderings, clipart, etc.).  Spend some time gathering these pictures (ie: get the old 35mm camera out use your phone and take pictures of your car, the stores/locations you visit most), print and laminate (easiests cheapest lamination is clear contact paper or packing tape). Start the same way as the ‘Verbal Set-up’, in a calm undistracted situation (typically when eating 😉) and lay out the schedule, again chunking it.

“Good morning, here’s our morning: We are going to finish breakfast. [photo of empty plate (can stand for finishing any meal)] Then change – don’t forget to brush your teeth. [photo of closet or draw with clothes (can stand for change clothes anytime)] We have 2  places we need to go to – the store and the library. [photo of car and specific buildings]. First we’re headed to the library – this will be a SHORT visit.  We need to run in and get the books I have on hold. We will not be going to the children’s section, THIS TIME. I will need someone to help carry my library card going in and someone to carry the books – volunteers? Then we are headed to the grocery store.  I will have a list of what we need. This isn’t a LONG visit, we should be able to get what we need and get out quick. I will need help finding some of the stuff and I know I can count on you all. After the grocery store, we are coming right home. [photo of home] We will all put the groceries away.  Once the groceries are put away you can go outside (or play or whatever they can do at that time). [photo of playroom/outside, etc.].

If you would like more information or need help in getting started using these techniques, ask your Speech Therapist.  If you don’t have one to ask, give Kelly a call at Lakeshore Speech (1-440-471-7190).

Yours in Speech,

Lakeshore Speech Therapy