Due to changes at the workplace, which are mainly fiscally driven, my current work position is expanding and I will no longer treat children solely in the preschool. Now, some of my days will be split as I will be back on the road in homecare therapy for a few hours a week. It's been more than 3 years now since I left homecare and the birth to ...

My focus for the blog over the past 9 weeks has been to provide readers with information about what ''typical'' early childhood development looks like, as well as inform parents about how to obtain help for their child when they feel they need it. Empowering and educating parents is a very important part of our profession and will help children ...

While driving on my way to an appointment a car cut in front of me three times. I steered clear of a car that was edging over my way to avoid an accident. I saw a near miss when a car ran a stop sign. I pulled over for a siren but cars passed me who didn't bother to follow that law and I had cars honk at me for going the posted speed limit in a ...

Etsy knows best. How many of you know Etsy? According to Wikipedia, Etsy is an e-commerce website focused on handmade or vintage items as well as art and craft supplies. These items cover a wide range including art, photography, clothing, jewelry, food, bath and beauty products, quilts, knick-knacks, and toys. Many individuals also sell craft ...

This past week I took my daughter to our local library in search of books appropriate for summertime and gardening. She attends a childcare program two days a week and they have been talking all about planting and eating vegetables over the last few days. I thought this would be a fun way to support what they are learning in the classroom, as well ...

When do you elicit a language sample? Certainly when you first see a child you would want to take a language sample. However, if the child is not comfortable on the initial assessment, there is nothing written in stone that says that it has to be completed the first time around. That in itself should tell you something. I feel that ...

Every kid can benefit from the kind of positive reinforcement offered by the phrase, ''You did it!'' especially if it is offered in an exuberant voice. I say this because lately with a number of my younger and developmentally younger students I have been using the interactive book app Pat the Bunny, and the positive reinforcement ...

Last week I wrote a post about using communication boards in a preschool classroom. This week I wanted to write a brief but hopefully thorough follow-up post about the effective use of such a tool in the classroom setting, and to examine its obvious limitations. One parent responded to last week's blog with the following: ''My daughter used ...

In ''What to Include in a Language Sample, Pt. I,'' I expressed how important I feel a language sample is to complete an assessment for a verbal child or adult on the autism spectrum. I told you what to look for during a language sample and gave you an example of how I utilize a puzzle to elicit conversation with young children. When taking ...

Dear Kathie: ''Do you always take a language sample as part of an assessment with a verbal child or adult with ASD? If so, what do you look for and how do you elicit the conversation?'' - Adrian, speech-language pathologist My Response: Thank you for asking about the assessment aspect for a child/adult with ASD. I feel there are three ...