What's in your cart? BTS Sale Linky Party!!!

Nooo, it's back-to-school already?  Ok, keep calm-don't worry.  You're at the What's in Your Cart? Linky Party hosted by The Speech Room News and we'll have you all set for BTS in no time!  

Let me start with what's new in my store:  

                                          Multi Syllabic Sports Bundle
      Perfect for upper grade students who struggle with motor planning.

I've been busy thinking about my upper level students who struggle with reducing their rate of speech and with motor planning.  My basketball and baseball games were a big hit, especially with my middle school boys, so I completed a sport for all seasons and put it together in this $-saving bundle.  

The bundle will be 28% off the already reduced price with the code: BTS15

Here is what's in my cart!

                                 Super helpful techniques for all students. 
                             Super Strategies for Word Retrieval Deficits! 

Keeping with the sport's theme.  This looks like a must-have for the fall!

Football Speech and Language Pack

I've had my eye on this product for a while.  This concept is so  important for our high drama and low affect students.

                                          Size of the Problem Detectives.

Thanks Jenna, from Speech Room News, for hosting What's in Your Cart? Linky Party.  Click HERE to see many other resources that will be on sale Monday and Tuesday.  And don't forget to take a deep breath, all will be A-okay!

My SLP Runner store will be 28% off with the code BTS15.  Check out my NEW Middle School Headquarters HERE or all of my Back-To-School products HERE!  

The best thing I learned this summer!

And we're off!  Our first Frenzied SLP linky party and I'm so excited!  We have been working hard behind the scenes to bring you a collection of the most trending topics.  We invite all SLP bloggers to link up and welcome everyone's comments and feedback below.  

Here's the best thing I learned this summer!

I attended a Learning and The Brain Conference in Wellfleet, Mass (Cape Cod).  I know, lucky me!  Funny story: I did my first PeriscopeTV while walking to the conference and got lost on the way home because I wasn't paying attention.  Anyway, I learned a whole lot about the neuropsychology of learning and have highlighted the subcategories of the three areas of learning discussed. Today I bring you reading!

 As you are probably aware, language plays a huge role in reading and SLPs are a critical part of the collaboration team.  I hope these subtype breakdowns help you to better understand the learning processes of reading.  This knowledge can assist an RTI team, evaluation team, as well as inform parents of your role in the academic subject areas.  

Facts 

90% of referrals in elementary are for Dysphonetic Dyslexia. 

Brain research shows that the brain can change! 

What is LD? learning disabilities or learning dormancy? 

 We fire the brain with interventions to wake it up!  

Frequency of services always beats duration.  

The younger kids tend to remediate, older kids tend to compensate. 

Follow my blog to see upcoming posts on the neuropsychology of writing and math!  Yes, we have a critical role in MATH~especially with Common Core.

An InLinkz Link-up

S-peachy Feedback linky party!

Yay, S-peachy feedback is back.  Thanks Nicole Allison from Speech Peeps for hosting the party and giving us a chance to highlight some great feedback from the recent sale.

Multi-Syllabic All Star

Thank you Annie, I appreciate your kind feedback, fun attitude, and your continued support!   Email me at: jenng12slp@gmail.com with a product you would like from my store.

Head on back to Allison's Speech Peeps for more S-peachy Feedback 

5 Techniques for Teaming with Parents

While the end-of-the year craziness is in full-swing, I would like to give you some tips to help you effectively engage with challenging parents.  

1.  Communicate- This is almost ALWAYS the number one complaint of parents. They don't feel they are in on the information or part of the team. Really listen to parents and use the helpful phrase "I hear you".  This phrase goes a long way. It doesn't say "I agree" or "I am wrong", it simply states that you are listening and hear what the parent is saying.

2.  Scheduled Meeting- If you are caught off guard with an interrupting phone call or a parent who wants to meet on the spot, be sure to take a deep breath and take control of the situation. Use the "I hear you" phrase and add that "This is much too important to discuss now." Let the parent know you want to focus on their concerns, but can't do it at the present time. Recommend setting up a meeting that works for all of the team. Be sure to set up a meeting within a reasonable time frame and have another team member present.  

3.  Broken Record Technique- This is one of my favorite strategies that involves repeating what you want, time and time again. Use a neutral tone of voice and keep focused on your point. This technique helps to maintain the topic and ensures that the parent has a clear understanding of what you are communicating. 

4.  Fogging- Agree with any truth that may be contained within statements, even if the truth is critical. By not responding in the expected way (defensive or argumentative) the parent may cease confrontation as the desired effect is not being achieved. When the conversation is less heated, it will be possible to discuss the student more reasonably.

5.  Common Interest- Keep the conversation student centered. The common interest should always be the student. This should include the whole child; educational, social, physical, and emotional. Always bring the focus back to the student.  

Be strong! Sometimes parents are angry about history, personal life problems, or other things you have no control over. These behaviors may not change no matter what strategies you use. Be brave and remember that you are the professional.  

These tough experiences help us grow personally and professionally. Take from it what you can grow from and leave the rest at the door. 

**** Update:  I was so excited to see that this blog post was featured in the September 2015 edition of the ASHA Leader!**** 

What's in your Cart - linky party

Thank you Speech Room News for hosting another What's in Your Cart linky party.  Definitely check out Jenna's store which is filled with high quality products. 

My SLP Runner store will be 20% off including already reduced bundles!!!!  Use the upcoming Code: ThankYou for the full 28% off! I also have a couple of new products I would like to tell you about.  

I'm thrilled to present to you Sasquatch Watch for UPPER GRADES.  The vocabulary is higher level as are the fun inferencing questions.  I may be a little bias, but I think this is a must-have and can tell you that my students have really had a blast playing it all week!  

My Multi-Syllablic Basketball product has a new partner!  Multi-Syllabic All-Star combines a fun sports-theme with apraxia work.  3-4 syllable higher level words are great for the UPPER GRADE students who struggle with pacing and fluent speech.  

I've completed my Year Full of Figurative Language Bundle.  This is a great deal at 20% off full price with another 28% off with the code: Thank You

Here's a sneak peek at what's in my cart:

Secret Messages for Main Idea is a unique product with an array of great main idea questions and fun secret messages to motivate students. 

Apraxia Tx for Later Sounds-  I'm so happy to find another apraxia product that's appropriate for older students.

Mustache Monsters I'm excited to get my hands on these adorable monsters to help with context cues and summarizing.  

I hope you have as much fun shopping and I will.  Head on over to Speech Room News to see what the other SLP blogger are buying.  

Rubber Chickens for Social Thinking!

Rubber chickens~ Well that's an unexpected post topic!  I attended Michelle Garcia Winner's Social Thinking Mentor Training Program a few years ago and have implemented many of the programs, tips, and strategies with my students.

I wanted to share with you a simple and fun cue that I use for my middle schoolers to identify when behavior is unexpected.  Here is my first and very amateur You Tube video.  

Earth Day Ideas

This is an Earth Day middle school project lead by our special educators.  

Hey all,  I was trying to complete a freebie for you but just couldn't seem to get it all together during this crazy time of year.  Instead I'll share with you how I'm celebrating Earth Day with my students.

                                                                      I'm so proud to be a part of a school that values recycling.

1. Outside: We are taking services outside to green up.

a.  EET students will be donning the medical gloves to pick up trash and describe their finds.

b.  Social skills groups will learn how to add some mindfulness strategies to their bag of tools by using sense meditation.  Students will experience the sense of walking, sounds of nature, and feeling of the outdoors.

c.  Articulation students will search for their sound in the great outdoors.

2.  Touring the Building: I work at an amazing school that focuses on reducing, reusing, and recycling.   We have a full composting program which has tremendously reduced our landfill contribution.  You won't see more than one bag of garbage each day in our cafeteria which serves almost 400 students!  We also have filtered water fountains throughout our school.  Students are encouraged to bring their own reusable water bottles to school to fill up.   My students will tour the building in search of ways that our school celebrates Earth Day every day, and they will sequence their thoughts and language by writing a paragraph about their finds.

3.  Figurative Language:  You know I'm all about the themed idioms!  Here are 10 idioms that I plan to teach that pair nicely with Earth Day: 1. Down to Earth 2. World of Difference 3. Out of this World 4. Tree Hugger 5. Green Thumb 6. Call of Nature 7. Salt of the Earth 8. Heaven on Earth 9. Where on Earth 10. Earth Shattering.