4 Ways to Implement Technology into Speech Therapy

ManySLPshadtoturntheirpracticesupsidedownthispastyear,withamajorityofstudents learningfromhomeinsteadofinperson.Onesilverliningfromthispandemicwasdiscoveringhow beneficialtechnologycanbeto Online Speech Therapy.Evenwithstudentsbackintheclassroom, therearesomanyresourcesthatcan’tbeleftbehind.

Technologyisn’tathingthatwasmagnifiedduringCovidandwilldissipate.Onlineresourcesand liveorasynchronousvirtualclassesareheretostay.Theyareconvenient,accessible,andefficient. Usetechnologyinyourclassroominordertooptimizeyourspeechtherapypractices.

4 Technology Ideas to Implement into Speech Therapy

Nowisthetimetoembracetechnologyandimplementitintoyourlessonswithvirtualandinclassroomstudents.Everychildwillbethrilledwiththevarietyandfamiliarity.Takealookatsome oftheseideas:

Parent Involvement: Sendingvideosbetweenspeechtherapylessonsorteachingonlinewill reachparentsmorethantheoccasionalmeetingattheschool.Parentscanseeyouinactionand modelhowanSLPasksquestionsandencouragesthestudents.

Videos: Usecommercials,movieclips,andlearningvideostoteachyourstudents.Youcanuse thevideostoworkonthestudents’vocabulary,articulation,recallingofdetails,andpointingout inferences.Therearesomanyquestionstogettheirbrainsthinkingaftershowingashortvideo clip.

No-Print Activities:Manyresourcesareavailableonlinethatuseinteractiveworksheetsthat requirenoprinting.Fewfamilieshaveprintersintheirhomes,soitisunrealistictorequireprinting inyourlessons.Provideeasyfill-inactivitiesthatwillsharpenthestudent’stypingskillsaswell.

Game: Thereareendlessgamesonlinethatcanbeaccessedforyourspeechtherapylessons. Chooseanonlinematchinggameincludingworkswiths-blends,articulationgames,ormore.You canmakespeechtherapyfunandcollaborativewithonlineactivities.Childrenlovetheplayful elementsofthesegamesandcanlearnanddevelopatthesametime.

Itdoesn’tmatterwhetheryouareteachingyourstudentsvirtuallyorareabletomeetfacetoface, switchthingsupwithtechnology.Youcanpersonalizeeachlessontotheirpreferences.Andmost importantly,makethestudentlookforwardtospeechtherapy.

Finding the Balance with Technology

TechnologycanbeagreatsupportinSLP,butthereisabalancetoensurethechildisn’tinfrontofa screentoomuch.Researchshowsthattoomuchscreentimeforyoungerchildrencanpotentially playaroleinspeechandlanguagedelays.

Don’tlettechnologyorappsdisruptdailyroutines.Instead,usethemasasupplementtoenhance communication.Withtherightintegration,technologyencouragesaninteractivelearning environment,supportingtheneedsofthechildandtheirfamily.

Ideally,technologyshouldsupplementanoverallspeech-languagetherapyprogram–digitaltools shouldn’tbetheonlyactivitiestosupportspeechandlanguagedevelopment.Inadditiontoapps andtechnology,alsolookforwaystointegratescreen-freeactivitiestosupportthechild’sgrowth andlearning.Formoreinformationvisitat https://cbstherapy.com.