Speech Therapy Services
Gestalt Language Processing • AAC • Autism • Childhood Apraxia of Speech • Language Delays & Disorders
Evaluations
Services will begin with an evaluation of your child's language learning style as well as their unique strengths, needs, and areas for support.
Evaluations include:
Observation of your child engaging in an activity
Parent interview
Speech and language sample
Standardized assessments when needed.
Following the evaluation you will be provided with a written report and plan of care. Together we will determine goals for therapy based on your child’s needs and family priorities for therapy.
Our Approach to Therapy
At Talk ‘N Play, our approach to therapy is fun and playful. We want to make sure your child is actively engaged and enjoying our time together.
The activities we use during speech therapy are child-led, meaning we will use toys and activities that spark your child's interests and elicit meaningful communication.
Depending on your child's sensory needs and language learning style, our sessions may also include movement, music, and games, as well as opportunities for tactile/touch and proprioceptive input (think sensory bins, touch and feel books, etc.!).
We welcome parents and caregivers to observe and/or participate in our speech therapy sessions so you can continue to work on your child's goals at home.
• gestalt language processing
• AAC
• speech
• Childhood Apraxia of speech
• Language Delays and Disorders
• gestalt language processing • AAC • speech • Childhood Apraxia of speech • Language Delays and Disorders
Gestalt Language Processing & Echolalia
Gestalt Language Processing is a natural language learning style for many children. Children who are Gestalt Language Processors (GLPs) will begin to acquire language in chunks (or gestalts) rather than single words. This often begins with echolalia and repeating the language that they've heard from those around them, often from books or song lyrics, or even movie lines. This is how GLPs communicate their interests, wants, and needs.
At Talk 'N Play Therapy, we will work with you and your child, using the NLA framework to help your child move through the stages of Natural Language Acquisition (NLA), adapt the scripts they've learned, and to develop novel, self-generated language.
Common signs your child may be a Gestalt Language Processor:
your child often repeats lines and phrases from their favorite songs or movies
your child frequently echoes or repeats the comments and questions of those speaking to them
your child uses long utterances that can be difficult to understand. Often these utterances are misidentified as jargon, but after taking a closer look, you may discover that they are actually repeating something they've heard from a movie, video, book, etc. in the form of a gestalt.
your child uses rich intonation when speaking and they are highly interested in auditory information that is presented through melody or song.
your child enjoys acting out entire scenes or parts from their favorite video clips and movies, even if they are minimally speaking and not yet able to produce the accompanying speech.
your child seems to be stuck at the single-word level and is unable to combine the single words that they have within their repertoire. Although this can also be an indicator of an analytic language delay, some children who are gestalt language processors will learn frequently heard single words as gestalts and will associate much broader meanings to this word, but are then unable to expand past the single word level.
Augmentative and Alternative Communication
At Talk 'N Play Therapy we value and support multi-modal communication including the use of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) systems for children who are minimally speaking or non-speaking. We believe that all children should have access to a communication system that works for them. When selecting and using an AAC system, we consider your child’s motor-planning demands and current language skills.
Often, children who have access to robust AAC systems have better communication outcomes. Research shows that the use of AAC can actually help encourage spoken communication for many children.
At Talk 'N Play Therapy, we will work with you through the various steps involved in the AAC process including:
Determining the AAC system that is the best fit for your child
Assisting with the AAC funding process (e.g., providing documentation for your insurance provider or other funding sources)
Ongoing support with programming your child's AAC device
Supporting your child's ability to learn and successfully use their AAC system!
Together we will work to ensure that your child can effectively use their AAC system so that they can express themselves fully, connect with others, and have communication success in all environments.
SPEECH THERAPY
We offer evaluation and therapy services for children with a variety of speech sound needs including articulation skills, phonological skills, as well as motor-planning for speech production (Childhood Apraxia of Speech - CAS).
At Talk 'N Play Therapy, we utilize Dynamic Temporal and Tactile Cueing (DTTC) treatment methods to support children who have difficulty with motor planning for speech production including Apraxia/Dyspraxia and Childhood Apraxia of Speech. During this type of therapy, we will focus with your child on movement gestures for speech production rather than individual sounds. Speech therapy will also target words and phrases that are relevant to your child's life, with a lot of opportunities for repeated practice using engaging and fun activities.
Regardless of your child's particular speech needs, we will work with your child and your family to help improve their speech production and clarity so that they can be better understood by others, speak with confidence, and communicate and advocate for themselves at home, school, and in the community.
language THERAPY
Talk ‘N Play provides evaluation and therapy services for children with a variety of receptive and expressive language needs, including children who have difficulty with language comprehension such as following directions and understanding vocabulary, as well as children who have difficulty expressing themselves. We also work with school-age children on reading, writing, and spelling. Our practice uses research-based methods to support your child's oral and written communication skills, and we are Orton-Gillingham trained.
Our goal is that your child will develop the receptive and expressive language skills that they need to be successful across environments.
We Are Accepting New Clients!
Talk ‘N Play provides in-home speech therapy for children throughout the greater Columbus/Central Ohio Area and surrounding communities.
Looking for clinic-based services? Please reach out to us for an update on clinic-based therapy offerings.