Speech and Language Kids Podcast

Ever set up an amazing organization system…only to completely abandon it by October? In this episode, Carrie breaks down the summer planning hack that SLPs are using right now to set themselves up for a smoother, less chaotic school year — and it works even if you don't have a ton of planning time, your caseload is out of control, or your admin keeps moving the goalposts. The secret? A simple speech folder system that separates your teaching materials from your engagement activities — so your prep stays low while your sessions stay fresh. You'll learn: How to set up a speech folder box (and the teletherapy-friendly version) A one-skill-per-month planning approach that actually sticks How to run sessions that alternate between practice and fun without burning yourself out on prep Why Buttercup's Speech Quests might just become your new best friend Whether your brain works against you or your schedule does, this system is designed to flex around real life — so you can actually stay organized, not just get organized. Ready to set up your speech box? Let's go.

Themes are one of the best tools in an SLP's toolkit. They keep kids engaged, tap into what's happening in their world right now, and make sessions feel fresh and fun. But if you've ever spent a Sunday night frantically hunting for a "dinosaur-themed articulation activity" only to find... nothing useful... you know the burnout is real. In this episode, I'm breaking down three practical ways to bring themes into your therapy sessions without adding a ton of extra work to your plate. We're talking about using AI to generate themed materials on the fly, the magic of one themed activity that works for every kid on your caseload, and simple themed props that do the heavy lifting for you. I'll also be kicking off our Summer Reset series: 8 steps to help you finally become an Unstressed Speechie before the new school year sneaks up on you. Whether you want to overhaul your session notes, streamline your IEP process, or just stop dreading Monday mornings, this series is for you. Themes don't have to mean more work. Let me show you how.

What if the most powerful therapy tool in your session was already sitting on the floor? In this episode, we're talking about play — not as a reward for "real" practice, but as the practice itself. We'll dig into why kids learn and retain skills so much better through play, and exactly how to make it work: modeling with exaggeration, recasting errors naturally, creating communication temptations, and building in just enough structure to get the repetitions you need. You'll also get practical strategies for older kids and skills that don't come up organically, including turning practice into timed challenges, pairing reps with games, and using sensory tools to keep focus without the fight. This one's a game-changer — pun fully intended.

If your students are melting down, shutting down, or refusing to cooperate during the last weeks of school, you're not alone — and it's not a reflection of your skills as a speech-language pathologist. End-of-year behavior challenges are one of the most common struggles SLPs face, and in this episode, we're breaking down exactly why it happens and what to do about it. The truth is, kids aren't acting out randomly. As the school year wraps up, many students experience real anxiety about transitions, schedule changes, and saying goodbye to familiar routines and trusted adults. Some push back hard — not because therapy isn't working, but because it is. In this episode, we unpack the attachment and anxiety behind end-of-year behaviors so you can stop taking it personally and start responding in a way that actually helps. We're sharing Survival Tip #2 from the Savvy Speechie's End-of-Year Survival Kit: managing behaviors by doing less. You'll learn how to lower the sensory and emotional "vibe" in your sessions using predictability, visual supports, and simple low-prep materials — without sacrificing structure or consistency. We talk about why paper beats screens for dysregulated kids, how a simple packet can double as a behavior management tool, and why now is the perfect time to lean into calming make-and-take activities, fidgets, and movement breaks. Whether you're a school-based SLP drowning in end-of-year paperwork, an SLP assistant trying to hold it together through the chaos, or a special education teacher wondering why your kids have suddenly lost their minds, this episode gives you practical, immediately usable strategies to survive — and even enjoy — the final stretch of the school year. Topics covered in this episode: Why students show increased challenging behaviors at the end of the school year The attachment and anxiety behind refusals and meltdowns How to use predictability and visual countdowns to reduce dysregulation Simple, low-prep session structures for dysregulated students Why printed materials calm kids down better than screens End-of-year celebration ideas that double as behavior incentives No-prep activity ideas for speech therapy sessions in May and June

Before you quit SLP to raise goats and maybe open a yoga studio, listen to this. Your burnout isn't about your career — it's about your routine. And your routine? It's fixable. This episode breaks down the one therapy routine swap that helps overwhelmed SLPs simplify their sessions, clear the clutter, and actually leave work at work. Start here. We're talking about why survival-mode routines keep SLPs stuck, and the one simple therapy routine swap that can change your entire week — no big overhaul required. If you're managing a caseload of 50+ kids and wondering if you chose the right career, this episode might just change your mind. $200 Credit for the Lifetime Access Plan Going on Now through April 15, 2026! Go to Hub.SpeechAndLanguageKids.com and enter this promo code at checkout: SURVIVE

What if your therapy session had a opening chime, a themed activity waiting on the table, a magical d20 for turn-taking, an AI that generates custom word lists and social scenarios on the spot, and a fireworks celebration at the end? That's exactly what I built — and in this episode, I'm taking you inside your brand-new Virtual Therapy Table dashboard, a one-stop interactive hub designed to make every session feel intentional, engaging, and a little bit magical. Whether you're prepping back-to-back sessions with no time to breathe or just tired of hunting down the same kinds of materials week after week, this episode will show you what's possible when you stop building therapy tools from scratch and start letting smart systems do the heavy lifting. In this episode, you'll hear: What the Virtual Therapy Table actually is (and why kids love it) How each element — the chime, worksheet, dice, prompt generator, and finale — serves a therapeutic purpose How I built it and how SLK members can access it What this means for the future of SLP session prep If you've ever wished your therapy room could just... set itself up, this episode is for you.

If you feel like you're constantly just spinning your wheels or constantly stuck on the struggle bus as a speech-language pathologist…. Well… You're not alone. The struggle is real. And there's no shortage of others who feel the same way. But today…I'm gonna get real with you. Cause I've been struggling. And I think I finally figured out why. And my revelation may just help you as well. I'm sharing a personal update about why I'm stepping into "builder mode" and pausing new podcast episodes for a short time — because I've realized something big: I've been afraid to finish the SLK Curriculum. Yep. Afraid of success. Afraid of being judged. Afraid that once it's "done," I won't have the excuse of "it's still a work in progress." And as I unpacked that fear, I started to see how many of us as SLPs are doing the exact same thing in our own work. When we're overwhelmed, exhausted, and deep in survival mode, our nervous systems try to keep us safe by keeping us small. They feed us very logical, very convincing excuses: What if I try something new and it doesn't work? What if it does work? What will my coworkers think? What if I spend the money and don't follow through? What if people judge me? In this episode, we're talking about: Why your nervous system may be keeping you in the struggle How a mindset of lack keeps you from seeing viable options The sneaky beliefs that stop you from trying a simpler, more effective way How to become a detective of your own thoughts And how to rewrite the script — just like we teach our fluency kids to do If you've ever: Felt stuck on the struggle bus Overhauled your system every few months instead of finishing something Been afraid to rock the boat Worried what others would think if you tried something different Or quietly wondered, "What if I'm not good enough?" This episode is for you. I'm finishing the darn curriculum. And I'm inviting you to examine what you might need to finish, change, or finally commit to in your own practice. Let's step out of survival mode and into something bigger. I'll see you on the other side.

A new study out of Canada found that higher screen time in elementary school is linked to lower reading and math scores. And the more researchers dig, the more concerning the pattern becomes. In this episode, we break down what the research is saying about screens in schools, including: why even "educational" technology may not improve outcomes how digital reading compares to print reading for comprehension what brain studies are revealing about learning on screens vs. paper why handwriting still matters more than we think And most importantly… What does this mean for speech/language therapy? For our struggling learners, it may be possible that simply switching your therapy activities from screen-based to paper-based could give them a major advantage. This episode will help you understand the research and give you a simple, practical way to test it in your own speech room, starting tomorrow.

Imagine being a child who knows what they want to say… but has no way to say it. No words. No voice. No control. In this episode, I'm sharing my favorite AAC app that helps nonspeaking children communicate, connect, and feel safer in their world: Grid by Smartbox. We'll break down: What AAC actually is (and who it's for) The question I always get: Does AAC prevent kids from talking? Why Grid is such a powerful option (and what makes it different) The simplest, most effective ways to start teaching AAC (without feeling overwhelmed) How AAC can be especially supportive for Gestalt Language Processors (GLPs) And if AAC feels intimidating, I want you to hear this loud and clear: There is no "perfect" way to start AAC. There is only starting. Join me today to find out how a simple AAC app can be the missing key for a non-speaking child.

If you've ever had a client who just cannot get the /r/ sound no matter how many times you model it, you are not alone. The /r/ is one of the trickiest sounds in speech therapy… and it's also one of the most common reasons kids stay on caseloads way longer than they should. In this episode, I'm sharing 15 practical, therapist-tested strategies for teaching the /r/ sound (especially for those kids who aren't responding to the usual cues). You'll hear a variety of approaches, including shaping from other sounds, tongue tension tricks, tactile and visual cues, auditory discrimination strategies, and even a few "reset" options for when nothing is working. Whether you're working with bunched /r/, retroflex /r/, vocalic /r/, or you're just desperate for fresh ideas, this episode will give you a toolbox full of options to try immediately in your next session. (Psst! Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast, we have something awesome coming next week!)

Speech-language pathologists are quitting left and right. And some are leaving the profession all together. When we talk about SLP turnover, the conversation usually turns to caseload size, pay, or work-life balance. And yes, those things matter. But they're symptoms, not the root problem. In this episode, we zoom out and look at what's actually driving burnout and turnover in speech-language pathology: too many high-stakes decisions without a clear system to support clinical decision-making. SLPs are expected to: Diagnose what's wrong Decide what to work on Write defensible goals Create therapy plans from scratch Manage behavior Justify services across tiers And do it all for dozens (sometimes hundreds) of students Every. Single. Day. Meanwhile, other professionals are handed evidence-based curricula and clear workflows. SLPs are handed complexity and told to figure it out on their own. In this episode, we'll talk about: Why "more support" and more PD often increase overwhelm The hidden cognitive load that leads even passionate, well-paid SLPs to quit Why the lowest-turnover programs don't rely on hero clinicians, they rely on systems How a structured therapy framework reduces burnout without removing clinical judgment What leaders can do right now to improve retention, confidence, and consistency across their teams If you're an SLP who's exhausted from constantly second-guessing yourself, or a leader trying to figure out why good clinicians keep leaving, this conversation reframes the problem and points to a solution that actually works. Because retention doesn't come from asking SLPs to care more. Or see more clients. It comes from giving them clarity, structure, and a shared way to make decisions. Sign up your team for our SLK Curriculum and get all of the systems and supports you need: https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/slk-hub-teams-program-support-your-speech-team-elevate-your-outcomes/

An increasing number of SLPs are noticing something new: word-final repetitions, breathing or pauses in the middle of words, and extra sounds popping up between words. These atypical disfluencies don't always look like "classic" stuttering and the research on what to do about them is…messy. In this episode, I walk through a real-world case review of word-final stuttering and other atypical disfluencies, including what the research actually says (and where it falls apart). We'll unpack the different types of atypical disfluencies (mid-word breaks, sound insertions, final sound repetitions) and why they're showing up more often in children with autism and ADHD. Most importantly, we talk about the question that really matters: Do these disfluencies actually need to be treated? If fluency is a difference and not a disorder, when does intervention help, and when might it do more harm than good? You'll hear a practical, detective-style framework for figuring out what's driving the disfluency, how to collaborate with parents and teachers when the answers aren't clear, and which strategies are worth trying (and which ones deserve caution). Join us for a deep dive into this atypical (but increasing) problem. And if you'd like to submit a case review for us to feature on the podcast, click here: https://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/submit/