For an occupational therapist, “occupations” are the meaningful activities that we want and need to do in our everyday lives, from brushing your teeth and getting dressed to eating meals with your family or going to school. Everyone, of all ages, participates in occupations. An OT provides services that support engagement in these activities!

Pointing is an early communication milestone. Sometimes babies, toddles, and children have challenges learning how to point. In this blog post we will discuss why pointing is important and ways to encourage your child to point using their index finger.

Summer is coming to the Seattle area and there is nothing better than hitting the outdoors to soak up the sun and have some fun! While enjoying some popular warm weather activities, why not also encourage the development of speech and language?

I feel pretty darn sure that virtual speech therapy has earned its place on the list of solid options for many families. I also believe that these benefits have the potential to outlast the current era we are living in.

As caregivers, you can use temptations (like the jingle of an ice cream truck) to encourage late-talkers to communicate verbally and non-verbally.

OWL stands for Observe, Wait, and Listen. These are three strategies parents and caregivers can use every day to help facilitate and encourage communication with their child. Adapted from the Hanen "It Takes Two To Talk" Program.

Why is learning during play so important? Well, there are several reasons: A child’s language often develops during play and helps a child gain new words. There’s less pressure and frustration during play, as compared to asking for something like a drink of water or help with getting a certain pair of socks. 

What may seem like a simple game of peek-a-boo, silly face contests, or back-and-forth babble to you is actually a rich time of learning for your little one. Interactive play helps kids develop skills like empathy, attention, early language, and trust.

Just like computers process information in different ways and at different speeds, so do our brains. There are many different types of processing functions that our brains perform. Below I discuss two of the most common types of processing and their potential issues that can have an impact on a child’s speech and language development.

Attention can be tricky for kids and adults. In this blog, we will discuss more about attention and some ways you can help support your child’s attention skills at home. 

Believe it or not, memory is a pretty huge part of communication development. Memory impacts a person’s ability to carry out almost every activity in day to day life – including speech and language production and comprehension!