Speech Pathology
At Think Play Say, we are passionate about evidence based speech pathology services.
Due to this and the increasingly clear research in the field, we will no longer be offering stand alone fortnightly speech pathology sessions, as there is no evidence to change from fortnightly therapy.
Instead, we will offer weekly shorter blocks for families who are only funded for fortnightly appointments, or alternating sessions with the Speech Pathologist and Allied health assistant.
We also prioritise intensity of therapy. The evidence on supporting speech sound disorders, both phonological disorders and childhood apraxia of speech, indicate that significantly more progress is made with shorter blocks of 2-4 sessions a week, followed by a break, compared to weekly sessions.
Remember, we will support you as long as you need, but our ultimate goal is for you to NOT need us any more.
There is evidence for weekly sessions supporting language development, including improvements in vocabulary, grammar and parent led support. However, more and more research is emerging that shorter more intense therapy is actually more beneficial, especially for children with Intellectual disability and Developmental Language Disorder.
Understanding Your Child's Communication: Speech Pathology Assessments
We prefer to build good relationships before delving into standardised assessment, however the initial sessions are still where we will be gathering a lot of information and creating a plan of support to help you meet your goals.
A speech and language assessment is a comprehensive evaluation conducted by a speech-language pathologist (SLP) to understand your child's unique communication abilities. This can include speech sounds, language skills, fluency, and social communication.
Through a combination of standardized tests, observations during play or conversation, and discussions with you, the SLP builds a complete picture of your child's strengths and areas for improvement.
This valuable information is then used to create a personalised therapy plan specifically designed to address your goals, and your child's needs and help them reach their full potential.
Speech pathology assessments can also be beneficial when applying for support at school or through NDIS. We'll discuss the assessment fees upfront, including the hourly rate and estimated time for both the assessment and the report
Speech pathologists are able to assess and diagnose dyslexia (or specific impairment in reading) however, we generally like to make sure that the child has been receiving evidence based instruction prior to making that diagnosis. That means that the process is usually assessment, 6 months of targeted support, and reassessment.
Therapy is dependant on the child and their needs. Some children will need short bursts of support, and some children will attend speech pathology on and off for a long time.
We set goals with you, because you are going to be with your child much more than us. We try to support you to integrate some of the therapy targets into every day life. This may be a simple as using a few new vocabulary words more often that week, or as complex as practising modelling a new communication software. Little bits often is how learning happens best, so we want you involved.
Sometimes parents do need a break to take an hour for themselves, and that is ok, but if you opt to not attend sessions with your child or they are in an older group session, you will probably be asked to complete homework with them to keep the momentum.
Making Therapy Fit Your Life:
We offer flexible options to fit around your family. Sessions can be face to face at the clinic or via telehealth, and we can combine speech pathologist sessions with allied health assistant support depending on your child's needs and funding.
We work in cycles of up to 13 weeks, depending on your child's needs and the evidence base for what's likely to work best for them. Towards the end of each cycle we'll check in on progress and plan what comes next — whether that's another cycle, a planned break, or working toward discharge.
Breaks are a normal part of the model — planned rest helps consolidate progress and reduces therapy fatigue.
For some children, particularly those with speech sound disorders, a shorter intensive block of more frequent sessions is actually more evidence-based than spreading sessions out over a longer period. We'll talk through what model suits your child best.