Speech

G is for Graduate school.

Researching…networking…applying..waiting..and waiting..and waiting. First I wasn’t sure where I should apply, then I wasn’t sure how to apply, and now that it’s all settled down and I actually have the ability to make some decisions, I’m wondering if I should start all over again and apply somewhere new.

Can I be decisive about anything in my life???

From the beginning…the lucky call came the first day back to work after Pesach. I had just walked in from work and I went straight to wash up so I could get a start on the rest of my day. Then the phone rang. My grandparents were in the kitchen and were available to take the call. (To this day I have no idea why the school didn’t call my cellphone. My family isn’t known for answering the house phone; or checking caller ID for that matter-there’s a reason why I only list my cellphone on important documents). There was a bit of uncertainty in my grandfather’s voice as my legal name is one that he is unfamiliar with. The woman on the phone may have thought I was going through some identity crisis and was unsure of my nameJ (note to self: change your legal first name on your marriage certificateJ) Finally, the moment we had all been waiting for. The graduate school I applied to was pleased to inform me that I was suitable for their program, and I was more than welcome to put down a deposit ASAP.

How to express the feelings going through my mind at that moment?? There was no thought process, it was pure emotion. With tears running down my face I couldn’t even think of calling someone to tell them the news. It was just me and my siddur, thanking Hashem for enabling me to see positive results to all the months of hard work, tight deadlines, and severe stress at times. Finally! Finally I could have a plan for the coming year! Finally I could plan my summer accordingly, and begin looking for a suitable job. Finally I would have an answer to give to all the people who kept asking what my story was for next year. I was on a high for about the next week. I was so relieved to be finished with the decision-making portion of this journey. I had only been accepted to one program and my future was clear. Or so I thought…

Less than a week later, an emails pops into my inbox from a new email address address. The title reads “Announcing our new MS in Speech Language Pathology program”. You. Have. Got. To. Be. Kiddding. Me. I’m supposed to be DONE with this!!! Why should I even consider this when my decision was made? On second thought, this new program had some factors that were high on my priority list. Here I could attend a Jewish program! No worries about explaining yuntif (did I mention that orientation for choice A is on Shavuous?) or clinicals that might be close to Shabbos in the winter. Not to mention the significant price difference.

And so…after asking advice and thinking it through rationally, I came to the realization that it made sense to through myself into the application process once more. If I wanted to do this right, and in the best way possible, I had to put in all my effort into this. Gotta check my resume to update it once more, and adjust my personal statement to meet the requirements set forth by this new program… Here we go again…

During this week’s social skills/speech group we focused on conversation skills. Many special-education students have the ability to make their needs known. However they struggle to master the “fine-art” of conversation and all of it’s nuances.

I found this worksheet on a website called SocialSkillsCentral. It requires a membership fee for premium materials and downloads but I accessed the freebies and found what I needed. This is the worksheet that I used Wksht: Listening during a Conversation. There are 6 scenes involving 2 characters talking to one another. I drew lines around each scene and numbered it from 1-6.

TASK #1: GOOD/BAD conversation

I told my students, some of these conversations are good and some of these conversations are bad. (This use of good/bad is over-simplistic but it enables them to grasp the concept). If we see a good conversation we should draw a check over it and we see a bad conversation we should draw an x over it.

I then role-played each conversation with one of the para-professionals. Students shouted out good/bad and we then all made the appropriate symbol on the paper.

This task was pretty simple for most students, and I utilized it as a warm-up for the next 2 tasks.

TASK #2: Fill in the bubble

I took the same worksheet and used white out on each of the right hand bubbles. The students broke into groups with one teacher/para to assist with brainstorming and writing. They had to fill in the empty speech bubble using the picture and words of the other character as clues.

TASK #3: Fill in the other-bubble

By now students and teachers were groaning but I plowed on. I gave each group the same worksheet but the bubbles on the left side were blank. Once again they filled in the empty bubbles.

Students learned that language is flexible, topic maintenance is critical, and listening required. Mission accomplished:)!

Choose from 4 adorable Critters to race in this oral-motor, face-race game.  Imitate 5 intricate and hysterical faces.  Match your face to the face that you see on the screen.

Target Goals: Oral-Motor

[WP-REVIEW]

Theraschmooze has officially begun.  What started as a dream has become a reality.  We would like to start by telling you how it all began.  It began when we graduated as SLP’s and entered the job market.  It was tough finding positions as CFY’s.  We also noticed how difficult it was to find out about job openings.  It seemed that it wall about who you knew and which frum circulars and publications you were reading.  We began to dream of a centralized location to search for positions.  Some of us were flexible and willing to fill temporary positions, but it was hard to track them down.  Fast forward to a time when we are (thankfully:) working on tight budgets and the perpetual quest for quality materials.  It may be worksheets, or a book recommendation, a website, technique, or motivational technique for a student.  Lots of time was being spent googling and searching for that sometimes elusive material.  We found some sites that we liked and trusted then the idea for this website was born.  Why not create an all-in-one site for the frum SLP?  Why not have a centralized location to learn about CEU’s and schmooze about our jobs?

Let’s face it… we are a talented bunch.  They may poke fun and say that we are a dime a dozen, but we know our true value.  We understand the work that we do and all of the sessions that we painstakingly prep for.  We are smart, hardworking, and dedicated.  We would all love to share from others.  Please become an active member in this site and share your wealth of knowledge.  We’re truly glad to have you!