The Frenzied SLPs: SLP Strong

 I have a reading problem! Now that doesn't mean exactly how it sounds. I love puns and double entendre, so my problem isn't truly with reading, it's with not reading.

Let me explain: like many of you, I love books. I'm partial to fiction, but I will also read nonfiction and of course, professional reads. My problem is when I read I become so absorbed in the content that I read to the exclusion of all else. This is how it sometimes goes in our house: "Mom, what's for dinner?" Me: "Cereal!" Now some may think I'm a baaaaaad Mommy, but I prefer to think of it as modeling a lifelong appreciation of reading!

Dusting...

I have a pile of great reads for this summer: The Girl on the Train, Edge of Eternity, American Gods, and a recommendation from Laura of All Y'all Need titled Shotgun Lovesongs. I decided to start with The Hobbit. I can't believe I waited this long to read it. I moved on to the The Fellowship of the Ring and the Two Towers. I knew I was obsessed when, in one night, I had three dreams about Middle Earth INCLUDING seeing "Frodo Lives!" written on a wall. No joke! My thoughts are forever swirling around the characters and place names in the books and I am currently nursing a slight sunburn because rather than put down my book and move to the shade, I baked in the sun. I am now fully immersed in the final book of the trilogy, The Return of the King, and I don't want it to end.

Cooking dinner...

J.R.R. Tolkien was brilliant. He was a philologist who wrote The Hobbit as an experiment with language, new ideas and concepts. I have absolutely loved reading his work, and while he firmly stated that The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy were not an allegory for Christianity, Tolkien's deep faith was clearly revealed in his writing.

That brings me to "the best things I learned this summer." Words. Lots and lots of new words. Some of them I had a loose definition of from context, for instance I knew a league was a measure of distance, but not what measure. The meanings of some of the other words, I had no idea. As I read when I come across an unknown word, I look it up and then write it down with the definition in my journal (now you understand why I bought the speech nerd shirt).





Here is a little sampling:
Turves: the plural of turf (never imagined there was a plural for turf)
Wains: a wagon or chariot
Eyot: a small island
Fey: supernatural, unreal, otherworldly
Hauberk: a long defensive shirt falling to the knees, usually made of mail
Quail: to lose heart or courage when in danger, to shrink in fear
Swordthain: a noble soldier appointed by a king
Wold: an upland region of moorland
Embrasure: a beveled opening in a wall, especially for a door or window
League: a measure of distance, usually about three miles (unless of course it's a Hobbit league which is shorter)
Furlong: one eighth of a mile
Gibbet: a gallows built to exhibit the body of one who has been executed
Gainsay: contradict
Blench: flinch, give way in fear
Dwimmerlaik: a name give to the Lord of the Nazgûl when Éowyn confronted him
Vambrace: armor worn on the forearm
Fell: merciless, terrifying; an animal's hide; a moorland hill (Tolkien used this word a lot)
Dromund: a large ship
Perian: Hafling, Hobbit
Ghyll: a deep ravine

I found this wonderful site, The Encyclopedia of Arda: An Interactive Guide to the Works of 
J.R.R. Tolkien, that lists the rare and unusual words used in his works. If you haven't read these books yet, start...now. The movies truly do them no justice. In fact, since I am completely obsessed I began watching the movies with my son. After the first I had to walk away as I was becoming increasingly frustrated. My son, too, was frustrated, but with me, because I kept exclaiming, "That didn't happen! What? The Ents DID decide to become involved! They changed that! He didn't act like that!" Mack liked the movie better when I left!

Though I don't watch many YouTube videos, Nora thinks this is the perfect video to compliment my post. It's a little rough for me. Is this what people do for work?

Oh! I also learned this summer not to go for a run after two big cups of coffee, how to make ghee, and that I really would love to stay home all day and read. What did you learn over summer vacation?

Photo credits: Nora Doyle

An InLinkz Link-up

ASHA Schools 2015: A Look at the Lighter Side

It's been one week and one day since my return to NH from Phoenix, AZ where I made my yearly pilgrimage to the ASHA Schools Conference. Each year during the summer school-based SLPs converge in a pre-appointed destination for an opportunity to hobnob with the speech-language pathology glitterati. It is a time to reconnect, share, and learn and this year was no exception.

While my time spent in the Arizona heat was edifying, it also provided time for laughs. There have been several blog posts highlighting the 2015 conference (http://blog.asha.org/2015/07/14/schools-2015-was-a-sizzler/) (http://speechpeeps.com/2015/07/asha-schools-and-a-little-present.html) so I thought I would share the comedic side.

I arrived in Phoenix around noon on Thursday July 9th. I should have known that an adventure was in the making when my first task in AZ was to have Delta replace my battered, bent and broken suitcase. My poor bag got a swift kick from someone! I met my friend and Leadership Development Program pal, Carly and we set off in search of Alice Cooper's Coopertown. It was 104°. When I left NH it was in the low 70s. I had a window seat on my flight to AZ and in an attempt to not disturb the passengers next to me with a trip to the lav, I refrained from drinking any water. What a dope! So in order to rehydrate I had 2 ice cold brews and some salty chips. What a bigger dope, but I'm no cry baby, so I forged onward. We met another friend, Jen and made our way out to dinner. As we walked down the street I found myself involuntarily saying, "It burns." Jen and Carly both replied, "But there's a breeze." A BREEZE? Really? It felt like a blow dryer! We made our way to the restaurant where like Gollum I began shrinking into myself and after looking at the roadmap that was my eyes and accepting my jet lag, asked my girls to take me home. I was in bed by 7:30 AZ time!

Friday was spent doing what good SLPs at conferences do; plenary sessions, subject sessions, poster sessions, exhibits, and shopping. The real treat for me, though was meeting, live and in person, some amazing SLP friends that I only knew from our vast online community.

Toobaloo treat from PediaStaff. I tried to call Heidi
with it, but my call didn't go through! Hmmm?

It was Friday night and The Three Amigos were ready for a night on the town. We had seen a sign for nice burger joint and decided to have dinner. Naturally, we wanted to proudly highlight our chosen vocation, so we donned our new "Speech Nerds" tees. It never occurred to us that outside of our hotel or the convention center we might also look a little silly! 

Undaunted, we made our way down the streets of Phoenix. We found ourselves moderately lost and were approached by a man and his pedal cab. Not that we were doing any curbside diagnosing, but he spoke with his teeth clenched together. That in itself made us a little nervous, but he also offered us a ride for free. We hesitated, momentarily, and then climbed aboard. It turns out there was a simple explanation for his speech; his jaw was wired shut from a cycling accident. Phew! He took us to our destination...the Tilted Kilt. Who knew a Scottish version of Hooters existed? Upon entering I found myself exclaiming, "IS THIS A _____BAR?" We were told by a patron, that, "No this is a family establishment." Hah! That place harshed our mellow and we left shortly thereafter. Imagine my surprise when on the streets I heard a hale and hearty, "ANNIE!" It was my dear friend Erik Raj to the rescue. We spent the evening dancing and listening to some fabulous live music. Still moderately dehydrated and exhausted and with aching, happy dancing feet we left only to have to walk back to our hotel. But wait! What did my tired eyes spy? Greg our pedal cab guy and he was only a block away. My knight in shining armor. And yes, he offered us a free ride! I did ask him though, why he didn't warn us about the Tilted Kilt and if he's ever been there? His response reaffirmed the adage, "never judge a book by it's cover." He said very simply, "I refuse to patronize a place that subjectifies women." Good answer Greg!

On Saturday, while we were very interested in the sessions we also had a mission. We really wanted

a "Donald sighting." We looked everywhere, but alas no luck. The convention center did a wonderful job segregating us from Mr. Trump. My only question is, shouldn't the service elevators be a bit more secure?

I write this because on Sunday afternoon Jen discovered she had lost her sunglasses. We returned to the virtually empty convention center in search of a lost and found. We were directed by staff to this elevator and told to take it down to the security office. Okaaaaay? We rode the unlocked and easily accessible elevator down and found ourselves in the basement! After wandering around fairly lost (again) we were discovered and escorted by security to the exit. No sunglasses. We did see some nice vases and plates, though!

I took the red eye (#theredeyeisthedevil) back to NH and was met by my wonderful husband at 9:30 a.m. Monday morning having only fifteen minutes of sleep with edema laden legs and feet. It was good to get home, but I missed the fun and friends and I can hardly wait for next year! I will be sporting compression stockings this time :)

College Bound

It is incredibly hard to believe that it is my "blog-o-versary!" Or should I say, "bloggy birthday?" Whatever it's called, it means the same thing; on July 7, 2014 I began my intrepid journey into the blogosphere! What a trip!! I have written several times about how blogging has expanded my social, my professional and my personal worlds. My plan is to continue writing as long as there are those who want to read my musings and as long as my creative juices keep flowing.

The Philadelphia skyline on our way to Villanova

This post is less speech pathology related and more parent related. We have a beautiful, smart, talented, loving daughter (am I biased?) who is entering her senior year of high school. Now, our daughter is very organized and has been keeping wonderful records of all her activities. We also have a handsome, smart, talented loving son who is a little less organized. As we have been visiting colleges and getting inundated with information, it occurred to me that our son would benefit from some sort of system to keep track of all his activities. Honestly, it all really begins in freshman year and it's too late to start trying to make heads or tails of everything by the end of junior year. Hence, my On the Road to College organizer. When I completed all the organizer pages our daughter asked where it was when she started high school!?

These organizers cover everything from community service logs, to sports, to awards and offer a quick and easy way of keeping track of all the information college admissions offices require.
Print as many pages as needed and use a 5 X 7 binder or have all the pages spiral bound. In honor of my one year blog-o-versary I am offering the On the Road College Organizers for free until September 1, 2015.

Grab this set of college search organizers here!

I can't wait to get this printed and bound. I think it is going to be most helpful for Mack. I hope if you have a child preparing for college or starting high school that you find this organizer useful. As one admissions director said, "View the college search as less of a process and more of an experience." Enjoy the experience!

The Ties That Bind

I was ironing the other day. That's right vacation has begun?! I was ironing an antique tablecloth and some vintage aprons. As I proceeded with my domestic drudgery (not really, I love to iron) my mind wandered to my love of collections. I am a hoarder, ahem, collector. It started when I was a little girl. My Grandfather was a philatelist and he encouraged me to start collecting as well. Even as a little girl I noticed dialects. One day, my Grandfather was explaining to me what "coil" stamps were. For the longest time I pronounced the word "curl" because my Grandfather was from the Bronx and everything "oil" with my translation, was "url," and everything "url" was "oil!" You see, I was only a little "goil" and Bronx was a different language. My Grandfather was also an amazing artist. He made me a beautiful stamp book that I treasure. I also began to treasure collecting. As I grew up I moved away from stamps and rocks and onto records. I saved all my change and would head over to Ramsey Records and search the bins for albums on sale. I amassed quite a collection, hundreds of albums in fact. One day, many years later, we had a yard sale and my husband accidentally took the crates of albums I wanted instead of the small stack I was willing to part with. I don't want to talk about it:( Suffice it to say, now my kids favorite mom quote is, "I used to have that album." Sometime in my twenties, my nesting kicked in, so my collecting trended to more domestic items; antiques, in particular linens and glassware. I love old kitchen glass especially, jade-ite and salt and pepper shakers and refrigerator jars. Naturally, with children and limited space my purchasing has slowed down. Very sad! I do love poking around a musty antique shop, though.

Okay, back to ironing! I started thinking about how collecting has influenced me and my children. My son would go into my china cabinet and take a Wade whimsy to his room and announce he had a "collection." My daughter has a love of buttons and has acquired some beautiful Bakelite and vintage buttons. My wheels started turning and I wondered how I could connect collecting to speech language therapy? I did a little "light research" and came across an article in Psychology Today that explored how children's collections could be used to an advantage in the classroom. The article quoted Elizabeth Howe. She wrote, "It is quite clear, that the teacher who had such information would have an insight into the children's inner life which she would hardly be able to get in any other way. Since good teaching strives to connect student interest to curricular content, such knowledge can be invaluable for building intellectual bridges."
How can I use a child's collection as the basis of speech language therapy? Here's how:

1. Vocabulary development-whether it's rocks, stamps, or buttons the opportunity to expand vocabulary is rich. Think about words like philately (love they way that one rolls off the tongue), vintage, Bakelite, igneous, mica, etc.
2. The connection to science speaks for itself.
3. As I considered the types of collections I have I am reminded of history and the connection to Social Studies. My collections of choice harken back to the depression and WWII. An exploration of life in those eras would be both fascinating and fun for students.
4. With many collections, a study of the arts would dovetail beautifully. The designs of types of glassware, textile design, and stamp artistry.
5. Executive Functions-it would be a blast to have students design a stamp or an apron and role play the process of marketing their designs.
6. Compare and Contrast- the opportunities for comparison are limitless. Comparisons can be made between eras and items themselves.
7. Social Pragmatics-I love the idea of students sharing their own collections; how they began and why they are so valued. The collections themselves could provide great insight into a students thoughts and feelings. 
8. Written Expression-what a wonderful opportunity to write from prior knowledge or to create a character that has a penchant for collecting Matroyshka dolls or socks or gum wrappers.

For me, my collections connect me to an era I love.
They connect me to my parents and grandparents. They connect me to my children and someday to their children and I find comfort in these silly, whimsical pieces of glass and fabric. I think that collecting was important for me as a child and I think it still is today. It seems something of childhood has been lost and I would love to rekindle that joy for my students. Oh, and as I look back on my stamps (that I just had my son retrieve from the attic) I was reminded that my Pops rocked!!!

This is My Relaxed Look

 It's my last week of school! Typically, I am in the throes of progress reports, last minute IEPs and evaluations, end of year reflections, cleaning, sorting, and other assorted mayhem. For some peculiar reason the end of this school year is different. In fact this entire school year has been different! This morning my friends and coworkers and I were chatting and one suggested we take a picture of this calm, cool and collected SLP because of its novelty. Another colleague suggested a blog post and I happily obliged! I, too, have been struck by my year and thought it might be a good idea to reflect on what was different this year. It's probably a good idea to try and replicate it next year! 

From an organizational perspective I have done some things differently and they most assuredly were effective.

1. I often get overwhelmed and forget where I am supposed to be. Yes, I am the person you see walking down the hall and then doing a 180 and going the other way. My new support system was my paper calendar (in my binder) and Google calendar. When I received a meeting notification I first wrote it on my monthly calendar then I entered it into google calendar. I put a check on the notification indicating I had posted it. At the end of each week I looked at my monthly calendar and entered any upcoming meetings for the week on my weekly to-do page in my binder. Google calendar helped by sending me 30-minute and 10-minute reminders. I did not miss or arrive late for ONE meeting this year! ALLELUIA!
2. Last summer I created organizers (that have kept me on task and on time). In fact, I was often
   
   early with my paperwork. Let me just say, that in the past, it was down to the wire. I used these along with pages from Lauren LaCour's Speech Therapy Organizing Planner, had them all bound, and was good to go. I don't know why I didn't do this 30 years ago. Oh yes, I do...no computers! I was able to keep track of goals, lesson plans, IEPs, evaluations, screenings, copying, field trips, purchases, professional development, and so much more in two books. I did separate my planning from my paperwork in two books. I think one book would have been too massive! 
3. All my therapy plans for the upcoming week were completed the week before. Materials were prepped and ready to go the week before. There were no early morning scrambles! This had been my practice forever, but somehow after having my own children, it fell to the wayside. I have reclaimed my sanity by being ready to go the week before.
4. When I received notification for an IEP or evaluation I went to work immediately. Progress monitoring was completed and goals written 2-3 weeks ahead of the meeting date. Testing was begun as soon as possible and was done in the order of meeting date. There were times I would start the process of goal writing only to realize I had already completed them! It's true!!

Now for the mental component. I spent a good part of my life an anxious, sensitive wreck. How did I stay sane this year? Like this:

1. Exercise; the activity I hate to love or love to hate depending on my mood. Research supports that consistent exercise is as beneficial as medication for many people. It is! Twice a week several teachers and I exercise together after school for an hour. A wonderful fitness instructor comes to our building and for a little while we enter the "vault" where we sweat and vent! On the other days I either run or go to Jazzercise. Perfect therapy!
2. Apparently I do quite a bit of self-talk. Frequently this year I would talk to my SLPA and she wouldn't respond. One day, I called over to her and asked, "Are you there?" She replied, "Are you talking to me? I never know, you have conversations with yourself all the time!" I hadn't realized it, but it's true, I process aloud. I question, I whine, I problem solve, I debate and it keeps me centered and focused. I know, it's weird.
3. I have had an amazing sounding board for about a year and a half. This person helps me take a good hard look at myself and process my thoughts. She has helped me recognize that the behavior of others has absolutely nothing to do with me and everything to do with them. One of my mantras this year has been, "Don't personalize!" I have learned to yield, to say, "You're probably right," or "Thanks for the feedback," and then let go. AHHHHHHH!
4. At the beginning of this school year I brainstormed goals for the year. One of these included leaving at a reasonable hour. I am happy to say, I stuck to my plan. I arrived at school between 7:15 and 7:30 and stayed no later than 4:00. 
5. Prayer. Communication with the God of the Universe.

It has been a wonderful year, but I can't conclude without giving a nod to my fellow SLPs. I have had the good fortune of becoming acquainted with some remarkable men and women via social media. There are so many and I fear I would slight someone if I listed names, because I am certain I would forget some fabulous person. I think you know who you are! This group has served as a palliative to my daily grind. The support, information, faith sharing, materials, and laughs (think "permalink" and "logo") gained through this incredible group of professionals has been amazing and a source of great satisfaction and joy. Thank you all for helping me. I'm not sure you realize I how much I value the online SLP community.

Interview With a Psychologist: Part 8 of the Blog Chronicles

The interview series continues, albeit slowly! The responses keep trickling in and I am so happy with this week's installment! I love these responses. They are honest and thought-provoking!

How do you see a true multidisciplinary team functioning?
In my view, the goal of multidisciplinary teams is to generate useful information to answer questions.
How is the student functioning? What does the student need? What can help the student perform to the best of his/her ability, etc? The answers to these questions lie in the data, both quantitative and qualitative, that team members provide. An effective multidisciplinary team is one in which respectful collaboration and sharing, as well as scrutiny, of pertinent information is highly valued and “safely” implemented. Decisions should be data driven and the impact of emotional factors affecting sound decisions should be managed and if possible avoided. Team members should be valued for their expertise and should avoid makings statements that exceed that expertise. Parents are integral members of the team and should be treated as such.


What message do you have for the powers that be (administration, DOE, elected officials, etc. Your choice).
There is a lot of information that needs to be considered when making educational decisions. It’s really important to avoid assumptions based on incomplete information or ineffectual weighting of certain information. Be supportive of people and of what they are doing.


What do you see as the most pressing issue impacting our students today? Why?
Lack of sleep. Kids are sleeping less and recent studies demonstrate that sleep duration accounts for as much as 64% of the variance in cognitive processes essential to academic functioning. Emotional and behavioral instability as well motivational and physical difficulties is also related to sleep deprivation.

Technology. The explosion of technology over the past twenty years has resulted in the development of amazing tools designed to facilitate learning. The downside is that kids have quick and easy access to all kinds of information – some of which they are not developmentally ready to handle. I also have deep concerns about social media and its impact on the development of social skills as well as its use as a bully weapon. Finally, immediate access to parents and other people via cell phones has many advantages. I do wonder however if the development of critical self soothing skills is interfered with because kids are often quickly rescued from anxiety provoking situations by being able to make immediate calls. 


What energizes you to come to work everyday? What keeps it "fresh" for you?
It’s all about the kids, I like kids and I like being around kids. They have great spirit and the number one priority for most is having fun. They’re healthy for me to be around. Helping kids solve problems and watching them mature and is gratifying and entertaining.


Describe your dream work environment? How does your dream compare with your reality?
How can you make it a reality?
Honestly, it would be on a stage playing my guitar and singing to thousands of adoring fans. I’ve been trying to make it a reality for 43 years. I like seeing people happy having fun. That would be a good way to do it.

As the parent of two teenagers and a witness to the effects of sleep deprivation, I couldn't agree more! Well, when this psychologist makes it to the stage, I'll be there to applaud (and dance, and cheer)!

Interview with a Special Educator: Part 7 of the Blog Chronicles

I have been eagerly anticipating the responses from this phenomenal special education teacher! Hot off the presses!

How do you see a true multidisciplinary team functioning?
The reference makes me think most of our evaluation process in which a team gathers with experts in a variety of fields. Working together, we listen to the struggles a classroom teacher may have with a particular student. Each expert offers their interpretation based on their field and through listening to the variety of perspectives we come to an understanding of how to help a student.

What message do you have for the powers that be (administration, DOE, elected officials, etc. Your choice).
I wish that those in power would stop pushing a competitive, business model onto education. I do not believe that the model is working nor is it appropriate to the education of children with such a wide range of needs. Yes, we all want students to be proficient readers and critical thinkers but in pushing for educational performance over and above all other economic, environmental, physical, and cognitive factors we ignore the larger issues that are oppressing our children. With investments into neighborhoods, we can build up the structure within which schools function and stop asking educators to be parents, counselors, nurses, nutritionists, etc. The burn out rate in our profession is high and even higher in charter schools, where the structure is intended to be independent of neighborhoods. Where neighborhoods are neglected, children will require more support from the school to compensate and educators will be spread too thin.


What do you see as the most pressing issue impacting our students today? Why?
I believe that school should be a place where children are excited to learn, create and explore. As educators we need to fiercely protect this directive and the biggest threat is over testing. Data from independent activities is essential but when so many stakeholders want data in their own format we begin testing more in order to accommodate. It will be a good day when engaging assessment activities that teachers design are the methods that administrators and DOE’s use to assess proficiency. For this to happen, the DOE needs to trust teachers to be responsible to honestly assess their students. The over-testing is a direct result from a lack of trust in teachers.

What energizes you to come to work everyday? What keeps it "fresh" for you?
My students are my focus. I could care less about paperwork, deadlines, or meetings. Even paychecks are not that motivating. If I have an opportunity to plan, teach, and assess great lessons, that is a good day.


Describe your dream work environment? How does your dream compare with your reality?
How can you make it a reality?
I have a dream work environment at this time. After 15 years, I actually believe I might be good at this job, but I want to be great. I believe that my community supports education, but I wish my state supported those in poverty better. I believe that my colleagues are brilliant but I wish that we had more time to truly collaborate. We can always do better but I am so thankful for feeling like I can be successful.

I wish you saw yourself the way I see you; YOU ARE GREAT!