Create Change. Create Tension.

"You may well ask: "Why direct action? Why sit ins, marches and so forth? Isn't negotiation a better path?" You are quite right in calling for negotiation. Indeed, this is the very purpose of direct action. Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. My citing the creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word "tension." I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth. Just as Socrates felt that it was necessary to create a tension in the mind so that individuals could rise from the bondage of myths and half truths to the unfettered realm of creative analysis and objective appraisal, so must we see the need for nonviolent gadflies to create the kind of tension in society that will help men rise from the dark depths of prejudice and racism to the majestic heights of understanding and brotherhood. The purpose of our direct action program is to create a situation so crisis packed that it will inevitably open the door to negotiation. I therefore concur with you in your call for negotiation."

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Letter written from the Birmingham Jail

Change creates tension. Tension is uncomfortable. Be uncomfortable. Be a change-maker.

Organization Tips for SLPs: A Frenzied SLP Linky Party

The Frenzied SLPs

I'm a little behind this week, perhaps a little disorganized! Better late than never, though. The Frenzied SLPs are bringing in the new year with their three favorite organizational tops. Thank you to Kelly of Speech2U, Lisette of Speech Sprouts, and Mary of Old School Speech for hosting this linky.

Okay, here are my top three tips:
1. My handy dandy binder. This baby has everything I need to stay on top of my to do list, calendar, and lesson plans. Every summer I print a new one and have it spiral bound for the upcoming school year. I love it and I think it's pretty, too!

2. Lists, lists, lists. Several years ago I learned how to print on post-its. It is really very easy. Here is a tutorial. I created these to do post-its and they help keep me on task.

Last but not least if you are anything like me, you get immersed in the most fun part of the job, therapy. When that happens I forget about little things like meetings. In order to not have to walk in late and shame-faced, when I receive meeting notification, I write it on my calendar, I write it on my planning checklist in my binder, and I enter it into my Google calendar. I write directly on the meeting notification "posted 2x," so I know I entered it in my calendars. I set alerts in Google calendar for 30 minutes and 10 minutes before the meeting. Overkill? Maybe, but I haven't forgotten a meeting in a loooong time.

I hope these suggestions are helpful to you. I would love to hear how you stay organized. Comment below!

One Craftivity; Many Goals

I mentioned in a previous post my student "Joy," who keeps me on my therapeutic toes. You can read about my experiences with her here. After vacation, Joy returned to school not really felling the speech thing, so I had to come up with an activity that whetted her whistle and targeted language goals. I headed to Pinterest like any desperate SLP and found a craft that I thought would be well suited to our needs. It was originally designed by Kindergarten 3R's: Respect, Resources, and Rants and posted to Pinterest.

It looks like in her version she might have used foam mittens and shapes. I opted for cardstock and construction paper and then had the students decorate their wreaths with shapes made with scrapbooking punches. We used both small and large paper plates with the centers cut out as the base for the wreaths. I loved the way these came out so much I made generic mitten shapes so I could target multiple goals and multiple students. We have been in a mitten wreath frenzy working on articulation, associations, grammar, vocabulary, idioms, and more.

I can happily report Joy loved the craft (the vocabulary, not so much), but we did manage to get some productive therapy accomplished. If you would like to try this craftivity with your students you can find it on Teachers Pay Teachers at my store, Doyle Speech Works. I would love to see pictures of your wreaths. Tag me on Instagram (anniedoyle226) and have fun! 

Meeting 2016 in a Word From the Frenzied SLPs

My last blog post was December 5, 2015! I am a fairly committed one blog a week sort of gal, however I unintentionally unplugged for a month. There was no blogging, no TpT'ing, little social media, and no blog reading. It was a little slice of heaven and allowed me to truly enjoy Christmas. I suspect it is time to reenter, albeit slowly.

What I learned, is that I spend an awful lot of time consumed by my profession. Someone recently posed the question on Facebook, "What is your biggest time sucker?" I responded "typing evaluations." I spend at a minimum 2 hours and at a maximum 5+ hours typing evaluations. I also spend hours in therapy planning, reading articles and blogs, preparing materials, and more. I am exhausted by being the consummate SLP. I pride myself on my professionalism and my ability to seek answers when I have none. I identify with what I do as who I am. I was not aware of this until this week and I understood better why 3 days before vacation I was in tears because I had spent 5 hours (not including the assessment itself) interpreting and typing an evaluation and I was utterly drained. I had administered 5 tests in order to truly mete out the nature of the problem. It was an excellent evaluation diagnostically, but it had a cost for this school-based SLP.

Herein lies the rub; I don't know how to do it any other way. It is in my nature to be thorough, to go the extra mile.  I want to have materials ready that engage, motivate, and remediate effectively for my students. I have gotten into a pattern that is sucking the life out of me. I wondered; "Is this because of all the amazing ideas I see on social media?" "Is it all the wonderful materials that are available on TpT that are superior to my chintzy ones?" "Is it because I have tied my value as a professional to the time I invest?" No. It has been MY choice and that choice has become a habit and habits can be broken!

I imagine many of you have heard of the "One Little Word" project. Using this model one chooses a word for the year as opposed to a plethora of resolutions that are abandoned in one week's time. This word is savored, meditated on, carried in the heart. I typically don't make resolutions, I make goals and I am pleased to report I often reach them. The idea of selecting a word(s) that drive how I think and behave was intriguing. I have decided to select 2 words, a professional and personal word that I hope become my touchstones. Words I will journal and blog about, relate to my experiences and use as a vehicle for growth.

Without further ado, I offer my words: release and love.
Professionally I seek to release my compulsion for perfection. My therapy activity can be simple positive reinforcement, my evaluation based on 3 tests not 5. I do understand there will be times more deep testing will be necessary, but that can be the exception, not the rule. There will be times I want to do an involved therapy activity, but that can be the exception, not the rule. I will start my day with the word release etched in my mind's eye and explore what releasing myself to myself might look like.

Personally, there were so many words I could have adopted, but as I mulled over all the words I realized there is one very special word that is the foundation of all the others; love. Let love reign. Do all things in love. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. Love your neighbor as yourself. Out of curiosity I did a quick search for "love quotes" and came up with roughly 393,000,000! Phew! As I go about my day, I have been repeating the word love, before I respond with impatience or anger, or intolerance. When I look at the eyes of another I see the word love and behave with love. When I approach a problem I reach into my heart where love is seated and all my solutions, kindness, acceptance, peace, joy are released. Love must be at my center and love must be my foundation for it is only then that love can be at the forefront.

You can learn more about the One Little Word project here. Have you adopted a word or resolution? The Frenzied SLPs are excited to read about how you will meet 2016, so link up and share your aspirations.

An InLinkz Link-up

Christmas Cookie Exchange: Linky Style

I love to cook. I love to bake. I am particularly fond of holiday baking. I just love to prepare the family traditions that connect us not just at the table, but with family members who also lovingly prepared the same foods. My children look forward the sweet treats I bake at Christmastime. I spend DAYS baking and often have to double and triple recipes of their favorites in order to have enough and to share with others. In years past, friends have called and requested a plate of assorted cookies to serve to their families. I happily obliged, I know how much time and effort goes into holiday baking. It is truly a labor of love.

I thought it would be fun to host a virtual cookie exchange. I will be sharing some our our family's favorite cookie recipes and I hope you will link up and share yours as well. Grab the photo at the top and link up at the bottom! Please link back to this post.

Today I am sharing a recipe for struffoli. Struffoli, a traditional Neapolitan dessert, is ubiquitous at Christmastime in Italian homes. Struffoli are marble-sized sweet dough pastries, fried and dressed in a honey syrup. They are often decorated with colorful sprinkles or candied fruits.

The history of struffoli can be traced to the Ancient Greeks who are said to have exported it to the Gulf of Naples. The name may come from the Greek word “strongoulos” meaning with round shape or it may be derived from the word “strofinare” meaning to scrub. This might refer to the movement necessary when rolling the dough into long log shapes before cutting it into small pieces to be fried.

Struffoli is native to Southern Italy, though in different regions it is known by different names. For instance in Abruzzo it is called “cicerchiata,” in Calabria “turdiddi,” and in Palermo, “strufoli.” While I am not certain, it may be that my family is from a town in the Province of Palermo called “Polizzi Generosa.” My maiden name is Polizzi!

Many, many years ago, when we were living in our little apartment in Hawthorne, NJ I started to make some struffoli. At the the time Jim and I had a long distance marriage. He had a job in NH and I had a job in NJ. It was very difficult and Christmas prep was a lonely proposition. As I began to heat the oil in the pan, somehow it caught fire. The smoke alarms started wailing and the apartment filled with smoke. I opened the door leading down the stairs and our old and feeble dog went tumbling down. I was in a panic already, but then the phone began to ring. I answered the phone only to hear my my friend Andrea saying, "You never call me! Why don't you call me?" WHAT????? I responded, "Really? I just nearly caught the house on fire, it's filled with smoke, and the dog just went flying down the stairs! I can't do this right now!" Andrea asked, "Well what are you doing?" "Making struffoli," I said, to which Andrea replied, "You know you never make struffoli alone! We're coming over."

Andrea, her husband Giovanni and I made struffoli late into the evening, laughing, and drinking wine. Sadly, Giovanni died nearly three years ago, while only in his 40s, but I cannot make struffoli today without thinking of that night and my dear friends. Here is the caveat, while it can be done, I don't recommend making struffoli alone. Making it with friends or family is the most wonderful experience and the memories will last a lifetime.

For a chance to win my Struffoli Describing game, go the the Frenzied SLPs FaceBook page and post a comment about your favorite holiday food tradition.

An InLinkz Link-up

5 Things You Didn't Know About This SLP

This should be fun! I'm linking up with Jessica from The Speech Space to share some intimate details about me.

1. I was older when I had children. While I met Jim when I was in my twenties we didn't start a family for many years. I was 37 when I had our first beauty, Nora and turned 39 two days after Mack was born. He was my birthday present. It was definitely a different experience being older, but at least I run with a young crowd! It keeps me youthful!
2. I have an "addiction" to old glass and kitchen ware. I think I was born in the wrong time. I listen to popular standards and love 20s-40s decor. There is nothing cozier than listening to Bing Crosby on an old Bakelite radio and sipping coffee from a Fire King mug.
3. I played the clarinet in the high school concert band, wind ensemble and marching band. One of my fondest memories is marching on the field at "Giants Stadium" in 1978 when our football team was in the state playoff. They lost their final game against Cliffside Park. It was a devastating loss. Isn't funny how we remember these details?
4. I am a wannabe actress. I have participated in several local theater productions. My favorite, though was a play written by my friend Monique Robichaud called wRites of Reunion and performed at the The Little Church Theater of Holderness & Center for Creativity, Inc. I played the role of Charlotte. It was such a wonderful experience and I was thrilled to realize I could still memorize lines!
5. I am a philatelist. Well sort of. I used to be much more organized with my stamps.  Now I just save them in baggies!

I hope I shed a little more light on who I am! I know I wear my heart on my sleeve, but you never know, there may be a surprise listed!

Check out Jessica's post for a lovely and generous $25.00 Amazon gift card. 

I Needed Help (and I got it)!

I suspect we have all been in the situation I am about to describe, the situation where you feel you are at your wits end with a student/client. It's the kind of situation, where despite your best efforts, nothing seems to make a difference and what's even more distressing is that the situation often escalates.

I found myself in that scenario last school year and for a brief period this school year. For obvious reasons I won't offer too many specifics as I don't want to identify anyone. I will call my student "Joy." Suffice it to say I could make NO inroads with Joy. Everything I did was met with push back. I was frustrated, annoyed and just plain done. Every therapy session was an exercise in frustration. I began to dread her scheduled therapy session. Progress was nonexistent and the question of continuing services was brought up by many, including me. I know this can be a tinderbox of controversy; "When speech-language therapy is not productive, do we quit?" I just wasn't ready to give up. Joy was just a kid and I felt an obligation to make both a professional and human connection. I was in desperate need of advice. I talked to colleagues and mental health professionals. I read as much as I could, I did an ASHA self study, but made no progress.

Late in September our state organization, NHSLHA held our Fall Conference. I am fortunate to work with an amazing NHSLHA board, including the talented and funny Cass Chapman. At the Fall Conference, Cass introduced me to her business partner. Cass and Annie DiVello are the co-owners of New England Pediatric Services (find them here and here) which offers mental health counseling, occupational, speech, play and physical therapies. I began to speak to Annie about my challenges with Joy, in fact, just that week Joy had entered my room belching repeatedly and loudly and behaving in a confrontational manner. I was at a loss. Clearly no speech-language therapy was going to happen that day. I gave Annie my phone number, unsure as to what would follow and went home happily exhausted after a successful conference.

Later in the week Annie gave me a call (YAY!!!) and explained that with children similar to Joy she has found this descent to base behavior fairly common. Additionally, this adversarial posturing was also typical behavior. The challenge was going to be in my response. Annie suggested that rather than behaving "teacherly" I meet Joy at her level and spend some time truly establishing relationship. For me that meant that when Joy entered my room the next time belching, I challenged her to a belching contest. I downloaded a "fart" app and I became ten years old. I really wish I could paint a picture for you of Joy's reaction. It was priceless. Her icy demeanor cracked. That child reached down into her soul for the belch of the century and let it rip with utter abandon. For several weeks, therapy was very general. Following Annie's advice, there was little pressure. We did language-based crafts but there was no "direct" therapy. As Joy and I began entering into a relationship, I introduced more structured therapy activities, being mindful of her response. If her body language suggested anxiety or tension, I backed off and limited my questions and any perceived pressure for performance.

Since our initial belch-off, Joy and I have been been working well together. I walk a fine line between adult, speech-language pathologist, and ten year old. I don't judge. I don't reprimand. I leave my notion of what therapy should look like in the hall. I interact. I guide. I direct. I provide a space that allows for Joy's individual qualities. Annie's suggestions changed my work with Joy. I gave her the pseudonym "Joy" for a reason. I am no longer dreading my sessions beforehand and regretting them afterward. I am finding joy in my work with her.

As professionals, we might find ourselves in situations where we falter. Situations where we want to have the answers, but don't. Situations where we want to give up. Situations where asking for help may appear as an admission of a lack of no-how. That is just not the case! We cannot possibly know everything there is to know and in my adulthood I have no problem saying, "Help me. Please help me. I am floundering." Those with expertise in stuttering (I emailed Dr. Scott Yarrus last week), AAC (I emailed Gail Van Tatenhove last school year), selective mutism, ASD, dysphagia and so, so much more are ready and willing to share their knowledge and experience. Just ask. I needed help, and I got it. Thank you so much, Annie!