Category Archives: Technology and Speech Development

Holiday Kid Cooks and COVID19

Thanksgiving is coming; but how do you keep safe traditions now in a socially distanced world. Cooking has always been something central to our family. I would think that this is to others as well. In my family, we sometimes share a recipe. Everyone brings something to dinner and one family member makes a main course. This year will be different. We will all be separated. Perhaps we will come together on Zoom, Facetime or someone yum y uy ittyuyuu other form of technological means to mark a few minutes of the holiday together.

You are most likely going to be cooking anyway, so why not make it into a family happening. The speech-language pathologist in me suggests to you that there is so much that can be blended into this type of activity. For example, if you choose to make a fruit or vegetable salad together you can talk about the colors and categories of fruits or vegetables, with older kids – what makes a fruit a fruit and a vegetable a vegetable, cut with math concepts of quarters, a half or eighths. You could talk about action such as cutting, with shaped fruit/vegetable cutters and fruit picks slicing, spatial concepts such as putting in, taking out, having one next to or in between. Whatever you do, there are guidelines that were developed to keep cooking as a safe activity. According to the CDC, the following guidelines for holidays are noted.

“Currently, there is no evidence to suggest that handling food or eating is associated with directly spreading COVID-19. It is possible that a person can get COVID-19 by touching a surface or object, including food, food packaging, or utensils that have the virus on it and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes. However, this is not thought to be the main way that the virus is spread. Remember, it is always important to follow good hygiene to reduce the risk of illness from common foodborne germs”.

  • Make sure everyone washes their hands with soap and water for 20 seconds before and after preparing, serving, and eating food. Use hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
  • Instead of potluck-style gatherings, encourage guests to bring food and drinks for themselves and for members of their own household only.
  • Limit people going in and out of the areas where food is being prepared or handled, such as in the kitchen or around the grill, if possible.
  • Wear a mask while preparing or serving food to others who don’t live in your household.
  • If serving any food, consider having one person serve all the food so that multiple people are not handling the serving utensils.
  • Use single-use options or identify one person to serve sharable items, like salad dressings, food containers, plates and utensils, and condiments.
  • Avoid any self-serve food or drink options, such as buffets or buffet-style potlucks, salad bars, and condiment or drink stations. Use grab-and-go meal options, if available.
  • If you choose to use any items that are reusable (e.g., seating covers, tablecloths, linen napkins), wash and disinfect them after the event.
  • Look for healthy food and beverage options, such as fruits and vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains, and low or no-calorie beverages, at holiday gatherings to help maintain good health.

In terms of our fruit and vegetable – here are some reasons to make this – by color~

My personal favorite addition to the below is to add some sort of seeds for crunch – pomegranate seeds or pepitas; but regardless ……

Here is a list of fruits by color:

Purple fruit: raisins, blackberries, blueberries, purple grapes, dried and non-dried plums

Green Fruits: kiwi, green apples, honey dew, grapes. limes, avocado

Orange Fruits: mango, papaya,cantalope and oranges

Tan/Brown Fruits: dates, the skins of pears and the speckles of the skin of ripe bananas

Here is a list of vegetable by color:

Purple Vegetables: eggplant, purple cabbage and peppers

Green vegetables: cabbage, cucumber, asparagras, broccoli, spinach, green beans

Orange Vegetables: butternut squash, sweet potatoes and baby carrots

Tan/Brown Vegetables: potators, black eyed peas, pinto beans, garbanzo beans or chick peas

Keep safe! Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Summer Tech Use?

On Facebook recently, I read the following question from a parent and had some ideas about what might be helpful:

“Anyone had success in detaching their kids from the electronic world? I have a huge concern about what this is doing to my 2 boys with multiple letters in their diagnosis…I am afraid our summer is a battle and competition with it.😑”

There is cause for concern, battles aside. According to How Technology Hinders People with ADHD: “Technology use requires balance and self-monitoring. It can be beneficial to utilize the available software to help increase productivity, but also to help decrease distraction and hyper-focus”.

The American Academy of Pediatrics provides guidelines for the use of technology that might be worthwhile to consider.

Create a Family Media Plan.

Create three rules:

RULE ONE

“Pick One Piece of Technology to Use Today for .. (time limit) ) Pick one i.e. kindle, i-pad, computer, etc,

You might want to define clearly on a color coded wipe off board or schedule such as this for each child:

Monday =Kindle Fire;

Tuesday = iPad etc. I might want to rotate every day of the week. Monday may be kindle day, Tuesday could be i-pad day etc.

RULE TWO

Plan Media Viewing: Here is a list of acceptable programs or … decide together what will be watched (you as a parent are responsible for how technology is used and viewed at home)

RULE THREE

Talk about what you have watched with mom/dad

Technology Can Facilitate Social Interaction Graphic

**The research shows that children of different ages understand ond process what they view on computers or other electronic devices best if you as an adult watch it with them and then discuss what is being viewed.

The Ready to Learn Television Program

The Ready to Learn Program: 2010-2015 Policy Brief, published in March 2016, summarized ED’s Ready to Learn Television program research on the effectiveness of three educational television production organizations.53 The brief reported on 15 effectiveness/summative research studies with children aged 3-8 using media in informal learning settings (such as after school or child care programs); 7 of the studies focused on learning at home. From the 7 studies that focused on learning at home, positive associations were found between at-home engagement and children’s math learning with children whose parents received interventions such as content guides and suggestions for supplemental activities. The studies also found that parents’ awareness of children’s math learning increased their likeliness to engage in activities and strategies to help their children learn math.

On a personal Note:

On this Father’s Day, I remember the house rule in my family. Each of the three of us siblings was allowed to watch television for one hour per day. The rule was so ingrained into my daily life that I can even recall the names of the shows I watched and the time of day. It was always for an hour in the morning before school. It was a relaxing way to start the day. Of course, the time of day changed with advancing childhood years.

There were exceptions to that rule: My parents allowed us additional time if we had to watch something on television for school OR if there was a special program – for example watching “The Wizard of Oz” as a family was a big deal for us. It was, after all, a simpler time. Another such special additional viewing that stands out is the night that Neil Armstrong landed on the moon. The LM landed on the Moon at 20:17:39 GMT (16:17:39 EDT) on 20 July 1969. That was special!… so special that we went to the neighbor’s house to watch together. We went there because they had a color television set and I imagine my parents wanted to share the occasion with other adults. For some reason, one of those memories as a little girl was that of dad carrying me home really comfortable in his arms, because I fell asleep right after the landing.

The beauty of this rule is a child was that I was forced to develop other interests and had to learn what else I could do in my free time. Mom was a librarian so we spent a lot of time picking out books and reading. I’d read two or three books at a time. I set up lemonade stands, rode my bike, learned how to draw, and write poetry. During the summer, we went to the pool. We traveled as a family, as we got older and actually may do so even now, periodically as adults. It builds bonds by sharing face time. The challenge comes when you sit down to eat and the phone has to go in a basket, away from everyone and the game is who can stay away from their phone for the longest! Technology can really be addictive!

Finally – for additional thought on the topic of how we use the brain and how it develops take note of this article and perhaps build reading time into your family’s regular routine:

View at Medium.com
https://medium.com/@alltopstartups/the-reading-brain-why-your-brain-needs-you-to-read-every-day-f5307c50d979#:~:text=Our%20brains%20change%20and%20develop%20in%20some%20fascinating%20ways%20when%20we%20read.&text=Reading%20involves%20several%20brain%20functions,something%20as%20by%20experiencing%20it.‘

Before Technology

Sometimes same events re-occur.  Years ago, families had rules about the use of television with children and now things have gotten more complex with the emergence of social media,  smartphones, and computers for example.

The Family Media Plan-published by the American Academy of Pediatrics talks about the fact that at the age of fifteen months, the use of media is okay so long as a parent watches with the toddler.  The controversy around this area is a fascinating one that should be considered by parents and caregivers.  In visiting homes it becomes apparent that there are varying opinions and reasons for or against its use being voiced.  Research about the use of technology is telling us more and more.  The fact that it is showing that there is an influence on brain development is not surprising. How does this affect your children and parenting style around this issue?

THE CHECKUP

Screen Use Tied to Children’s Brain Development

In a study, preschoolers who used screens less had better language skills.

 

Credit…iStock by Getty Images

By Perri Klass, M.D.

Halloween with a Special Needs Child

Halloween is tomorrow! Are you ready??

Typically families with young children may be approaching them with excitement. In my experience, families with children who have disabilities may have apprehensions. How can you proactively approach Halloween? How can your family prepare for dealing with stimulating settings and create a more meaningful/less stressful day in this Halloween week? Here are some resources that may be of help. Firstly:

Here is a wonderful blog post with suggestions for reducing stimulation, creating costumes and preparing for the big day www.familyeducation.com .

Do you want to have a party indoors with snacks and decorations. Perhaps kids movies www.halloweenmoviesforkid would be a nice activity

Literacy is an area of interest to those of us in the area of speech-language pathology. Here is a link to some books with the Halloween theme https://www.google.com/search?q=halloween+books&rlz=1C1CAFA_enUS777US777&oq=halloween+books&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l5.2855j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

The best of all may be arts and crafts that are thematic for the holiday so that you can spend face time with eachother and be creative. Here is a link for some quick and easy activities to give you some ideas https://crazylittleprojects.com/halloween-crafts-for-kids/

Have fun!

What Can You Do When the Screen Goes Off??”

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The blog post https://blog.asha.org/2019/05/13/the-best-toys-for-slps-are-the-toys-that-do-nothing/ that recently appeared in the ASHA Leader resonates with me. I put individual links to which the author refers at the bottom of this post, So does the book “If You Give a Mouse an iPhone (of course available on Amazon in print). Here is a link to the story being read https://youtu.be/S3nVxt6_lAc If you can’t get it otherwise and are not familiar with it – the mouse is given an iPhone.. he uses it (viewing something that is not defined) and is unaware of his surroundings on a trip. The battery of the phone runs out and the result is a tantrum.

With the new American Academy of Pediatrics Guidelines for Family Media Plans that i talked about in a recent post, I really did not give any suggestions for the way to redirect your child when the screen is not visible. That led to this post and the awareness that there are so many things that you can do together. Indeed as my colleague wrote you can really be “the best toy!”.

First of all… TURN THEM OFF.  

New research according to a report on CNN reveals significant differences in brain development

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/04/health/screen-time-lower-brain-development-preschoolers-wellness/index.html?utm_medium=social&utm_source=fbCNN&utm_content=2019-11-04T22%3A00%3A09&utm_term=link&fbclid=IwAR2kl7JF5e1BDeY6-j-BGQiGqpT1t5BA4dVM4yVIpZsbSpNZ7pZRuopXkQ0

This video is presented to parents with children on the Autism Spectrum but these principles can apply to so many of us that i wanted to share it with you

https://youtu.be/JPJg5XUrCgk
 
 

Here are some fun seasonal activities that you can do at home that will be enjoyable and something to do with your family, especially as the days get shorter.

SEASONAL FUN:

Photo by rawpixel.com on Pexels.com

Carving a pumpkin-adapting the activity for your child based on their abilities an differences in managing textures in a child-friendly way https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sX6OIhqFZ8o

Write a story about carving the pumpkin, use educational workbooks that are consistent with your child’s age https://elemental.medium.com/bring-back-handwriting-its-good-for-your-brain-fe22fe6c81d2

Read stories (actual books) together. For adults look at the book The Reading Brain https://elemental.medium.com/bring-back-handwriting-its-good-for-your-brain-fe22fe6c81d2 which gives you documentation of how doing so, as opposed to reading books electronically with your children can affect your brain!

 

 

RAINY DAY/WEEKEND OR VACATION DAYS:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4tJV078Qbw

Instead of going out for a Halloween costume try to make it yourself. Here is something that i found that might be of help in terms of suggestions: https://www.mother.ly/child/no-sew-diy-kids-halloween-costumes?rebelltitem=9#rebelltitem9

 

Here is a youtube video to consider: Paper-Mache

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfmF9D4i8Tg&feature=youtu.be

SUNNY/FUN DAYS: STEP OUTSIDE YOUR DOOR:

In NYC https://www.nybg.org/learn/kids-teens/childrens-gardening-program/ and in other cities there are most likely similar types of activities. Novel – if this is not the case is using an avocado seed, allowing it to sprout roots by soaking it in water and allowing it to grow in a pot with dirt. Plant peas from the pods or use others from fruits.

INEXPENSIVE AND SPECIFIC FOR THOSE WITH SENSORY CHALLENGES:

https://www.fatbraintoys.com/special_needs/sensory_integration_disorder.cfm

Leisure time and family functioning in families living with autism spectrum disorder (Autism, August 2019, Vol. 23 Iss. 6)

https://definingtess.com/top-5-things-to-do-after-your-child-is-diagnosed-with-autism/

Additional Resources from Emily Ferjencik May 13, 2019 ASHA LEADER article which I put a link to at the beginning of this post are worth a look!

WOW: THE BIG DIFFERENCE A TINY TOY CAN MAKE
INEXPENSIVE, READILY AVAILABLE OBJECTS CAN TURN TREATMENT INTO A FLOOD OF SENSORY EXPERIENCES FOR THE YOUNGEST OF CLIENTS.
TACKLE FOUNDATIONAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS—NOT JUST LANGUAGE SKILLS—BY INFUSING FUN AND SILLINESS INTO SESSIONS.

What Does it Mean to Have Generational Intelligence and What are Your Thoughts?

Spread template PC fonts

 

What is communication in the 21st century? Are we merely talking??  Research actually is saying “no”. The above chart from the University of Liverpool illustrates the differences between age groups.  We are really are what I would term to be global communicators; in that, we use a variety of communication forms.  That has good and bad sides to it.  The need to be generationally intelligent becomes necessary for all of us if we are going to get along.  Why?  It’s important since the presence of a digital world has made these differences even more pronounced than they ever have been.  The differences are also permanent. Technology is not going away any time soon and is changing every day quite rapidly.

Jean Twenge gives a great deal of insight about the concept I am introducing.  She discusses the differences in how people are living, looking at longitudinal studies that she has conducted. Her latest book documents this:  https://www.amazon.com/iGen-Super-Connected-Rebellious-Happy-Adulthood-ebook/dp/B01N6ACK3B/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529427009&sr=8-1&keywords=iGen.  Sadly, she notes that those who are born in an age of smartphones and the internet are not as happy as a result of the social isolation of many digital natives.  Wouldn’t this now point to the need for increased and easier access to mental health care?

Technology has also had an impact on physical health, both positively and negatively.    http://www.digitalresponsibility.org/health-and-technology/  Only you understand how you individually are being affected or not.   It is interesting to think about and then consider if there are any issues that impact on your life.  How is your life being affecting and how are you communicating pre-post technology or as a digital native?

 

 

Dr. Andreas Hoff (2012) Generational Intelligence: A Critical Approach to Age Relations By Biggs, S., and Lowenstein, A., Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 10:3, 304-308, DOI: 10.1080/15350770.2012.698975.  

 

Did You Hear What I said?? Did You Understand me!!

The answer to these questions are going to be conveyed differently, depending on your age and life experience with technology.  I’ve been doing a great deal of reading about communication and wonder what the best way to do so is at this time.   The subject has consumed me lately as I talk with others about how to figure out whether someone has a disorder of speech-language or not.  What is a real pathology of communication.

Jean a Twenge documents in a number of her texts, based on years of research, tells us that how we do will vary based on how old you are.   of the generational group into which you are birthed. .

Messages appear to get confused in my opinion,  unless the correct form of communication is utilized.    I use email a great deal; but find that it is unfortunate that I don’t even know what most my colleagues look like.  E-mail is mostly the way that I obtain work.  It is less personal.  All of us should add a photo of ourselves next to our names.  Can anyone communicate how to add that?  I send signed cards to colleagues around the holidays.  One year, I was told how much it was appreciated because “nobody sends these anymore ..it is only communicated electronically.  The  impact that technology has had on Millennials vs. Baby Boomers has been documented in the literature.  For example, The titled Have Smartphone Destroyed a Generation documents some of the effects of these changes.   The article was published by a professor of psychology at San Diego State University by the name of Jean M. Twenge last week in “The Atlantic”. The link https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/09/has-the-smartphone-destroyed-a-generation/534198/ .  It poses the next question regarding how we view communication in today’s world.  How does the change affect those who did not grow up with it and how does it impact on those who did.?  The author explores it and it would be good to take note of its contents. My thanks again to its author!

Technology clearly can become addictive and studies are showing that there is impact on neurologic development.  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3170902/   No surprise!  It’s use can be beneficial if tailored to the individual; but parents in particuylar should be aware:

The author of the below article (see link) talks about how limitations around the use of technology are helpful with children. In the presence of AAP (american academy of pediatrics) guidelines parents can shape the behavior of them and ease the transition into and out of periods of exposure through the development of structured embedding of this into daily life.  To this day, I recall my childhood.  My parents told each of the three of us (two older brothers and I) that we had one hour of television per day unless there was a special show on or an assignment to watch something given to us by our teachers at school.  We survived AND the limits developed and implemented with consistency worked!   https://parenting.nytimes.com/childrens-health/child-screen-time?module=ptg-onsite-share&type=link   So-I leave you with food for thought…

Do we now need to redefine the term: “communication” And what does it actually mean to do so?

IMG_1871[1]

I remember a time when people had to learn how to write with a pen and paper.  There were no computers.  There were no cell phones.  There were rotary phones. Some phone numbers would begin with words like “hunter…”  There was the mailman who does still come and deliver real letters.  There was nothing called e-mail or a fax machine to send paperwork to others. Things moved at a slower pace. The world was much less connected.  Computers and other forms of technology, of course, have changed that……

Can anyone tell me at all what it means to communicate in today’s world?  I’m trying to figure it out because lately, I have gotten so many interpretations. The one sentence answer “speak” is the most often heard answer but is this really the case.???  I’ll be on the subway and say “excuse me” but nobody hears me when I am trying to get off the train.  Earbuds get in the way of hearing speech and fewer people seem to speak.   Another answer to my question was that to communicate is “the ability to interact with others”.  I really like that one!

I sincerely mean that I want to hear your answers to this question because I am wondering if those of us in the industry are truly doing our job.  Are we addressing the needs of the people who may walk in and ask for help?.  If you have trouble communicating it seems to me as if there are many more options available.  What are they?  What’s easiest for you or hardest?

These answers will be especially helpful as I discuss this concept with graduate students in a few weeks.  Can this new generation of future professionals add to this list.? We’ll see.  I think the more traditional concepts we learned in graduate school years ago have broadened.  Below are a few examples from my pediatric clientele from this past week:

  • I asked the parents about their concern-why are they asking me to help their child and what does it mean to communicate?.  Their priority was that one-word response “speech”.  The conversation continues. I ask the parent if there are any other ways that his child may let him know that she wants something and he said that she will show him what she wants by pointing to it. I remind him – “that is a form of communication too..isn’t it?   The dad stopped for a second and says he agrees.
  • Another family visit and the child is learning how to Facetime.  Check it out in my tags.  Now, how old are the children using this app???
  • Another family visit and all of a sudden I hear a noise. “What is that?” I ask because nothing seemed to have provoked the sound. I notice that the child has dad’s i-phone and has looked at the icons. The child discriminated between the icons.  She had located Elmo. The child demonstrated that she understood cause and effect behavior by recognizing that if the icon was tapped with her pointer finger that Elmo would make noise and move. Finally, she was very obviously happy with what had happened.  She ran over and picked up Elmo so that she could play with the doll.

If we want a child to learn to speak, how could this last scenario have been replayed?. If dad’s i-phone had not been present, would the same behavior occur?  Languages are lost if we do not use them

 

 

The above chart from the University of Liverpool illustrates the differences between age groups.  We are really are what I would term to be global communicators; in that, we use a variety of communication forms.  That has good and bad sides to it.  The need to be generationally intelligent becomes necessary for all of us if we are going to get along.  Why?  It’s important since the presence of a digital world has made these differences even more pronounced than they ever have been.  The differences are also permanent. Technology is not going away any time soon and is changing every day quite rapidly.

Jean Twenge gives a great deal of insight about the concept I am introducing.  She discusses the differences in how people are living, looking at longitudinal studies that she has conducted. Her latest book documents this:  https://www.amazon.com/iGen-Super-Connected-Rebellious-Happy-Adulthood-ebook/dp/B01N6ACK3B/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529427009&sr=8-1&keywords=iGen.  Sadly, she notes that those who are born in an age of smartphones and the internet are not as happy as a result of the social isolation of many digital natives.  Wouldn’t this now point to the need for increased and easier access to mental health care?

Technology has an impact on mental and physical health as well.  This has had positive as well as negative effects  http://www.digitalresponsibility.org/health-and-technology/  Only you understand how you individually are being affected or not.   It is interesting to think about and then consider if there are any issues that impact on your life.  How are you communicating with other people? How much technology are you using? What types and how much during the day?  If you are old enough to know a world in which there was no internet how has your life changed?  I would be interested in hearing from readers about your thoughts and for anyone reading this post to consider.  Thanks for your help!

Dr. Andreas Hoff (2012) Generational Intelligence: A Critical Approach to Age Relations By Biggs, S., and Lowenstein, A., Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, 10:3, 304-308, DOI: 10.1080/15350770.2012.698975.