HappyTalk South Wales Speech and Language Therapy

07/01/2021

For all teachers and support staff in Primary Schools, open for all as its run online. Please like and share ###

17/07/2020

Hi All, I’m sorry it’s been such a long time since you have heard from me, I can’t even use Coronavirus as an excuse but things have been particularly tricky over the last few months.

To all my new followers , welcome to my page. My name is Nia Jones and I am an Independent Speech and Language Therapist based in Bridgend, South Wales.

I am currently looking at ways to support your child with their speech and language development within this current climate and I am starting to provide some 1:1 sessions over the summer holidays. Please get in touch if you would like some more information or would like to book an assessment, therapy or training. This can be offered face to face (with appropriate protection in place) or via an online platform like Zoom. I would love to hear from you.

Thank you!

Nia

06/11/2018

I had a week off last week sorry 😀 Half term meant that I was off with my two boys and everyday felt like the weekend! It was lovely but I’m exhausted and ready to get back to work!

My tip for this Tuesday is to “talk to your baby.” Take a look at this video and then put your phone down!

Get down on the floor with your child, get face to face with them at eye level and talk to them about what you are doing, simple things can make a huge impact on your child’s language development ###

23/10/2018

Have you ever had that “tip of your tongue” moment, when you can’t remember a word? I know I have plenty of times.

For some of our children they struggle every day to find the right words to use and for some it is not because they don’t know the word, they may have just filed it incorrectly within their memory store so when they go to retrieve it, the word is not there. How would that make you feel on a daily basis? Frustrated, annoyed, upset?

We can help these children by working on new words, talking about what category it belongs to, what does it look like, where would you find it, what do you use it for? Make it visual and encourage them to link the sounds and meaning of their new words together so that they can find the word when they need to go looking.

I’m starting a new vocabulary book with a boy tomorrow, I will let you know how we get on ###

19/10/2018

16/10/2018

So here is my top tip for this week! Have a look at this website. It’s there to raise awareness and understanding of Developmental Language Disorder (previously known as SLI).

Around 2 children in every class of 30 will experience DLD, it’s often a hidden disorder and definitely misunderstood and these children may present in very different ways. I know I definitely came across one child in a classroom today whose significant language difficulties had been cleverly masked by good coping strategies.

Would you like to know more about DLD?

RADLD are having a raising awareness day on Friday. I will be changing my profile picture in support of DLD and to raise more awareness. Will you? Xx

Raising Awareness of Developmental Language Disorder

09/10/2018

Another week flown by and we’re back to Tuesday again!! I’ve been busy this week starting two 10 week Elklan Speech and Language support for 5-11’s courses. It’s a brilliant programme which can be attended by anyone working with children in schools. Please get in touch if you want more information.

However, now for the top tip! When I meet new children and complete my assessments, I always use this pyramid to explain language development to parents.

We need to make sure that we focus on developing the child’s attention and listening and play skills to create a solid foundation for language to develop.

Try activities such as hide and seek with objects, turn taking in simple ball games or bubbles, listening to sounds and identifying what you can hear, following simple instructions with a game like simon says. Try some of these out and let me know how you get on! Good luck ###

02/10/2018

Top tip Tuesday Alert!!!

So my final beautiful little owl is Lucy.

Lucy reminds us to listen. Not just to HOW your child is speaking, but WHAT they are actually trying to tell you.

Listen intently, give your child your full attention so that they know what they are saying is important and reply appropriately.

If your child is using sounds, try copying those sounds back to them. If you child is using single words like “car” repeat it back and add an extra word “blue car.”

Listen to what your child is saying, model the correct sentence back, add one more extra word and emphasis the words you would like them to hear. Above all, LISTEN!!

Good Luck!###

25/09/2018

Okay so time for another Top tip Tuesday! (Sorry it’s late!!)

You met Oscar last week and now it’s Winston’s turn! Winston sits on the left and he is watching and WAITING!

Winston teaches us to wait. How many times do we ask our children a question and when they don’t answer us quickly enough we ask again, then get frustrated that they are not listening?!! (I know I’m guilty of this with two young boys!)

Next time you talk to your child (make sure you have their attention first), speak and then WAIT 10 SECONDS until you speak again. It’s a really long time, much longer than you think and it’s a powerful tool for allowing a child to think and process what you’ve said and what they want to say in response.

Give it a go, enjoy the quiet pause and let me know how you get on. Nia xx

25/09/2018

Raising awareness of DLD

Raising Awareness of Developmental Language Disorder