Speech Pathology
Language skills are not only the foundation for academic growth and success, but they also have a significant impact on a child’s social interactions as well. At Radcliffe Creek, our speech and language pathologists build our programs around this mindset. The result: a comprehensive approach to helping our students unleash their full communicative potential.
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It's a truly beautiful thing to see.
Enter Ms. Martinez, the language expert, the miracle worker, the queen, the myth, the legend...
A child may be challenged in the area of expressive language (what the child can express), receptive language (what the child understands), auditory processing and memory (the ability to listen to, remember, and use oral information), social pragmatics (social skills), and/or speech articulation and fluency. Often, children will struggle with more than one of these areas, as they tend to go hand-in-hand.
At Radcliffe Creek School, students receive the speech-language support they need to foster academic and social success. Screenings, evaluations, and treatment are provided by certified speech-language pathologists like Radcliffe's all-star, Ms. Malorie Martinez. Speech-language intervention services are provided based on the child’s needs, ranging from support in the classroom through consultation with teachers, to individual and small-group sessions one to three times a week, to intensive therapy provided daily in a speech-language class that is part of the child’s schedule. During classroom intervention, the speech-language pathologist and the classroom teacher collaborate to create lessons which are rich in oral language and auditory processing/listening skills. This is invaluable time when students receive instruction and guided practice utilizing speech-language skills and strategies within the academic classroom.
A student’s individualized speech-language objectives are addressed using multi-sensory instruction, utilizing a student’s strengths and unique learning style, allowing the child to experience success and then build on that success. Students may work on such skills as sentence formulation, vocabulary building, word-retrieval, and narrative production. They learn strategies to compensate for weak auditory processing and memory. Social pragmatic skills are addressed through direct instruction in small groups, as well as in the classroom and during less-structured times such as between classes and at recess. Speech-language therapy sessions regularly involve curricular material, and classroom teachers provide accommodations for auditory processing and memory difficulties, as well as oral language practice and social pragmatic guidance within their academic classes on a daily basis.