Excited to share that Speak & Play is now live! This new platform, built on NSF-funded technology, gives families real feedback on children’s speech and language right from home. Parents upload short audio clips of their child speaking, and get personalized, research-backed ideas for supporting language growth: no diagnostic labels, just practical help.

Speak & Play offers accessible, clinician-designed tools for early intervention and ongoing language support. Our goal is to bridge the gap for families, clinics, and schools facing long waitlists or limited specialist access. The platform is ready to use, and we’re always open to feedback from SLPs, educators, and parent advocates.

If you’d like to learn more, connect with me or visit https://speakandplay.ai. Let’s help more families find the support they need, when they need it.
Excited to share that Speak & Play is now live! This new platform, built on NSF-funded technology, gives families real feedback on children’s speech and language right from home. Parents upload short audio clips of their child speaking, and get personalized, research-backed ideas for supporting language growth—no diagnostic labels, just practical help.

Speak & Play offers accessible, clinician-designed tools for early intervention and ongoing language support. Our goal is to bridge the gap for families, clinics, and schools facing long waitlists or limited specialist access. The platform is ready to use, and we’re always open to feedback from SLPs, educators, and parent advocates.

If you’d like to learn more, connect with me or visit https://speakandplay.ai. Let’s help more families find the support they need, when they need it.

School-based SLPs, we're seeking clinical partners for EASI beta testing. This evaluation platform was developed through National Science Foundation Phase 2 funding by a team of speech-language pathologists, data scientists, engineers, and special educators.

EASI provides comprehensive analysis in 15 to 30 minutes, record review reports, and secure AI assistance for case consultation. The system helps you brainstorm complex cases, verify your clinical findings, and develop therapy plans within a HIPAA and FERPA compliant environment. Unlike general AI platforms, EASI was purpose-built for clinical workflows with student privacy protections integrated from the ground up.

Join the beta program at Liricare.com. Your feedback will shape tools designed by field experts who understand the demands of school-based assessment and the ethical requirements of working with student data.

Sign up to be a beta tester today! https://easi-as.com/#card-v1ul56zcfdrd9j5

Book a free consultation call with me here:
https://versetherapy.com/directory/april-jackson

I've recently published a new blog post reflecting on the often-invisible challenges our students navigate daily. Drawing from my personal experience with Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) issues, I explore how physical discomfort, sensory sensitivities, anxiety, and other factors can significantly impact a student's ability to learn and thrive. This reflection underscores the critical importance of empathy and a holistic understanding of our students' experiences in educational settings.

You can read my full thoughts here: https://mrsspeechonline.blogspot.com/2025/04/hidden-battles-how-tmj-gave-me-insights.html

"bilingual children talk later"

I hear this ALL the time and it is NOT true! Early language milestones are similar for bilingual and monolingual children. If a child is not meeting these milestones, you should talk to a speech-language pathologist!

What questions do you have about bilinguals?

Just published a new blog post on my Mrs. Speech Online website exploring a crucial aspect of stuttering therapy: moving beyond just fluency strategies to truly understanding the experience of individuals who stutter. I delve into why this understanding is so vital, especially for older students who may feel frustrated and unheard. Check it out and share your thoughts!

https://mrsspeechonline.blogspot.com/2025/04/empowering-kids-who-stutter-knowledge.html

#StutteringAwareness #SpeechTherapy #UnderstandingStuttering #StudentVoice

As SLPs, we know the importance of seeing the full picture. My new blog post explores how incorporating rating scales from various stakeholders – parents, teachers, and students – can significantly enrich our understanding of a child's functional communication abilities across different environments. "Unlock the Power of Questionnaires/Rating Scales in Your SLP Evaluations" provides actionable strategies for a more comprehensive and collaborative assessment process.

Read the article: https://mrsspeechonline.blogspot.com/2025/04/unlock-power-of-rating-scales-in-your.html

#slp #speechandlanguage #communication #assessmentandevaluation #interprofessionalcollaboration #functionalcommunication

There is no wrong way to raise a bilingual child.

Bilingualism is a gift you can give your child that will open doors of opportunities. AND IT WILL NOT CAUSE CONFUSION OR DELAYS.

Here are the 5 most common methods:
1️⃣ One Parent, One Language:
In this approach, each parent consistently speaks a different language with their child. This clear separation helps the child associate each language with a specific parent, making it easier for them to distinguish and learn.

2️⃣ Minority Language at Home
Parents create a language-rich environment at home where the minority language is dominant. Reading, playing, and communicating in the minority language ensures your child is immersed in it, reinforcing their language skills.

3️⃣ Time and Place
Parents designate specific times or places for each language. For example, weekdays could be for one language, and weekends for another or home is minority language and everywhere else the majority language.

4️⃣ Mixed Language Families
Family members to use their native language when interacting with the child. (just try to avoid using Spanglish).

5️⃣ Outside Resources
Parents leverage resources beyond the family structure. Monolingual parents may enroll their child in bilingual programs, find language apps, or visit cultural events and communities where the target language is spoken.

I was raised as a Minority Language at Home and raised my daughter as an Outside Resource family.

Let me know in the comments what method you use.

Did you know that research shows...

Bilinguals identify cognates with higher accuracy and faster speed than noncognate words(Squires et al, 2020)

Bilingual students show cross-linguistic transfer and feasibility. (Kambanaros et al 2017)

Using cognates leads to greater gains in vocabulary naming (Dam et al 2020)

This is why I created a Spanish-English articulations screener using Cognates. Same list of words gets you all the sounds you need in most word positions.

You can find this resource in the Digital Market

AI is everywhere, ready to bring it to your therapy sessions? As the founder of ASD 123 (Accessible Speech Development) I would love for you, my SLPeeps, to try out what I've built! Please let me know what you think!

https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/asd-123/id1577037312