By Magic Words Specialist Speech and Language Therapist in Complex Needs, Raveena Reniga
Just like many other Speech Therapists all over the world during the last few weeks of the COVID-19 lockdown I have been exploring the very interesting world of online speech therapy. Going from seeing all my clients face to face, I thought it would be a whole new world. To my surprise, online speech therapy has many similarities to face to face therapy.
Something that has by far exceeded my expectations is the large variety of activities we have available to us on our Magic Words Online platform that are designed focus on all aspects of speech and language therapy. Not only that, we are also able put our own resources that we create onto our specialist platform.
I have been able to continue working on the same targets with the children I had been seeing face to face and I have seen the children continue to progress and excel without losing any of the fun of face to face! Activities can be tailored in the same way as face to face and for some children who are really into technology, this use of it in our speech therapy has made them even more motivated. It has been a fantastic way to maintain their social interaction.
For the few children who have not been able to access online therapy directly, I have been able to work directly with their parents/carers to support their child’s speech and language development at home. This support has ranged from creating personalised home programmes with daily activities, to supporting parents to adapt their environment and communication styles to integrate therapy into their daily routine, reviewing progress regularly.
For those who have not yet experienced it, online therapy can be daunting. I would definitely recommend any parent to speak with a therapist who can talk through how it could work for them and their child. It may just surprise you too!
