{"id":33,"date":"2025-08-12T11:22:25","date_gmt":"2025-08-12T17:22:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vmx.erb.mybluehost.me\/essential-teleconferencing-tips-and-tricks-for-school-based-slps-and-teachers\/"},"modified":"2025-08-17T15:10:56","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T21:10:56","slug":"essential-teleconferencing-tips-and-tricks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mrsspeechonline.com\/staging\/2315\/essential-teleconferencing-tips-and-tricks\/","title":{"rendered":"Essential Teleconferencing Tips for SLPs and Teachers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How to set-up for Zoom<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Teleconferencing has become a significant part of many educators’ and therapists’ lives. While it presents unique challenges, it also offers incredible flexibility. Here are some essential teleconferencing tips and tricks I’ve learned during my time providing full-time teletherapy services to school-aged children:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Invest in a Second Monitor (A Big One!)<\/h3>\n\n\n
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My 40-inch TV setup: a game-changer for teletherapy! This allows me to display therapy materials, visual aids, and a timer simultaneously, streamlining virtual sessions.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This is a game-changer! I use my laptop screen for the Zoom window, one side of the TV for displaying therapy materials (flashcards, videos, etc.), and the other side for my therapy portal (to track student goals and document sessions). I often have two windows that I screenshare, if I have a visual aid for the activity or am giving students choices between activities.  This also means you can keep your icons to a minimum on your tv desktop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read my post on Unlocking Language with Youtube<\/a> for Youtube specific tips, such as Youtube settings and some invaluable playlists.\u00a0 I also have a post Youtube in Therapy for Older Students.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might need to adjust the TV height to prevent your laptop screen from blocking the view. Experiment with resolutions to find a comfortable balance between readability and screen real estate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prioritize Audio Quality<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Invest in a good quality headset with a microphone. While your laptop’s built-in microphone and speakers may suffice, higher-quality audio is crucial, especially for working on articulation skills with young children. Encourage students to use headphones with microphones as well, which can help minimize distractions and keep them engaged. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bonus remote meeting advice:<\/strong> Noise reduction features are often enabled by default in conferencing apps and computer settings. However, these algorithms can inadvertently cut off crucial sounds, such as the beginnings and ends of words, particularly fricatives like \/s\/. This can be incredibly frustrating when working on specific speech sounds. Ensure noise reduction is disabled on both your device and the student’s device.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Embrace Ad Blockers<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Online resources can be invaluable, but disruptive ads like these highlight the need to embrace ad blockers for smoother teletherapy sessions.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Online resources like YouTube are invaluable for therapy activities, but those pesky ads can be disruptive. I highly recommend using an ad blocker. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I personally use the free browser “Brave,” which effectively eliminates most ads, including those that appear within videos. It leaves a small white space where the ad would have been. As a bonus, using a dedicated browser for therapy helps keep your bookmarks organized and streamlined.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turn Your Phone into a Document Camera<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Many of us have accumulated a wealth of physical therapy materials over the years. Instead of letting them gather dust or (illegally) scanning them, repurpose them with a document camera. While there are some relatively inexpensive options out there, you can use your phone or another device to capture images or videos of your materials. (This is a great use for those older, unused devices, just connect them to your wireless connection). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are numerous online tutorials available to guide you through the setup process, although most are from the COVID epidemic so the technology may have changed somewhat.  I found this one<\/a> particularly helpful. This is especially beneficial for teaching students using Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) systems.  You might even consider asking for the same setup on the other side, especially if you are testing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Background Leverage<\/h3>\n\n\n
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My custom Zoom background, featuring a festive pun (‘Why does the Christmas alphabet only have 25 letters? Because there is Noel!’), demonstrates how to leverage your background for flexible language use and a smile!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Don’t just settle for a boring background! Get creative and use it as a teaching tool. You could use an underwater scene for a unit on ocean life, a construction scene for construction vocabulary.  Maybe you post a timeline for the session, or another visual aid.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FYI – if you have your video mirrored (most of us do), it will appear backwards in your video view, but the right way on your students’ view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I incorporate a “Pun of the Day” with a themed visual background to encourage flexible language use and explore multiple meanings of words, not to mention starting therapy off with a smile!  *whisper* I have a 56 pages of puns (21 pages of holiday-themed) in my TPT store – It’s So Punny<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maximize Your Mouse Pointer<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Maximizing your mouse pointer, as seen in these settings, greatly improves its visibility and effectiveness for pointing out items on larger screens during teletherapy.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Enlarging your mouse pointer makes it easier to locate on the larger screen and improves its effectiveness for pointing out items to students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Master Video Conferencing Tools<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Explore and utilize the built-in tools within your chosen conferencing platform (Zoom, Google Meet, etc.). The whiteboard <\/b>function is excellent for quick demonstrations and brainstorming, and many students prefer drawing on it to playing online games. The annotation <\/b>feature allows you to draw or type directly onto any screen-shared content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lighting<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You want good lighting so students can see your face well.  The room I use as my office is rather dark.  I’ve tried ring lights, and lamps, but they produce strong shadows unless they are low enough that I can’t really tell a difference in my camera, and even then they are rather blinding.  I’ve even tried facing them away from me, toward the wall behind the big screen.  The best solution I’ve found is dispersed light with multiple sources, pointing up or toward a wall, and thoroughly checking the video settings in both my computer and Zoom.  I’ll update with any other options!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Understand Your Students’ Setups<\/h3>\n\n\n
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Understanding the variety of devices students might use for online learning, from desktop computers to tablets and smartphones, is key to adapting your teletherapy approach.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Before the initial therapy session, have a brief conversation with the student or their caregiver to understand their technology setup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n