We all know practice is key in speech therapy & skill development. But what if we could supercharge your sessions and enhance results even before students utter a sound? Enter mental rehearsal (visualization)!

What is Mental Rehearsal?

Mental rehearsal is exactly what it sounds like – practicing a skill in your head. Imagine yourself saying a tricky sound, reading fluently, or delivering a captivating presentation. It’s like daydreaming, but with a purpose!

The Science Behind the Superpower:

Mental rehearsal isn’t just wishful thinking; it’s backed by neuroscience! When you vividly imagine performing a skill, you activate similar brain pathways as when you perform it physically. This strengthens those pathways, making the actual skill execution smoother and more efficient.

Benefits of Mental Rehearsal:

• Boosts Confidence: Feeling successful in your mind translates to real-world confidence. You approach challenges with a “been there, done that” attitude.¹ 
• Improves Skills: Strengthens brain pathways involved in the practiced skill, leading to faster progress and better outcomes.² 
• Reduces Anxiety: Calm pre-speech jitters by rehearsing success. Visualizing yourself handling challenging situations calmly reduces anxiety and promotes a more relaxed state of mind.³

• Reduces Incorrect Practice: Minimize bad habits by focusing on the correct way. Mental rehearsal allows you to hone the perfect technique, reducing the risk of accidentally practicing and reinforcing mistakes.
• Convenient: Practice anytime, anywhere – waiting for the bus, before bed, etc. Mental rehearsal offers ultimate flexibility, allowing you to fit in practice sessions even with busy schedules.

Mental Rehearsal in Therapy & Education: Applications for Diverse Needs

Mental rehearsal can be a powerful tool for a wide range of situations in both therapy and education settings:

• Generalization: Bridge the gap between the controlled environment of therapy and the real world (e.g., rehearsing using new skills on the playground or in the classroom). Students can mentally rehearse using their newly acquired skills in different settings, promoting carry-over and generalization.
• Limited Therapy Time: Make the most of short therapy sessions. While in-person practice is crucial, mental rehearsal allows students to keep practicing and improving their skills between sessions, maximizing progress within the limited timeframe.
• Fear and Avoidance: Overcome fears by mentally rehearsing success. For students struggling with social anxiety or stuttering, visualizing themselves confidently engaging in challenging social situations can equip them with the tools to face their fears in real life.⁴
• Physical Limitations: Allow everyone to participate and improve regardless of limitations. Students with physical limitations that hinder certain types of practice can still benefit from mental rehearsal.
• Waiting Time: Engage students in mental rehearsal during group activities or while waiting for their turn. Minimize idle time by having students rehearse target skills in their minds, promoting active learning and maximizing every minute.

How to Use Mental Rehearsal: Techniques for Different Skills

Here are some specific ways to use mental rehearsal in therapy and education, tailored to different communication skills:

• Speech Sounds: Imagine your mouth making the correct shape and feeling the airflow for a tricky sound. This is particularly helpful for sounds that are hard to see or feel, giving you a clearer mental image of the correct production.⁵
• Fluency: Picture yourself speaking smoothly and confidently in a challenging situation, like ordering food at a restaurant. This can help reduce anxiety in situations that usually trigger stuttering or disfluencies.
• Reading: Visualize the words on the page and hear yourself reading them fluently with expression. This is especially helpful for kids who get nervous reading aloud in class. Imagine yourself captivating the audience with your clear and engaging reading.
• Language Skills: Rehearse using target vocabulary words or sentence structures in different contexts. Imagine yourself participating in a conversation and seamlessly using the newly learned language skills.
• Social Skills: Play out a social interaction in your head, like introducing yourself to someone new or joining a group conversation. This is perfect for practicing skills that are difficult to replicate in a therapy session. Visualize yourself navigating social situations with ease and confidence.

• Relax and Get Comfy: Find a quiet, comfortable space to minimize distractions and maximize focus.

Tips for Effective Mental Rehearsal:

• Vivid Visualization: Engage all your senses for a clear mental image. Imagine not only the visual aspects of the task, but also the sounds, smells, and even the emotions you want to experience while performing the skill.

• Focus on Success: Imagine yourself doing it perfectly, with confidence and ease. Fill your visualization with positive emotions and a sense of accomplishment.
• Regular Practice: The more you rehearse, the better the results! Just like building a muscle, mental rehearsal strengthens neural pathways with consistent practice. Aim for short, regular sessions throughout the day.

Explaining Mental Rehearsal to Students: Making it Fun and Engaging

Here are some tips to explain mental rehearsal to students in a way that is both engaging and relevant to their age group:

• Relatable Examples: Talk about athletes or actors and their mental preparation routines. Discuss how athletes visualize themselves performing their winning moves or actors rehearse their lines in their heads before a big performance.
• Interactive Activities: Play games where students take turns visualizing simple tasks. For example, have them close their eyes and imagine themselves making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, step-by-step. Discuss the different sensory details they might experience during this visualization.
• Positive Reinforcement: Focus on the benefits of mental rehearsal, like feeling more confident and prepared. Help students understand how mental rehearsal can be their “secret weapon” for success.
• Age-Appropriate Complexity: Tailor the explanation to the student’s age and cognitive skills. For younger children, keep it simple and focus on basic visualizations. As students mature, you can introduce more complex scenarios and strategies.
• Make it Fun! Use props, silly voices, or movement to keep students engaged. You could create a “mental rehearsal superhero” character who helps students visualize success.
• Start Small & Build Up: Begin with short, simple tasks and increase complexity as students gain confidence. This helps them experience success early on and motivates them to continue practicing.

Want a ready-made resource to help you teach your students about mental rehearsal?

Check out Mental Rehearsal – Your Hidden Superpower!

“Mental Rehearsal – Your Hidden Superpower!” is a downloadable resource designed for students in 5th grade and up. It includes:

• Engaging explanation of mental rehearsal and its benefits for communication skills.
• Fun & interactive activities to practice mental rehearsal for various tasks, like articulation, fluency, reading comprehension, and social skills.
• List of links to other resources
• Comprehension & critical thinking questions to promote deeper understanding of mental rehearsal and its applications.

Empower your students and unlock their potential! Download “Mental Rehearsal – Your Hidden Superpower” today! Check out my 2-part YouTube series:

• Your Hidden Speech Superpower! (Mental Rehearsal Part 1/2)
• Shhh… It’s a Hidden Superpower! (Mental Rehearsal Part 2/2)

You may also like LEVEL UP SPEECH! Wait Time Hacks: Metacognition Lesson, Poster & Journal!

Ready to Give it a Try?

Mental rehearsal is a powerful tool for both SLPs and educators. It’s a simple yet effective strategy that can be easily integrated into your existing therapy or classroom routines. Give it a shot and see how much it helps you and your students achieve your communication goals!

Best imaginings!

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Resources

1. Shearer, D. A., Holmes, P. S., & Thomson, J. A. (2007). The effect of self-modeling on self-efficacy and dribbling performance. Journal of Sports Sciences, 25(14), 1587–1594. https://doi.org/10.1080/02640410701257406 ↩︎
2. Saimpont, A., Malouin, F., & Jackson, P. L. (2013). Brain activity during motor imagery: The impact of motor expertise. Journal of Motor Behavior, 45(6), 563–573. https://doi.org/10.1080/00222895.2013.842797 ↩︎
3. Makarova, E., Makarova, A., Kulagin, V., & Koroleva, E. (2024). The Effectiveness of Mental Rehearsal to Reduce Performance Anxiety: A Systematic Review. Psychological Reports, 133(1), 183–208. https://doi.org/10.1177/00332941231174987 ↩︎
4. Makarova, E., Makarova, A., Kulagin, V., & Koroleva, E. (2024). The Effectiveness of Mental Rehearsal to Reduce Performance Anxiety: A Systematic Review. Psychological Reports, 133(1), 183–208. https://doi.org/10.1177/00332941231174987 ↩︎
5. Maring, J. R. (1990). The effect of imagined practice on articulation in hearing-impaired children. Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 33(4), 856–861. https://doi.org/10.1044/jshr.3304.856 ↩︎

The post Rethinking Practice: The Power of Mental Rehearsal in Speech Therapy appeared first on Mrs. Speech Online.

Navigating the complexities of stuttering can bring confusion and anxiety for both children and their families. That’s why I wrote “It’s Just the Way I Talk: Facts About Stuttering for Ages 5-8.” It is a compassionate guide designed to transform uncertainty into understanding and empower young voices.

I’m incredibly proud to share that this book has not only become a steady seller, but it’s also reached #40 in Children’s Books on Physical Disabilities on Amazon. Furthermore, it has been read cover-to-cover numerous times on Kindle Unlimited! This continued success is a testament to the critical need it fills. It provides clear, accessible resources for young children who stutter.

From an SLP’s Heart: Why I Wrote “It’s Just the Way I Talk”

As a speech-language pathologist with over 24 years of experience, I’ve seen firsthand the profound impact stuttering can have on a child’s self-esteem. I vividly recall working with a young boy, Alex, who felt isolated and ashamed, his confidence faltering. During our sessions, a profound realization struck me: Alex, and indeed many other children who stutter, didn’t truly understand what stuttering was.

More importantly, they didn’t realize they weren’t alone in their experiences. This critical gap in understanding became the seed that blossomed into “It’s Just the Way I Talk.” My dream was to create a resource that not only provides factual clarity but also helps children realize they are not alone. Ultimately, the book aims to build their confidence to communicate freely.

Why “It’s Just the Way I Talk” Matters: More Than Just Facts

“It’s Just the Way I Talk” goes beyond simply explaining stuttering. It’s a heartfelt celebration of unique communication styles and a powerful tool for fostering confidence and acceptance. Geared toward early to mid-elementary ages, it’s also proven valuable for older children and adults seeking foundational knowledge.

Here’s what makes it an essential resource:

• Child-Friendly Truths: The book demystifies stuttering (also known as stammering). It provides clear, age-appropriate facts about what it is, why it happens, and why it’s a perfectly normal brain difference – not a fault.
• Fostering Acceptance & Confidence: It gently tackles common questions and anxieties. Children learn they are not alone and that stuttering doesn’t reflect intelligence or ability. This fosters self-acceptance and empowers young readers to embrace their voice.
• Beyond “Fixing”: Focusing on Strengths & Self-Advocacy: The book encourages children to identify their strengths rather than solely focusing on “curing” stuttering. It helps them develop self-advocacy skills and explore the stuttering community, promoting a positive self-image.

• Navigating Reactions from Others: The book offers practical guidance on understanding why others might react in certain ways. It empowers children to communicate their needs, highlighting that well-meaning suggestions like “slow down” or “just relax” might not always be helpful.
• Support for the Whole Family & Beyond: It provides updated information and valuable guidance for parents, teachers, and speech-language pathologists (SLPs). This fosters a supportive communication environment. Additionally, it helps cultivate empathy and inclusivity in non-stuttering children by promoting understanding of communication differences.

Aligning with Evidence-Based Practices

As a practicing SLP for many years, I’ve consistently observed the challenges faced by children who stutter and the need for resources that align with established evidence-based practices (EBPs). “It’s Just the Way I Talk” was carefully crafted to meet these standards. It is recommended by organizations like the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) and the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD):

• Psychoeducation: The book empowers children with essential, factual information about stuttering, including its normalcy and lack of control. This directly aligns with EBP recommendations, which helps reduce anxiety in children who stutter. (Ref: National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders)
• Parent Training: By understanding stuttering and its causes through the book, parents can provide a more informed and supportive environment at home. This is a key aspect of successful stuttering therapy. (Ref: Journal of Fluency Disorders)
• Communication Strategies: The book indirectly introduces communication strategies by encouraging children to communicate what helps them stutter less. This aligns with EBPs that teach children self-advocacy skills and strategies for managing their communication. (Ref: Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools)

“It’s Just the Way I Talk”: What Readers Are Saying

"This book is invaluable for parents, teachers, and therapists, as it promotes empathy and confidence in kids who stutter. It's a must-read that makes a significant difference in understanding and accepting speech differences. Highly recommend ?"

"This empowering book is a wonderful tool for young children navigating the challenges of stuttering. It presents important facts and strategies in a way that is both accessible and encouraging, helping kids feel more confident about their speech. The heartwarming narrative normalizes stuttering, fostering a sense of acceptance and support. Ideal for families and educators, this resource promotes empathy and understanding in a fun and relatable manner."

Integrating “It’s Just the Way I Talk” (For SLPs & Educators)

“It’s Just the Way I Talk” can be a valuable tool in various settings. Here are some ideas for how you can integrate it into therapy sessions, classrooms, or home environments:

• Read the book together: This can spark natural discussions about stuttering. It opens the door for children to share their experiences and feelings.
• Role-playing scenarios: Use the book’s content to role-play how children can respond to well-meaning but unhelpful comments from others. This builds their self-advocacy skills.
• Creative activities: Encourage children to create artwork, write stories, or engage in other creative activities inspired by the book’s themes of acceptance and unique communication.

I’d love to hear from fellow SLPs about how you’re using “It’s Just the Way I Talk” in your therapy sessions! Feel free to share your experiences and creative activities in the comments below.

Join the Movement: Get Your Copy & Spread the Word

Ready to empower a child’s voice and foster greater understanding of stuttering?

Get Your Copy Today!

I’ve priced “It’s Just the Way I Talk” just slightly above cost to ensure it’s accessible to as many families as possible. You can find it on Amazon, or get a 10% discount in my webstore (click here to see all available locations)! Consider purchasing and donating to your local school.

Spread the Awareness!

Every child deserves to feel confident about their voice. You can help us reach more families, educators, and therapists by sharing this post with your network. Please use the hashtag #ItsJustTheWayITalk when you share!

Boost Visibility!

Searching for “It’s Just the Way I Talk” on Amazon and search engines (by both title and relevant keywords like “children’s book stuttering,” “stuttering facts,” “speech therapy resources”) and clicking on it significantly helps. This action allows the platform to recommend it to others interested in communication differences. Your simple search makes a huge difference!

Request at Your Library

Consider requesting the book at your local public and school libraries, and favorite bookstores. Every new placement helps reach more children who need this message!

Your Voice Matters: Leave a Review!

Reviews are the heartbeat of a book’s success, especially for a mission-driven title like ‘It’s Just the Way I Talk.’ Each review, particularly those with comments, significantly boosts our visibility on platforms like Amazon and Goodreads. This helps us reach more children who need to feel confident about their voice. Whether you borrowed or bought a copy, please take a moment to share your thoughts on Amazon, Goodreads, or your library app. Your feedback truly helps us spread this vital message!

Want more empowering resources for stuttering? Check out Empowering Kids Who Stutter: Practical Tips & Resources.

Looking for additional resources to help children develop self-advocacy skills? I also recommend checking out my article Sail Away from “I Don’t Know”: A Treasure Map to Classroom Communication!

Looking Ahead

I’m passionate about continuing to bridge informational gaps. Looking ahead, I’m eager to create similar resources tailored for older children who stutter. These will address their evolving needs as they mature.

Together, let’s celebrate communication in all its forms!

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The post Lifting Up Young Voices: Why “It’s Just the Way I Talk” Continues to Be an Essential Resource for Children Who Stutter appeared first on Mrs. Speech Online.

Hey everyone, today I want to talk about hidden battles that many of us, and our students, face.

Lately, I’ve been navigating a bit of a hidden battle: my jaw has decided to stage a protest. Turns out, I’ve been dealing with some pretty significant Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) issues for the past six months. It’s been… eye-opening, to say the least.

Living on a diet that mostly resembles baby food has been an adventure in itself. But the real, though invisible, struggle has been navigating my work as a speech-language pathologist. This is challenging while my jaw feels like it’s constantly seizing up. Talking, which is kind of my main gig, has become a surprisingly painful endeavor. 

And smiling? Well, let’s just say my attempts probably look more like a polite wince, because that hurts too. Even simple things like brushing my teeth have become a daily debate with my pain levels. A full day of therapy often leaves my jaw joint feeling like it’s full of glass shards. What’s more, the muscles in my jaw and neck are usually screaming by the time I get home.  And as a delightful bonus – it gives me a fantastic headache as well!

The “Janky Jaw” Connection: Our Students’ Overload

And as I’ve been navigating this constant discomfort, especially the pain that flares up with every word and forced smile, I’ve been struck by a profound thought: This has to be what so many of our amazing students and clients experience every single day.

Think about it. For me, this jaw thing is (hopefully!) a temporary invisible challenge. But for so many of the people we work with, their “janky jaw” might be sensory overload. It makes the classroom feel like a constant buzzing nightmare. It might be the anxiety that makes even showing up feel like climbing Mount Everest.

For our students with ADHD, the very act of sitting still for extended periods can feel physically and mentally exhausting. It is a constant battle against their natural inclination to move and explore. Or perhaps there’s an emotional weight that makes it hard to even crack a smile, no matter how much they might want to.  Even something as routine as braces might impact a student’s day.  And it all adds up until something fizzles.

It’s Not Just About Diagnoses: The Universal Hidden Struggle

And honestly, it’s not just our students with specific “diagnosed” challenges that may be overlooked. Think about all our students. When was the last time any of us spent a full seven-hour day crammed into a hard, probably not-ergonomically-designed student desk? Even at professional conferences, where they usually at least give us padded chairs, we’re all groaning and stretching by the end of the day!

Imagine that discomfort multiplied for a kid trying to learn and focus for hours on end. They are trying to absorb material they didn’t ask for, and are going to be judged on later.  Oh, and if attention wanes, they will definitely be called out on it.  Guess what – it doesn’t end with the dismissal bell – they also have homework.

The Hidden Battle Lens of Empathy

Just like my “smiling through the pain” to do my job, our students are often putting in this incredible, unseen effort just to get through the day. They’re navigating a world that wasn’t necessarily built for their unique needs (or even adult comfort!), and they’re doing it with a level of resilience that honestly blows me away.

This personal experience has given me just the tiniest glimpse into what it feels like to have your body actively fight against the demands of the day. It’s made me even more determined to approach everyone we work with – and even just observe the school environment – with extra doses of empathy, patience, and understanding. Because you never really know what kind of “janky jaw” someone else is dealing with. It could be physical, sensory, emotional, neurological, or just the plain discomfort of being a kid in a system that asks a lot of them.

Your Thoughts on Hidden Battles?

What are your thoughts? What other often-overlooked challenges do you think are important for us to keep in mind in our work?

Want more SEL content? Try these articles!

• The Real Language of Emotions: Teaching Feelings
• Empowering Kids Who Stutter: Knowledge, Acceptance, and Practical Resources
• Speech Therapy Wins! Building Progress Power in Kids

Keep Speechifying!

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The post Hidden Battles: Insights on Empathy appeared first on Mrs. Speech Online.

As a Speech Language Pathologist, I’m used to being on the clinician side of the table, helping others with communication and cognition.  I’m the one with the answers, right?  But when I found myself trying to cope with the symptoms of a concussion that had lasted months past the expected recovery time, my perspective flipped.

What is Post-Concussive Disorder?

Post-Concussive Disorder (PCD) is the catch-all for these lingering symptoms. Symptoms can include headaches, nausea, mental fog, dizziness, difficulty concentrating, poor memory, noise and/or light sensitivity, vision disturbances, anxiety, depression… all symptoms associated with a concussion and then some. It’s not understood what causes it, how to treat it, or even how much of the population experiences it.  Numbers range from 11% to 82% of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) cases.  I know, helpful, right?!

So let me back up a little.  It was the early summer of 2022, and we had emptied our pool to do repairs and clean, and I, being the wonderful wife and mother that I am, got up early to get a jump on the heat.  Little did I realize that the dew was heavy enough to turn our vinyl liner into a slip-n-slide, and no sooner had I stepped off the fiberglass steps than I found myself on my back, the occipital portion, where my skull rounds to connect to my spinal column, on the edge of the fiberglass step.

I don’t think I lost consciousness, but we went in that day, and had a scan that showed that there was no apparent bruising on my brain.  I had mild to moderate typical concussion symptoms, but my neck pain never went away.  So then I went to physical therapy, Round 1, which alleviated the neck pain to a tolerable level.

Well, now the school year was starting.  I was still feeling lightheaded and dizzy if I turned too fast, still had some neck pain, had a persistent headache.  I felt like my mind was moving through sludge.  Getting through groups of elementary kids was…difficult.  And the problem was, it continued to worsen, to the point where I was having daily migraines and took medical leave that October.

After that, I had the school district breathing down my neck to get back to work.  We were struggling to find a solution.  I couldn’t think clearly most of the time, even having word recall issues.  I struggled even knowing what it was that was wrong with me, just that I wasn’t right.  My general practitioner isn’t much help, but we do find a “concussion doctor” who, of course, is an hour away and doesn’t take our insurance.  

After a couple of months of testing, I find that I now have eyes that focus in slightly different directions.  I go to physical therapy (Round 2) to work on visual integration, I go to speech therapy to work on the mental fog and memory.  I am hiding in my room in the dark with one lamp, and telling my family to keep quiet.  Thank goodness my kids are teens.

It comes to the point I have to resign from my job in May 2023.  At that point, even with nearly six months of treatment orchestrated by the concussion expert, I’m still having daily migraines.  My speech therapist was wonderful, and had me walking the track around the rehab center’s gym while I performed memory and cognition tasks to aid in desensitization to light and noise.

Now, nearly two years after, I have headaches almost daily, but they are headaches, not migraines.  I’ve had two sets of lenses because my eye focus has changed.  But the mental fog has dissipated, and I feel like myself again for the most part.  I seem to misspell words more now, and memory is still an issue compared to pre-concussion.  And I’ve picked up a slight stutter that comes out when my brain is overdoing it.

Now, why do I tell you all this?  As speech-language pathologists, we often are treating individuals who have experienced a concussion, and we may not even realize it.  Because no one tells the speech teacher in the corner closet, right?  And we should be aware that these symptoms can persist weeks, months, even years after the typical recovery period.

 We need to be prepared to go to bat for our students who might need extra help with coping strategies in the aftermath of a concussion.  They may not be able to describe what’s wrong.  These challenges are invisible, and in many ways, unmeasurable, and can add up to creating emotional issues as well.  Students who have experienced a concussion may need accommodations that are not “listed” in our handy IEP software.  They may need cognitive therapy to address attention, memory or problem-solving issues.  Counseling may even be necessary.

As speech-language professionals, we need to raise awareness and understanding both of concussions and post-concussive disorder.  We need to help families navigate the symptoms, and educate teachers watch for the signs in their students.

Together, we can help them on the road to recovery, one step at a time.

Wishing the best to my powerful speechies,

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The post The Long Road: My Journey with Post-Concussive Disorder appeared first on Mrs. Speech Online.