What are the opening hours?

Tuesday 9am - 5pm Wednesday 9am - 5pm Thursday 9am - 5pm

Snapdragon Speech

Home
Australia
Ballarat Central, VIC
Snapdragon Speech

Snapdragon Speech is a private practice located in the Ballarat area

08/11/2025

Resource of the Week – Doll House!

A doll house is a wonderful resource for imaginative play and social interaction:
🏠 Imaginative play: Encourages role-playing and storytelling, and creativity.
🗣️ Social interaction: Supports communication skills through role-playing and conversation.
🧠 Problem-solving: Children can engage in planning and decision-making as they arrange furniture and characters.

Incorporate a doll house into your play resources for a rich, imaginative learning experience!

06/11/2025

🐾 A fun, rhyming story about a wombat stew with a mix of Aussie animals. Perfect for building rhyming skills and animal vocabulary!

Use these ideas to encourage speech:
🐾Rhyming: Focus on the rhyming words in the book. Can your child find other words that rhyme with “stew,” “roo,” or “koala”?
🐾Animal vocabulary: Discuss the different Australian animals in the book. Can your child name some more Aussie animals?
🐾Story expansion: “What other ingredients could go into the Wombat Stew? Can you make up your own stew with different animals and their special skills?”

What’s your favourite book for talking about Australian animals?

03/11/2025

🏇🌸 Public Holiday Closure – Melbourne Cup Day 🌸🏇

Snapdragon Speech will be closed on Tuesday 4 November for the Melbourne Cup public holiday.

We’ll reopen as usual on Wednesday 5 November and look forward to seeing you then. 💙

Wishing everyone a safe and enjoyable day!

02/11/2025

For those of you that do not already know, Sam will be taking a break from face-to-face sessions from the end of November 2025 to enjoy the arrival of her baby in January! 🎉

Snapdragon Speech will pause all services for around six months, with a planned reopening in July 2026.

Thank you to all our families for your understanding and support during this special time for Sam and her family! 💙

30/10/2025

Halloween is full of exciting sights, sounds, and spooky stories - a perfect chance to spark your child’s language and creativity!

Try these simple speech and language activities to enjoy together:
🕸️ Describe costumes and decorations using new words
🦇 Tell spooky (or silly!) stories with your little one
🍬 Sort Halloween treats by colour, shape, or size
🧙‍♀️ Play pretend with witches, monsters, and magic spells

Remember, every chat, laugh, and “boo!” is a chance to build communication skills in a fun, relaxed way.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

29/10/2025

Resource of the Week – Binoculars!
Binoculars are a fun way to support language and communication during play!
🔭 Describing and commenting: Encourage your child to talk about what they see — using words for colours, sizes, locations and actions (e.g., “I see a big bird flying!”).
🗣️ Expanding sentences: Model longer sentences and new vocabulary as you explore together (e.g., “You found the tall tree behind the playground!”).
🧩 Turn-taking and attention: Great for shared attention activities and taking turns to “spot” things in the environment.
Bring binoculars into playtime to spark conversation, encourage observation, and make language learning fun!

27/10/2025

👻 A playful, interactive book where the pigeon tries to stop you from turning the pages! A fun way to engage children in language through humour and prediction.

These activities can help with speech and language development:
👻Predicting: Ask your child, “What do you think will happen when we turn the page? Who do you think is at the end of the book?”
👻Action words: Encourage your child to act out the words. “Can you stomp your feet like the pigeon?”
👻Character feelings: “How does the pigeon feel when we keep turning the pages? How do you think the pigeon feels at the end?”

What’s your favourite book for talking about monsters or dealing with fear?

25/10/2025

Resource of the Week – Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza!

Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza is a fast-paced game that enhances reaction time and social skills:
🕹️ Quick thinking: Players need to think quickly and react fast, enhancing cognitive skills.
🗣️ Turn-taking: The game encourages patience and sharing.
🧠 Strategy: Develops planning skills and quick decision-making.

Incorporate Taco Cat Goat Cheese Pizza into your play activities for a fun, interactive learning experience!

24/10/2025

If you've been in the clinic with Sam, you've probably heard her mention LAMP WFL – it’s one of her favourite high-tech AAC systems!

Sam loves LAMP because it's based on motor planning and consistent placement of words, which can support language development for many AAC users. It’s robust, flexible, and designed with long-term language growth in mind.

BUT - AAC is never one-size-fits-all. While LAMP might be the right fit for some, we always individualise our recommendations based on each child’s strengths, needs, and communication goals. That’s what makes AAC work - the fit.

Have questions about AAC or wondering where to start? We're always happy to chat

22/10/2025

Hyperlexia is when a child learns to read very early, often before they are taught, but may have difficulties understanding the meaning of what they read or what is said to them.

These children may recognise words easily but struggle with comprehension, social language, or conversation. With the right support, their strong reading skills can be a powerful tool to help build understanding and communication.

20/10/2025

🎃 Halloween is a great time to encourage your child to use descriptive language while having fun. Ask your child to describe their Halloween costume in detail, focusing on colours, textures, and how it feels to wear it. This activity promotes the use of adjectives and descriptive language:

🎃“What does your costume look like?”
🎃“Can you describe the colours and shapes?”
🎃“How does it feel to wear it?”

This not only helps expand your child’s vocabulary but also encourages them to think critically about the details of their costume.

We can't wait to see your child's wonderful costume creations!

19/10/2025

By around 3 years, your child’s language skills are really taking off! Here’s what they might be doing:

👂 Understanding more complex questions and following multi-step instructions
🗣 Using sentences of 3 to 4 words (e.g., “I want juice,” “Where is teddy?”)
🔄 Asking lots of “why” and “what” questions as they explore the world
👀 Naming colours, shapes, and common objects
🎭 Engaging in more detailed pretend play and storytelling

Tip:
Encourage your child’s language by asking open-ended questions and giving them plenty of chances to talk about their ideas and stories.

What fun phrases or stories is your 3-year-old telling you lately? Share below!

Address

15 Dawson Street South
Ballarat Central, VIC
3350

Opening Hours

Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm

Website

http://Snapdragonspeech.com.au/, https://events.humanitix.com/speechie-library-talks-2024-ballarat-library

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Snapdragon Speech posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Snapdragon Speech:

Shortcuts

Want your practice to be the top-listed Clinic in Ballarat Central?