05/03/2026
I’ve been seeing a beautiful 9-year-old boy with ASD since 2019. When I first met him, he was non-verbal. We started by teaching him to communicate using an app on his iPad. Over the years, he has gradually begun communicating verbally, and recently he has made some incredible progress with his goals.
1️⃣For the first time in his life, he is sleeping in his own bed.
How is this related to speech therapy? During our sessions we created social stories to help him understand expectations around sleeping in his own bed. His receptive language has improved regarding these expectations.
2️⃣Joining the school choir.
His communication has grown so much that he can now speak in sentences and read, which has given him the confidence to join the school choir.
3️⃣Two-way conversations.
He can now ask others conversational questions without assistance and participate in back-and-forth conversations.
4️⃣Interest in friendships.
He recently told me his goal is to become friends with a specific child at school, which shows a growing interest in connecting with peers.
5️⃣Building full sentences.
He used to have difficulty combining words into sentences, but he has recently learned to use “filler” words like is, a, and the to form complete sentences.
6️⃣Explaining ideas.
He can now explain why something is happening using the conjunction because.
Watching his growth over the years has been such a privilege. Progress like this doesn’t happen overnight, it’s the result of persistence, support, and a lot of hard work from one very determined little boy. 💛
