Pip Squeak Speech Pathology

Pip Squeak Speech Pathology Pip Squeak Speech Pathology is a paediatric, mobile Speech Pathology service in Perth, WA

Did you know that speech sound development follows a predictable pattern, but every child’s journey is unique?Research b...
10/11/2025

Did you know that speech sound development follows a predictable pattern, but every child’s journey is unique?
Research by McLeod & Crowe (2018) reviewed speech development across 27 languages and over 26,000 children. They found that most Australian English speaking children:

Produce about 75% of consonants correctly by age 4

Produce about 90% of consonants correctly by age 5

Early sounds like p, b, t, d, m, n usually appear first, while fricatives, affricates, r, and “th” sounds tend to develop later.

Importantly, these are guidelines, not hard rules. Every child develops at their own pace, and variability is normal. Therapy should focus on sounds that matter for intelligibility, communication, and the child’s daily life. Choosing therapy targets based on the child’s unique profile is more meaningful than relying on age norms alone.

Full reference:
McLeod, S., & Crowe, K. (2018). Children’s consonant acquisition in 27 languages: A cross‑linguistic review. American Journal of Speech‑Language Pathology, 27(4), 1546‑1571. https://doi.org/10.1044/2018_AJSLP‑17‑0100

DIR/Floortime is a developmental, relationship-based approach that supports communication, emotional connection, and thi...
27/05/2025

DIR/Floortime is a developmental, relationship-based approach that supports communication, emotional connection, and thinking skills through play and interaction.

The focus isn’t on drilling isolated skills. It’s on building meaningful, back-and-forth engagement that supports a child’s development at their own pace.

In therapy, this might look like:

- Following a child’s interests

- Joining them in their play

- Expanding interactions to support communication, problem-solving, and connection

It’s a flexible, evidence-informed model that works across settings—and aligns well with neurodiversity-affirming practice.

We use DIR/Floortime because it allows us to centre relationships, emotional regulation, and autonomy while still targeting important developmental goals.

Co-regulation refers to the supportive process of helping a child regulate their emotions, attention, and arousal—with a...
25/05/2025

Co-regulation refers to the supportive process of helping a child regulate their emotions, attention, and arousal—with another person.

It’s not about teaching children to “self-regulate” in isolation. It’s about being available, responsive, and predictable, so that regulation becomes possible in the first place.

In our sessions, co-regulation might look like:

1. Adjusting the sensory environment

2. Offering calm, attuned presence

3. Respecting autonomy while staying connected

Over time, repeated co-regulation builds the foundation for independent regulation skills to emerge.

SCERTS is one of the core frameworks we use at Pip Squeak to guide assessment and intervention planning. It helps ensure...
22/05/2025

SCERTS is one of the core frameworks we use at Pip Squeak to guide assessment and intervention planning. It helps ensure our supports are developmentally appropriate, functional, and responsive to a child’s needs across environments.

It’s not about ticking off skills—it’s about improving quality of life.

If you're a parent or professional wanting to understand more about how we apply SCERTS to everyday therapy goals, feel free to get in touch.

Roses are red, violets are kind, let’s meet every child with an open mind! 🧠💖Happy Valentine's day from Pip Squeak Speec...
14/02/2025

Roses are red, violets are kind, let’s meet every child with an open mind! 🧠💖

Happy Valentine's day from Pip Squeak Speech Pathology!

Speech vs. Language: What's the Difference? 🌟It’s important to understand the distinction between speech and language, a...
10/10/2024

Speech vs. Language: What's the Difference? 🌟

It’s important to understand the distinction between speech and language, as they impact communication in different ways.

🗣️ Speech refers to how we produce sounds. It includes:
Articulation (how we form sounds & words)
Voice (quality, pitch, volume)
Fluency (smoothness of speech)

🧠 Language, on the other hand, is all about understanding and using words to communicate. It involves:
Understanding what others say (receptive language)
Using words, sentences, gestures, and even writing to express thoughts (expressive language)

Someone can have speech challenges (e.g., difficulty with certain sounds) but no language delay, or vice versa!

🌟 Developmental Stages of Play & Neurodiversity-Affirming Considerations 🌟Play is an essential part of child development...
17/09/2024

🌟 Developmental Stages of Play & Neurodiversity-Affirming Considerations 🌟

Play is an essential part of child development, offering key opportunities for learning and growth. Understanding the stages of play can help us better support children's development by providing learning opportunities.
However, it's important to ensure that our approach to play goals is neurodiversity-affirming, to ensure we are not encouraging masking or inadvertently using behavioural approaches in therapy.

🔹 Developmental Stages of Play: Children typically progress through these stages of play:

Solitary play (playing alone)
Parallel play (playing alongside others)
Associative play (interacting during play but with no common goal)
Cooperative play (working towards a shared goal)

Not all children follow these stages in a linear fashion, and that's okay! All forms of play are valid, whether it’s structured or unstructured. 🎨

🔹 Neurodiversity Affirming Considerations: When working with Autistic children, it’s important to acknowledge that play might look different—and that’s wonderful! Research has primarily focused on neurotypical play, leaving much to learn about the unique ways Autistic children play. Instead of attempting to ‘correct’ or mould Autistic play to fit traditional norms, let's celebrate and support the individual play styles of every child. 🧠✨

Let’s continue to advocate for play-based goals that affirm a child's strengths, ensuring we embrace every form of play as valid and meaningful. ❤️

Reference: The Informed SLP. Play Through the Ages

🌟 3 Strategies for Supporting PDA Clients in Therapy 🌟Working with children with Pathological Demand Avoidance/Persisten...
17/09/2024

🌟 3 Strategies for Supporting PDA Clients in Therapy 🌟

Working with children with Pathological Demand Avoidance/Persistent Drive For Autonomy (PDA) requires a flexible, child-centred approach. Here are three strategies to help reduce anxiety and foster engagement which I use in my sessions:

1️⃣ Keep Things New & Fun: Introduce novel activities that align with your client's interests. This keeps therapy exciting and provides a sense of control, making tasks feel less like demands. I always have something new with me, and if my clients brings something up, I get excited with them and follow their lead 🎨🧩

2️⃣ Watch for Signs of Anxiety: PDA'ers often show their anxiety and disregulation in ways that can be hard for unfamiliar people to recognise, such as role-playing, distracting or negotiating. If you notice these behaviours, reduce your demands 🔄🧠

3️⃣ Avoid Praise & Rewards: Traditional praise or rewards can create pressure for PDA'ers. Instead, focus on the end result and provide natural rewards tied to the activity—like enjoying muffins after baking them together, or wearing your newly made friendship bracelets! 🍪✨

Reference: PDA Society. www.pdasociety.org.uk

👏 Continuing our posts on the 16 gestures to teach your baby by 16 months 👋At 11 months, your little one starts sharing ...
04/09/2024

👏 Continuing our posts on the 16 gestures to teach your baby by 16 months 👋

At 11 months, your little one starts sharing their world by “showing” you their favorite things! They do this by using an “open hand point” and “tapping” to direct your attention to cool stuff. They also become more aware of people coming and going and start to learn a basic "wave"🌟✨

Dive into the 16 Gestures by 16 Months project to see how these early interactions set the stage for more advanced communication!


🗣️👶 Did you know? By 9-10 months old, babies start mastering key gestures that are crucial for communication! 🤲 At this ...
04/09/2024

🗣️👶 Did you know? By 9-10 months old, babies start mastering key gestures that are crucial for communication! 🤲 At this stage, they begin to show incredible progress with gestures like:

Giving Objects - Giving their toys or objects to caregivers in an early interaction.
Shaking Their Head - A clear way to say "no".
Reaching for Things - Indicating what they want or need.
Reaching Up to Be Lifted - Asking for comfort or interaction from caregivers.

These gestures are the building blocks for language and social skills. 🌟✨

Check out our latest post to explore the first 4 essential gestures babies learn. We'll be detailing the rest over the next couple of weeks.

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Perth, WA

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Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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