Beyond Words Pediatric Speech Therapy

11/19/2025

🧡 Words with Tori — Let’s Talk About Swallowing in Kids! 🧡

Did you know that swallowing is a skill—just like walking or talking?
✨ Swallowing is the process our bodies use to move food and liquids safely from our mouths to our stomachs. It takes over 30 muscles working together!

👶 How Swallowing Can Affect Children
Some kiddos have difficulty chewing, controlling food in their mouths, or coordinating the swallow. You might notice:
1. Coughing or choking during meals
2. Gagging
3. Taking very long to eat
4. Trouble moving to new textures
5. Frequent congestion or wet-sounding breathing
6. Difficulty gaining weight

These challenges may be part of pediatric dysphagia, and speech-language pathologists are trained to help!

🧡 What We Do in Therapy
In feeding & swallowing therapy, we may work on:
1. Safe positioning
2. Oral motor skills (chewing, lip closure, tongue movement)
3. Introducing new textures safely
4. Teaching pacing and small sips/bites
5. Strengthening swallow patterns
6. Parent coaching to support mealtime success

Our goal is safe, happy, and confident eating—never pressure, fear, or rushing.
A speech therapist might use a Honey Bear straw cup (pictured below) to help kids with swallowing difficulties to practice safe sucking and improve lip closure, control, and coordination while allowing the therapist to gently guide the amount of liquid the child receives.

🥣 Baby Food Texture Levels (Common Stages)
Many families see labels on baby food and wonder what they mean!

Here’s a quick parent-friendly breakdown:
Stage 1 – Smooth Purees: Very thin and smooth. Great for early eaters learning to move food with their tongue.
Stage 2 – Thicker Purees / Blends with More Variety: Slightly thicker and may include mild blends of ingredients.
Stage 3 – Textured Purees / Soft Mashable: Still soft but may have small, gentle lumps. Requires more tongue movement to manage safely.
Soft Solids / Table Foods: Soft fruits, cooked veggies, scrambled eggs—foods that can be mashed easily with gums or teeth.

Every child progresses at their own pace, and an SLP can help determine what is safe and developmentally appropriate.

🥤 Thickness Levels (for Drinks)
Sometimes kids need thicker liquids to help them swallow safely.

A simple overview:
Thin liquids – water, milk, juice
Nectar-thick – slightly thicker, like a smoothie melted for a minute
Honey-thick – pours slowly, like actual honey
Pudding-thick – spoon-able, not pourable

SLPs use research-based guidelines to help determine if a child needs thicker liquids and how to prepare them safely.

👪 Parent Education: What You Can Do at Home
1. Make mealtimes relaxed and pressure-free
2. Let your child explore foods with hands, lips, and tongue
3. Model chewing and sipping
4. Offer appropriate textures based on your child’s skill level
5. Never force-feed
6. Watch for signs of difficulty (coughing, gagging, long mealtimes)

Ask your SLP for guidance on textures, thickness, and pacing if you're unsure

🧡 You’re Not Alone!
Feeding and swallowing difficulties are more common than most families realize.
With the right support, your child can build safe and happy eating skills—and we’re here to help every step of the way 🧡

11/12/2025

🍂 Words with Tori: Thankful for Every Sound! 🍁
This month, we’re giving thanks for all the little sounds that make big connections — from laughter at the dinner table to the crunch of fall leaves! 🍃

🎧 What is Aural Rehabilitation?
Aural rehabilitation (or “listening therapy”) helps children with cochlear implants or hearing aids learn to listen, understand, and communicate effectively. We work on helping their brains recognize and attach meaning to the sounds they hear!

🗣️ In Speech Therapy, We May Target the Following during Thanksgiving-Themed Activities:
Speech sound production: Practicing clear articulation of new sounds
Language: Building vocabulary with fall and Thanksgiving words (🍁 turkey, thankful, pumpkin!)
Voice & Fluency: Using strong, steady voices while sharing what we’re thankful for
AAC (Augmentative & Alternative Communication): Using visuals or devices to express gratitude
Social Communication: Practicing turn-taking and sharing with friends and family during conversations

🧸 Therapy Tip:
Sometimes we use baby dolls with toy cochlear implants during sessions! This helps children see themselves represented, learn how to talk about their devices, and practice listening and speaking in play-based ways—because learning through play builds confidence and connection. 💕

🏡 Try These Thankful Listening Activities at Home:
🍂 Thankful Sound Hunt: Listen for and name fall sounds—crunching leaves, birds, or kitchen noises while cooking.
🦃 I’m Thankful For... Game: Take turns naming things you’re thankful for, using listening and speech skills.
📚 Story Time: Read fall-themed books and ask listening questions like “Who said that?” or “What will happen next?”

Every sound your child hears is something to be thankful for this season! 💛

11/05/2025

📚✨ Words with Tori: Let’s Talk LITERACY! ✨📚
What is literacy?
Literacy is more than just reading and writing — it’s the ability to understand, use, and express language through print. This includes skills like recognizing sounds in words (phonological awareness), understanding vocabulary, and using language to comprehend stories or directions.
What is phonological awareness?
Phonological awareness is the ability to hear and play with the sounds in words — like rhyming, counting syllables, or identifying beginning sounds.
🧠 It’s a critical early skill that helps children connect spoken words to written language, making it easier to learn to read and spell later on!
How do speech and language delays affect literacy?
Children with speech or language delays may have difficulty:
🗣️ Recognizing and manipulating sounds in words (like hearing that cat and cap sound similar)
📖 Understanding new vocabulary or story details
✏️ Expressing their ideas clearly in writing or conversation
These challenges can make reading and writing harder, which can impact classroom learning and confidence.
Which part of the Big 9 does this fit under?
✅ Language — both receptive (understanding) and expressive (using language)
✅ Speech Sound Production — how children produce and differentiate sounds
✅ Cognition — skills that support memory, sequencing, and comprehension
How can speech therapy help?
In therapy, we:
🔤 Build phonological awareness through rhyming, blending, and segmenting sounds
🧠 Strengthen vocabulary and comprehension skills through stories and play
💬 Practice narrative skills — telling stories with clear beginnings, middles, and ends
✍️ Use multi-sensory activities (letters, visuals, movement) to connect sounds to print
Activities parents can try at home:
🏠 Sound games — Play “I spy something that starts with /s/!”
🎵 Rhyme time — Read rhyming books like Dr. Seuss and have your child fill in missing rhymes.
📚 Story talk — After reading, ask questions like, “What happened first?” or “How did the story end?”
✏️ Letter hunt — Find letters in signs, cereal boxes, or around the house and say their sounds together.
🎨 Name play — Use playdough or magnets to build your child’s name and talk about each letter’s sound.
💡 Remember: Building strong language + strong sound awareness = building strong readers! 💡

10/31/2025

Happy Halloween! I want to wish all of my little patients a safe and fun Halloween today!
I also wanted to share that I have openings for taking new patients! Please don't hesitate to reach out to me or your physician if you have any questions about my services or how I can best help you and your child.

10/29/2025

🎃👻 Words with Tori: Spooky Social Communication even with AAC Devices! 👻🎃

👋 What is Social Communication?
Social communication is how we use language to connect with others — it’s knowing what to say, how to say it, and when to say it! This includes skills such as taking turns in conversation, understanding body language, staying on topic, and using words to share thoughts, feelings, and ideas effectively.

🎃 How We Address Social Communication in Speech Therapy:
During speech therapy, we work on social communication in fun and meaningful ways! We might:
- Role-play real-life social situations (like trick-or-treating or playing with friends)
- Use social stories to teach perspective-taking and problem-solving
- Practice turn-taking games or cooperative play
- Support communication using AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) for children who benefit from visual supports, communication devices, or picture symbols
- Integrate language comprehension and expression (two of the Big 9 areas!) to build strong vocabulary, sentence structure, and understanding of emotions

✨ Try These Spooky-Fun Activities at Home:
1. Halloween Social Stories: Read a short story about trick-or-treating or attending a fall festival. Pause to talk about how the characters feel, what they might say, or what’s expected next. My favorite short stories to use are the Berenstain Bear books!
2. Pumpkin Emotion Match: Draw pumpkins with different faces (happy, scared, surprised) and talk about what might make someone feel that way.
3. AAC Halloween Hunt: If your child uses AAC, go on a “word hunt” to find and use Halloween words like pumpkin, candy, or ghost on their device! Below is a quick tutorial on how a child might say "Happy Halloween" by using their device!

🧡 Social communication skills are key for friendships, play, and participation — and what better time to practice them than during a holiday full of imagination, teamwork, and fun?

✨ Follow Words with Tori for more parent-friendly tips, play ideas, and communication fun for this holiday season!

10/22/2025

Welcome back to Words with Tori, where LANGUAGE is the theme of today!

🎃 Pumpkin season is the perfect time to build language skills while creating something fun!

Listed below are a few ways to sneak in receptive (understanding) and expressive (using) language during a simple Jack-O-Lantern craft:

🍁 Receptive Language (Understanding words, directions, etc.)
When we work on receptive language, we are helping our kiddos listen, understand, and follow directions. During your craft, try:

Following Directions:
- "First, glue the hat on the pumpkin."

- "Now, glue the triangle eyes on!"

Concepts and Vocabulary:
- Talk about shapes, sizes, and locations ("Put the small triangle under the eyes for the nose!"

Answering Questions:
- "Where might you see a Jack-O-Lantern?"

In speech therapy, SLPs might use similar step-by-step tasks to build listening and comprehension skills - turning fun activities into natural language lessons!

🍁 Expressive Language (Using Words/Gestures to Communicate)
Expressive language focuses on helping our kiddos talk, describe, and share their ideas. During your craft, encourage your child to:

Label and Describe:

- "My pumpkin is happy!"

- "My pumpkin is eating candy because it's hungry!"

Make Choices:

- "Do you want a witch hat or a bat?"

Tell a Story:
After decorating, ask: "What's your pumpkin's name?" or "Tell me what your pumpkin likes to do." With the information, you can create a short story together!

Expand Sentences:
If your child says, "Eyes!" you can model, "Yes! Big triangle eyes!"

🎃 Craft Setup:
Materials - printed out picture of a pumpkin (or orange paper plate), black paper for shapes, glue, scissors, and, if wanted, printed out pictures of accessories such as candy or a witch's hat.

Steps:

- Cut out shapes for eyes, nose, and mouth.

- Glue the pieces to make your Jack-O-Lantern's face.

- Add details - candy, hat, bat, etc.

- Give your pumpkin a name and tell its story!

Also attached, the “Talking Through Fall” image can be used as a visual cue during therapy or at home to spark language exploration — parents and children can “explore” each leaf together by completing the receptive or expressive task it lists. As they move through the leaves, kids practice following directions, describing, storytelling, and vocabulary in a fun, seasonal way that encourages active engagement and conversation.

✨Why it matters:
Simple crafts like this build vocabulary, comprehension, turn-taking, and imagination — all while keeping kids engaged. Language grows best through hands-on play and conversation! ✨ Tip: Everyday activities can be language-building opportunities! Slow down, talk about what you’re doing, and let your child’s words lead the way.

10/08/2025

Hey everyone! Welcome back to ✨Words with Tori✨— your go-to spot every Wednesday for speech and language tips, resources, and activities you can try at home.

🌟 This Week’s Topic: Articulation! 🌟

So… what exactly is articulation? 🤔
Articulation refers to how we move our lips, tongue, teeth, and jaw to form sounds and words clearly. When kiddos have strong articulation skills, their speech is easier to understand, which helps them communicate confidently with the world around them! 🗣️💛

💪 Did you know? Good oral motor strength and coordination play a big role in clear speech production. Muscles in the mouth work together to help children produce sounds accurately — like the “t” in taco 🌮 or the “s” in sun ☀️.

✅ Parent Tip: Fun activities like blowing bubbles, using straws, or silly tongue exercises can help strengthen those little muscles and support speech development! I also encourage you to incorporate a mirror when practicing oral motor movements (i.e., rounding lips for the 'ooo' sound like in BOO or 'w' sound like in WITCH). This will help provide visual feedback on how specific sounds are made!

Below is an attachment showing how specific sounds are produced in our oral motor system, and a free, fun October activity you can do with clients or kiddos at home when working on any speech sounds!

Stay tuned for next week’s ✨Words with Tori✨ for more speech and language tips!

10/01/2025

📣 Welcome to “Words with Tori"!

Hi everyone! My name is Tori Brewer, and I’m a graduate student in my final semester at Ball State University studying speech-language pathology. 💬 I am excited to say that I am attending my off-campus placement at Beyond Words with Emily Sovine! ❤️

Each Wednesday, I’ll be sharing helpful speech-language intervention tips, resources tailored to areas of the “Big 9,” and fun, practical activities you can try at home with your kiddos. Whether you’re a parent, caregiver, or educator, my goal is to make communication growth exciting and accessible for everyone!

Make sure to come back every Wednesday to learn more, so stay tuned!

09/17/2025

Are you concerned about your child's communication skills? Is your child a picky eater? Are they having difficulties in school with reading/spelling/writing? I have available times to work with you and your child! Please reach out via email: emilysovine@bwspeech.com or give me a call at 260-638-8200. I offer free 10 min screenings if you are unsure what to do but need guidance before scheduling an evaluation.

Here are some general signs that may indicate that your child has a speech and language delay:

Lack of babbling (around 6-9 months).
Limited vocabulary (by 18 months).
Difficulty combining words (around age 2).
Lack of response to verbal cues.
Limited social interaction.
Pronunciation difficulties.
Trouble understanding stories or instructions.

Send a message to learn more

08/14/2025

I am taking new clients if your child needs a speech therapist! I have a few morning and early afternoon appointments available. Unfortunately, I do not have any availability after 3pm any day of the week for now. Please give me a call or send me an email if interested!

Send a message to learn more

08/09/2025

Come celebrate with us!

You don't want to miss our biggest sale and celebration of the year tomorrow August 9th! 🌼

Come celebrate our 20th birthday with us and enjoy FREE birthday cake 🍰.

Local food and drink vendors until 3pm.

Live radio broadcast from 1pm-3pm with WZBD 92.7 FM, Adams County Radio

Swag bags are being given away randomly every half hour from 10:30-3pm.

Stop in and find your new book with our 40% off store wide sale, enter our giveaway baskets, and support your local Decatur vendors!

05/20/2025

Does your child need to continue with speech therapy over the summer?? Give me a call! I have openings! 260-638-8200