Kerryn Burn Speech and Language Therapy

09/01/2023

Such a wonderful resource for kids (and their parents). These fun stories help develop attention and listening skills and are filled with catchy songs to teach new vocabulary!

Listen to this episode from Talk Time with Rebecca Robertson, Speech Therapist on Spotify. This story is about a brave and friendly tractor who helps all his farm friends, until he gets into some trouble of his own!

23/02/2022

Following on from my previous post about how understanding develops... here are some tips for how to support a child follow instructions.

📣Always make sure you have your child's attention first. It's like talking to your partner while they're watching TV - they're never going to actually do something you say if you don't have their full attention first😉. Wait for your child to look at you or call their name.

📣Start by giving your instructions verbally. This allows your child to hear the instruction and process it before any visual cues are given - it develops their auditory abilities and hopefully one day they will surprise you and follow your instruction without any further help.

📣Children learn through repetition so repeat repeat repeat! Give the same instructions multiple times in the moment as well as few different times during the day.

📣Breaking instructions down into smaller parts helps make the instruction more manageable. Start with a longer instruction but if it is not followed then make it simpler. "Give the bowl to dada" can become "get the bowl" and then "give it to dada".

📣Use visual cues such as pointing to objects or people or acting out actions. "Give the teddy a kiss" can be paired with pointing to the teddy and then puckering your lips for a kiss".

If my 10 month old will comply - I'll post a video to show you some of these tips in action. Brace yourself for a cuteness overload!!

18/02/2022

Receptive language (understanding) always precedes expressive language (speaking).
So before we move from 'babbling' to 'first words' I thought it would be appropriate to do a short series on the development of understanding.

You will know from anytime you have tried to learn another language that you are able to understand a lot before you develop the confidence/ability to speak it. The same applies to babies as they learn to communicate.
They will learn to locate and recognise sounds and words, identify objects, do actions, and follow instructions before they start trying out those first words.

This post shows a simplified progression of how receptive language develops (earlier developing skills at the top - later developing at the bottom) --> swipe to see some examples.

Stay tuned for posts about how to support children to develop their understanding!

15/02/2022

An update from me... I've now set up a practice in Kensington B, Randburg.

Please get in touch if you have any questions or wish to chat through any concerns about your little one.

06/02/2022

Did you know...?

05/02/2022

When babies are born, their vocal tract is short and their larynx (voice box) sits high up in their throat. Their soft palate and epiglottis (both structure that prevent food from entering the airway during swallowing) are very close together. As they develop their larynx lowers (about 9-10 cm from infant to adult). This change allows for the child to produce sounds that are increasingly similar to adult speech.

Initially, babies make sounds that are reflexive (not consciously controlled) - crying, cooing, laughing.
These are generally vowel sounds (ooh, ahh) that are easier to produce.

As they develop, the changes in their vocal tract and their increasing ability to actively control their lips, tongues and vocal chords allow them to start playing with different sounds. P, b, t, d, k, g and m are typically the first consonant sounds produced.

They learn to master these sounds by repeating them (reduplicated babbling), stinging them together (variegated babbling), adding in new sounds and making long sentences of babble (often referred to as jargon).

Around 11 or 12 months you may start to hear them imitating words that you have said and then using these words on their own.

Babbling will start to reduce as the child learns more and more real words.

04/02/2022

This is another series inspired by my little Charlotte Grace who is now almost 10 months old and is babbling at full speed...
It has been such fun watching her develop from cooing to fast, conversation-like babble that often leaves us giggling. I share this series with you so that you are able to hear your little one babble through the stages too.
So WHY BABBLING? Babbling provides babies the opportunity to:
- Develop the oral muscles needed for speech
- Learn how to produce speech sounds and transition from one sound to another
- Use their auditory feedback loop to monitor their sounds and patterns of speech
- Take turns when interacting with others
- Have their babble and early attempts at words reinforced by others
Keep an eye out for some more info on the stages of babbling development, some fun facts and when to seek advice if your little one isn't babbling.


Looking for more info? Check out: http://www.hanen.org/.../Baby-Babble--A-Stepping-Stone-to..

06/07/2021

Whilst 'baby talk' is a big support for language learning it is not helpful to oversimply our speech.
We want to continue modelling good language - grammatically correct sentences and the correct pronunciation of words is important.
"Look at da wittle wabbit" and "Baby want milk" are more beneficial if traded for "look at the little rabbit" and "does the baby want milk?".

05/07/2021

So why all this talk about baby talk?

The nature of the way we speak to babies plays a big role in helping them learn to speak.
- The higher pitch and sing song style of our voice helps to grab and maintain their attention.
- Coming close to their face and exaggerating our facial expressions helps them to see the emotional aspect of speech.
- Whilst we have their attention the slower rate of speech and longer pauses help them to identify word beginnings and endings.
- The repetition and emphasis on the important words helps them to develop vocabulary.
- We also provide a model for them for how to move their mouths to make certain sounds. Children learn to say 'd' and 'm' consonants early on as they are the easiest to see in the speech of others.
- Through baby talk, little ones are also allowed the opportunity to learn turn taking in conversation as the adult often imitates or responds to the noises that the child makes.

Baby talk has so many benefits - so throw off any concern about looking a fool and chat to those bubs!

** Remember that there are many influencing factors in language development - if you have a late talker it doesn't mean that you failed to engage them in the 'right kind of baby talk' **

02/07/2021

When we speak to babies we tend to use a higher pitch and a bigger range of pitch in our voice
Our voice is more melodic or song-like
We repeat sentences or words within sentences
We have longer pauses between words and speak in short bursts rather than long prose
Our facial expressions are usually dialed up 100% and we emphasis the words that carry meaning

All of this usually without any thought but all incredibly useful for your little one on their journey of learning language.

So, no! Don't dial it back or keep up your 'adult tone' with your babies. Keep this fun, often undignified speech flowing!

More on why this is important to come...

01/07/2021

One thing that has changed in my household with the arrival of our little girl is the way we speak. Our house is suddenly full of high pitched, sing song, repetitive talk about, well, pretty much everything.
I have to stop myself from singing 'would YOU like some LUUUNCH' to my husband when he walks in the door. Although, even he hasn't hesitated to launch into this 'baby talk'. It is just so innate.

No one has ever taught us to talk differently to a baby and yet we do. In fact, to any outsider, we make complete fools of ourselves when talking to our little one. Anything to get a smile!

But why do we 'baby talk'? And is it important?
Perhaps you've been told to dial it back or to just speak to your little one as if they are an adult.

In this short series, I hope to dispel some myths and answer some of those questions.

14/02/2021

Happy Valentines Day!
This one is aimed at all you teachers but if your job involves lots of talking or you frequently find yourself raising your voice above your lively kiddies then read on...

Looking after your voice - often termed 'vocal hygiene' is important for ensuring a healthy, strong voice throughout your life. Good voice habits can help prevent damage to the vocal cords and the need for rehabilitation later on.

So if you are looking for something to show love to this Valentines day - think about Loving you Larynx.