Speech and Language Therapy

English

The Role of the Speech and Language Therapist (SLT) at PNS

The different SLT related aspects that could contribute to communication and learning difficulties (which we evaluate and address in therapy), include the following:

• Speech and articulation errors: When sounds and/or words cannot be produced accurately and leads to poor intelligibility of speech, reading problems and spelling errors. Dysfluencies are also included in this category.
• Phonological processes: When the child is able to produce sounds correctly, but uses it wrongly in speech. It presents itself as unintelligible speech, as well as poor oral and written skills in the classroom.
• Hearing: This includes middle ear problems, mild hearing loss and poor listening skills.
• Auditory processing difficulties: poor auditory attention, auditory foreground/background discrimination, auditory memory, sequencing, discrimination, closure, synthesis, analysis, reception, and association skills
• Language skills: DLD (Developmental Language Disorder), receptive (comprehension) and expressive language problems as well as difficulties with English as a second language
• Poor pragmatic or conversational skills: This includes the learner’s ability to apply conversational and social rules e.g. eye contact, turn-taking, initiating conversations, etc.
• Written language: Reading and Writing

The above mentioned aspects, all of which are very important for sufficient scholastic progress, are addressed by the speech and language therapist.

Who Receives Speech and Language Therapy?

• Grade 1 to 4 learners receive 1 or 2 individual therapy sessions weekly, and/or small group therapy.
• Classroom based therapy is also provided in the ASD classes.
• Grade 3, 4 and 5 learners receive computer assisted reading/language instruction (1 session per week)
• Referrals of older children are considered on merit.

Duties of an SLT at PNS

The duties of an SLT at PNS include the following:

• Evaluations: formal and informal evaluations of new and current learners in the school.
• Appropriate referrals to ear, nose, and throat specialists, neurologists, etc.
• Therapy: individual and group therapy. Various techniques and approaches suited to each child are implemented.
• Parent guidance and interaction are of the utmost importance. We arrange parent guidance sessions, where language stimulation techniques and approaches are discussed and practically demonstrated.
• Team discussions: SLTs form part of the inter-disciplinary team.
• Hearing screening is done regularly for children already in the school, as well as for all new learners.
• Accommodations (reader and scribe during formal assessments).
• Support non-speaking or unreliable speaking learners with AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication).
• Reading: SLTs are also involved in the computer reading programs being offered at PNS.

Identifying Auditory Processing and Language Problems

The following are some of the things to look for in a classroom to identify the child with auditory processing and language problems:

• Poor listening skills and doesn’t always react when spoken to
• Tasks are incorrectly done or partially completed
• Susceptible to auditory distractions
• Unable to clap and imitate rhythmic patterns
• Struggles to hear the difference between short and long sounds, different vowels, and voiced and voiceless sounds
• Finds it difficult to tell simple stories in a logical sequence
• Hearing or memorising of rhymes and songs are difficult
• Unable to form rhyming words
• Difficulty in identifying position of sounds in words for e.g. which sound do you hear in the middle of “sit” or the last sound in “hunt”?
• Poor spelling – omission of sounds, wrong order
• Reading is poor
• Sentence building is insufficient
• Interaction is inappropriate

Afrikaans

Die Rol van die Spraak-Taalterapeut (STT) by PNS

Die volgende word deur die spraak-taalterapeut geëvalueer en aangespreek in terapie:

• Spraak en artikulasie – klanke en woorde wat nie korrek uitgespreek kan word nie veroorsaak swak verstaanbare spraak, lees, en spelfoute.
• Fonologiese prosesse – die kind kan wel die klanke produseer, maar dit word foutief gebruik.
• Gehoor – dit sluit in middeloorprobleme, geringe gehoorverlies en swak luistervaardighede.
• Ouditiewe prosessering – sluit in: ouditiewe aandag, ouditiewe voorgrond-agtergrond onderskeiding, ouditiewe geheue, opeenvolging, diskriminasie, sluiting, sintese, analise, ontvangs, assosiasie.
• Taal – reseptiewe (begripsprobleme) en ekspressiewe taal.
• Pragmatiese of gespreksvaardighede – die leerder se vermoë om gespreks- en sosiale reëls toe te pas bv. oogkontak, beurtname, inisiëring van ’n gesprek ens.
• Geskrewe taal – lees en skryf.

Die terapeut skenk aandag aan al hierdie vaardighede wat belangrik is om skolasties te kan vorder. Indien bogenoemde nie in plek is nie kan skolastiese vordering benadeel word.

Wat Doen die Spraak-Taalterapeut by Prospectus Novus?

• Evaluerings – formeel en informeel
• Identifikasie
• Verwysings
• Terapie: individueel, groepsterapie
• Ouerleiding
• Spanbesprekings – ISP’s
• Gehoorsifting
• Akkommodasies (leser en skrywer tydens formele toetse)
• Rekenaargesteunde leesperiodes
• Ondersteun nie-sprekende leerders of onbetroubare sprekers deur die gebruik van aanvullende en alternatiewe kommunikasiemetodes (AAK).

Wie Ontvang Spraakterapie?

• Graad 1-4 leerders ontvang een of twee individuele terapiesessies per week, of groepsterapie.
• Graad 3-5 leerders ontvang weekliks een periode rekenaargesteunde lees en/of taalterapie.
• Klaskamer gebaseerde terapie word ook in die ASD klasse aangebied.
• Verwysing van ouer leerders word op meriete hanteer.

Kinders met Ouditiewe Prosesseringsprobleme

• Swak luistervaardighede, reageer nie altyd as daar met hom gepraat word nie.
• Opdragte word net gedeeltelik of foutief uitgevoer.
• Ouditief afleibaar.
• Kan nie ritmiese patrone klap nie.
• Hoor nie verskil tussen kort en lang klanke nie (man/maan), gerond vs. ongeronde klanke (put/pit).
• Probleme om eenvoudige stories in logiese volgorde te vertel.
• Sukkel om rympies en liedjies te memoriseer.
• Kan nie rymwoordvorming doen nie.
• Sukkel om klanke in woorde te identifiseer bv. watter klank hoor jy in die middel van “sit”?
• Swak spelling – weglating van letters en woorde en sinlose spelling.
• Sukkel met lees.
• Sinsbou is onvoldoende.
• Interaksie is ontoepaslik.