Speechie Sparkle

I've been a speech therapist specializing in autism and related disorders for fifteen years. Over the years I've studied a variety of programs to address social skills and combined them in my work. I love learning about how children develop empathy, social motivation, and perspective taking, and I love making new materials for these skills! In addition, I focus a lot on articulation / apraxia; early childhood language; and language processing skills.

In my career as a speech therapist, I work in a variety of different settings, from schools to private practice to nursing homes to early intervention. I feel that staying current on what is happening in many different types of treatment settings is vital in providing up-to-date in client care. On my TPT store and blog, my goal is to provide resources that incorporate new research into real world products that are easy for teachers of all stripes (be they therapists or teachers with formal training or self-taught parents and caregivers) to use with students. We are learning so much every day about things such as the role of mirror neurons, shared affect, and theory of mind, and yet it can take years for these concepts to show up in widely used workbooks. After years of frustration I thought - why not just make my own! :) Last but not least, I recently changed my name to "Speechie Sparkle" because I want this concept to be an inspiration and guiding force in my work! In my travels through research I have learned so much about how beneficial states such as joy, awe, wonder, generosity and gratitude are. These are not just 'fun ways to feel', they are actually the food that sparks a student's mind... and they can be cultivated and developed! I hope to offer crafts, ideas, and projects that help to cultivate these magical states in all students, including those with special needs.

I am a state and ASHA certified SLP, former presenter at the ASHA conference, and a constant reader of new research!

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