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Articulation intervention can seem like a jumble, but it doesn’t have to be.  The key is being organized before you even start.

articulation intervention the speech bubble slp

When I do intervention I am focusing on one goal at a time.  This allows me to make sure A) adequate time is being spent on the goal to see if the intervention is effective and B) I am not trying to track too many things and then not getting enough data.  My district follows the 5-Minute Kid Articulation model.  After doing it for a few years I really like it.  It is basically short, intensive bursts of therapy rather than a long, drawn out session.  So instead of one 25 minute session a week, I may do 2-3, 5-10 minute sessions, depending on student need. Oh and it is researched based. Now, I know this might sound a little crazy.  What could you possibly get done in 5-10 minutes?  The answer… A LOT!  My kids know this is a get down to business time.  No games, just work.  We can get at least 150+ repetitions during that time.  I do set aside an extra minute or two at the end for my little ones who may need a motivator, like iPad time, but that is just for my young friends who need it.  I use Articulate It Pro for my visuals and stimulus words.  No carrying around cards for this lady!    Ok, now that you know what I use for the treatment part of it all, on to the rest.

Screening Tool

When I screen students for articulation, my go to is the Sunny Articulation and Phonology Test Kit by Smarty Ears.  It is comprehensive, quick, allows me to be thorough, and generates a beautiful report with enough graphs to make my data nerd heart smile.  I just swipe through the pictures and mark the student errors, it is literally that easy.  Once I analyze the information that has been compiled, I can pick a goal to address for our first round of intervention.

How Do I Pick A Goal?

When I am looking at the data and see a lot of sound errors I choose a goal by thinking about two things: 1) What sounds should have developed first in the incorrect productions and 2) If corrected, which will have the greatest impact on intelligibility.   Now, I am not going to act for a second like I have an age of acquisition chart memorized.  I use my cheat page and go from there.  This is the Quick Reference Chart in my Subscriber Only section of my site, so if you are a member ( you can join my signing up for my newsletter ) be sure to go and download your copy.  I have mine bound in my SLP Data Organizer and Planner.

 

How Do I Keep It Together?

I create a goal and have parents sign an intervention consent form.  *TIP Make two copies, one for you and one to send home. Then staple the parent consent slip to your copy*. Each student gets a folder.  This could be a file folder, two pocket folder, whatever floats your boat.  In each folder I keep their consent information with their goal on it, an intervention progress update form ( found in my planner ), their oral mech exam sheet, an all in one data form, and tally free production tracker.  

This consent form can be found in my SLP Planner

The all in one data form and oral mech exam sheet are in my Subscriber Only Library, so make sure to download if you don’t have them yet. If you haven’t signed up for my Email Party ( aka newsletter but cooler ) you can do that HERE. The data sheet allows me to see how many times I have spent working on a particular sound, in what position, and at what level.  Before I started using these, I noticed I would end up working on a sound in a certain position or at a certain level for a lot longer that I probably needed to.  This allows me to see quickly when they are ready to move on.  I do use a new sheet for each sound to help keep everything organized. The oral mech exam checklist is quick and allows me to check of the structural elements that may impact speech.  I use a Throat Scope, which is awesome, to do these exams. The kids get a kick out them!

At the end of each cycle, I update the progress form, make a copy and send it home.  I keep the original and just keep adding in the boxes as time goes on.  It is a nice and easy way to see and compare growth quickly.

If they meet their goal, FANTASTIC! High fives all around.  If they just had the one sound to work on, then I stop the intervention and re-screen that sound in a few weeks to see if they have maintained the work. After a few weeks, if they show regression when I re-screen the sound we do a few tune up sessions.  If they have more to work on, I pick a new goal and we start the process over again.  I just keep the data and progress form for each sound together.

 

Do you have a different way of doing your artic intervention? Comment below and let me know!

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Meet Maureen

Hey there! I’m Maureen Wilson, a school-base SLP who is data driven and caffeine powered. My passion is supporting other pediatric SLPs by teaching them how to harness the power of literacy and data to help their students achieve their goals…without sacrificing time they don’t have.

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2 Responses

  1. How long is your intervention period? What would qualify a student for this model rather than an IEP?

    Do you schedule one student at a time?

    1. I don’t have a set intervention period. I usually try to reserved 30 minutes in the morning and afternoon to go and work with my artic kids using the 5-Minute Kids Model. This is the same model I use with my IEP kids who may also have artic needs however they have an IEP because they need more intensive instruction and support so I will see them more frequently and they typically are working on other skills.

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