The Speech Center's Blog

Specific Things You Can Do For The Nonfluent Child

Barbara Mangels — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 19:50:33 +0000

Be accepting of any attempt he makes to speak, and to express himself. Accept his “bumpy” speech as it is.
Do not show by any facial expression, attitude, or your manner, that you are not pleased with his way of speaking.
Be interested in what he has to say, and not how he says it. It is not unusual for children to repeat, prolong a sound, or hesitate as they are learning to express their idea. Formulating their thoughts to express an idea clearly, requires a proficiency in the use of out English language. None of us, even as an adult, speaks fluently all of the time. We all have disfluencies in our speech to some extent.
Listen attentively to him when he speaks.
Do not interrupt him when he is talking. Let him feel that he has all the time he needs to say what he wants to say.
Show the child that you love him. He needs to feel secure as a member of the family, and to feel that he “belongs”.
Avoid competition with brothers, sisters and friends. Rather, encourage children to work together, each one making his own contribution. Each child is different, and has his own capabilities.
Make it possible for him to have success in things other than talking, and let him know that you are proud of him. Help him to develop his interests and his abilities.
Remove pressures that keep that child “stirred up”, such as demands for immediate obedience, too rigid discipline, too much restraint, too high standards, and insistence on hurrying.
Read aloud to him frequently. Without realizing it, you are teaching him to talk. He learns new words happily and naturally he enjoys your attention.
Your own manner of speaking will have its effect on the child. If you talk to him quietly and slowly, he will usually become relaxed and feel more sure of himself.
Be consistent in your discipline of the child. Consistent discipline, administered in a firm, but kindly manner helps children develop a feeling of security.
See to it that he has a pleasant, harmonious home situation in which the members of the family do not rush through life, but take time to relax and enjoy themselves, and him.
Be warm and friendly in your relationship with him.

General Recommendations for Communicating with the Language-Delayed Child

Barbara Mangels — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 20:51:42 +0000

Unless your child’s receptive language (auditory comprehension) has been tested and found to be within normal limits, there is a good chance he/she may not be absorbing everything you say. When you talk to your child use short sentences, pausing after each one to allow your child to process what you have said.
When communicating with your child, keep the environment free of distractions such as the T.V., music, or other children talking at the same time.
Be aware of your child’s speech and language limitations when you ask him or her questions. “What do you want to play with?” is sometimes a more challenging question than “Do you want the bubbles or the book?” For some children, answering a question with “Yes” or “No” is easy (ex. “Do you want the bubbles?”) For others this is difficult. If you are working on expanding your child’s language abilities you may sometimes choose to ask a question in a challenging manner and then rephrase it if your child has trouble. If your child is just beginning to name things, praise every attempt to make a sound.
If your child indicates his needs by pointing, encourage him or her to at least imitate the word after you. Any attempt on your child’s part to do so should be praised.

Communicating with Speech and Language Impaired Child

Barbara Mangels — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 15:41:48 +0000

Be a good speech model. Speak slowly and clearly.
When children stutter, be accepting of their speech. Give them all the time they need to express
themselves. Do not finish their
sentences for them.
Keep your directions short and simple.
Children with language problems often have more trouble understanding
sentences that contain abstract words such as “before, after, in front, beside,
first, last.”
Do not imitate or mimic children with speech problems. Do not tell them that their speech sounds
cute or funny.
Do not try to fix the child’s speech.
Some problems can be made worse.
When in doubt, get some input from a speech-language pathologist.
If a child is non-verbal or has limited language, praise any attempt to
communicate.
When children do not have the words to ask for what they want, provide
them with examples such as “Blocks, please.”
When children cannot express their needs, give them choices such as,
“Do you want the puzzle or the ball?”

Tips for Eliminating Tongue Thrust

Barbara Mangels — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 17:16:11 +0000

A tongue thrust is a position where the tongue rests too far forward toward the teeth. The continual pressure of the tongue can push the teeth out of alignment and sometimes cause speech problems. It is particularly important that thosereceiving orthodontics eliminate a tongue thrust so that the teeth stay straight after the orthodontic treatment is completed.

In most cases, participation in a tongue thrust therapy program (often called myofunctional therapy) is necessary in order to eliminate a tongue thrust. Here are some guidelines that can help.

If you suck your thumb or any of your fingers, take some steps to eliminate this habit.
Thumb sucking teaches the tongue to rest in the wrong position. Thumb sucking can also prevent the teeth from growing together.
If you are too “stuffy” to breathe through your nose, see if your doctor can help you with this problem.
If you can be helped to breathe through your nose you are just a step away from learning to keep your mouth closed and your lips together (if you do not do so already.) The ability to keep your mouth closed is important so that your tongue can rest in the correct position – on the roof of the mouth a short distance behind the upper teeth.
Practice keeping your tongue on the correct spot. Simple reminder “signs” can be made by sticking post-its in various locations to remind you to keep your tongue on “spot.”
Begin to eliminate any habits that make your tongue go forward such as licking or biting your lips.
Remember to approach these steps with an upbeat, positive attitude. Every time you remember to put your tongue on “spot,” congratulate yourself. If you do this more and more each day you
will soon be on your way to reducing or eliminating your tongue thrust.

Self-Help for Voice Problems

Barbara Mangels — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 20:36:53 +0000

If you have been hoarse for a period of time, you may need the services of
an Ear-Nose-Throat Physician and/or a Speech-Language Pathologist in order to
make substantial, lasting voice improvement. In fact, one should always see a
physician if he/she has had persistent hoarseness which has lasted longer than
two weeks. If, however, you make some changes in the way you use your voice in
the early stages of voice problems, you may go a long way in recovering a good,
clear voice that will support you both at work and at play. Here are some ideas
that may help.

If you are hoarse, talk as little as possible

This gives your vocal cords a chance to heal.

Try to notice-and eliminate-throat clearing

When we cough or clear our throats, the vocal cords bang together, adding
to the voice problems which already exist. If you clear your throat as a habit,
eliminating this habit can sometimes result in substantial voice improvement.

Talk in a moderate pace-not too fast

Use good breath support

As you speak, take a new breath every 3-5 seconds. Take a breath before
starting a new sentence.

As you speak, open your mouth moderately wide

This will help your voice to carry without the need to push from the
throat. A good gauge is to put your index and third fingers together one on top
of the other and put them between your top and bottom teeth. This is the
approximate distance your mouth should open as you are talking.

You Or Your Child may Benefit From Speech Therapy If

Barbara Mangels — Mon, 13 Jun 2011 19:01:02 +0000

• Your preschooler is a late talker or has trouble making sentences.

• You or your child has trouble pronouncing speech sounds.

• You or your child stutters.

• Your school-aged child has trouble expressing thoughts and ideas either verbally or in writing.

• Your school-aged child has trouble following directions and is performing below expectations at school.

• Your voice is hoarse or sounds unpleasant.

• Your accent makes it difficult for others to understand you.

• You or your child has a tongue thrust which affects speech or orthodontic treatment.

• You have had a stroke or other medical problem which makes it difficult to pronounce or think of words.

Parent Strategies For Helping The Speech/Language-Impaired Child

Barbara Mangels — Mon, 16 May 2011 18:26:31 +0000

If your child is receiving speech therapy at school, communicate with the speech-language specialist. Be sure you have a good understanding of the nature of your child’s problems as well as the therapeutic goals being set for your child. Meet or talk with the speech-language pathologist on a periodic basis to discuss your child’s progress.
Participate as a part of a “team” in your child’s speech therapy program. Institute a speech therapy home practice program, consisting of 15-20 minutes of speech therapy practice 3-4 times a week. Request home practice materials from your child’s speech-language pathologist. Participate in this program with your child by reading him/her the given questions, helping him/her with any incorrect responses, and quizzing him/her on the same material the next day to see if it has been learned. Be sure to give positive feedback and help your child to see his/her progress. Return any printed material to your child’s speech-language pathologist with a record of your child’s responses.
Meet with your child’s teacher to discuss the ways in which your child’s speech language abilities impact his/her classroom performance. Agree upon strategies to assist your child. For example, a child who has difficulty attending might be given preferential seating in the first row. Homework assignments might be written down by the teacher for students who have difficulty processing verbal instructions.
Assess your child’s improvement by reviewing results of the formal reevalutation that is done by your child’s speech pathologist on a periodic basis. Ask your child’s teacher if your child’s classroom work reflects improvement in speech/language skills.

Does Your Voice Let You Down?

Barbara Mangels — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 18:58:48 +0000

Ask Yourself These Questions:

Does your voice get tired by the end of the day?
Does your voice get strained or hoarse?
Does your voice sound unpleasant?
Do you have trouble projecting your voice?
Does your voice detract from your professional image?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you may benefit from a voice improvement program.

The Effective Voice

The voice is one of the most powerful tools we have to make an impression on others. People are naturally attracted to a full, vibrant, resonant voice, just as they are repelled by a voice which is too shrill, rough, or harsh. When the voice is used effectively, it actually energizes us as we speak and does not tire easily.

About the Program

Voice improvement sessions will assist you in achieving the following:

A voice which supports you all day long, without fatique.
A voice which enables you to present yourself effectively to others – both professionally and socially.
A voice which is vital, dynamic, and pleasing.
The ability to project your voice easily.
The appropriate loudness and pitch for your voice.
The proper method of breathing.

The Triumph of David Seidler

Barbara Mangels — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 19:23:35 +0000

by Tommie L. Robinson, Jr.

He brought us “The King’s Speech”—and is the only one writer who could have. The emotional power of the story, which earned Seidler an Oscar last month, is derived from Seidler’s own painful experience of stuttering—and his determination to deal with it and get on with his life. He transformed his “dark and unpleasant” experience into a compelling film that honors the courage of all people who stutter. Seidler shares his story with Tommie Robinson, a board-recognized fluency specialist and 2011 ASHA past president. In the 1940s, when the future screenwriter was a child fighting to get his words out, King George VI was his hero—and now David Seidler is ours.

Interview by Tommie L. Robinson Jr.

Robinson: You have indicated publicly that you have a history of stuttering. When did your stutter begin?

Seidler: It began with the outbreak of World War II. I was just shy of my third birthday, and we were living in Surrey after leaving London, which was probably a good idea since an incendiary bomb fell through the ceiling of my nursery there a couple of weeks later. The next thing I knew, we were on a boat coming to America. The Brits thought the Germans would invade any day, and wanted families to leave who had some prospect of work in America. We were on a ship in a convoy of three ships, and had a fighter escort for a few days, but then it got out of range. There was a lot of hubbub and fear about U-boats. The men were put on submarine watch. It was very tense. By the time I got to New York, I was stuttering, and I stuttered until I was 16.

Robinson: Did your stuttering have any impact upon your decision to become a screenwriter?

Seidler: Yes, but only in retrospect. I’m a born ham—I like to tell stories. But you can’t tell stories if you can’t speak, you find some other channel. For me it was writing. It’s no coincidence that a lot of famous writers through the years have stuttered.

Robinson: Why did you write this particular screenplay?

Seidler: As I grew up and realized that I was going to be a writer, I resolved to write about my childhood hero, George VI. The first time I thought seriously about “Bertie” was when I was at Cornell, and read his official biography—very dry! I had no idea at the time what the story would be. But as I researched it, I got these blips on the radar screen about Lionel Logue, and there was a hint that he was not quite what he seemed—he wasn’t a doctor, he didn’t have credentials or formal training. I thought, “Ah! That’s the story!”

Then I realized that this was a way of writing about my own battle with stuttering. Here was a man who had gone through the same experience with stuttering, and it wasn’t me, but he was someone you would care about because he’s the king of England, the war is coming, and the country needs a leader who can speak to them and he can’t speak. But things intervened [while I was] in college—final exams, girlfriends, so not much was accomplished.

In 1980 I thought seriously about it again. I had just finished writing a script for Francis Ford Coppola, and thought the film would be made immediately and would change my life. That didn’t happen. So I moved on and read mountains of stuff about Bertie. Getting information about Logue at that time was far more difficult. I made inquiries about Logue in England and came up with his son Valentine, who had his father’s notebooks. But he would only show them to me on the condition that I got permission from the Queen Mother. I wrote to the Queen Mum and she wrote back on her engraved stationary and said, “Please, not in my lifetime. The memory of these events is still too painful.” If a Queen Mother asks an Englishman to wait, he waits! But I thought, “How long? A couple of years at most?” She was an elderly lady. But it was 25 years later, just shy of 102, that she left this mortal realm. That was in 2002.

Even then, I didn’t start writing the script immediately. In ’05, though, I was diagnosed with what appeared to be a very serious form of cancer. After a few days of tears, I thought that the best way to stop feeling sorry for myself was to plunge into work. I thought, “If you’re not going to tell Bertie’s story now, David, when are you going to tell it?” At that point I set to writing. In a certain sense it was my last will and testament.

But now I’m happy to say I’m in full remission and a poster boy of good health.

Robinson: The film suggests that the relationship between King George VI and Lionel Logue was as important as the techniques they worked on. Have you experienced a relationship like this in dealing with your stuttering?

Seidler: Unfortunately, no. I wish I’d had a Logue. That would have been a lot easier. I did go to speech therapists, beginning in the mid-1940s, but the treatment wasn’t particularly helpful. I had the marbles put in my mouth. I was advised to smoke because it relaxed the throat, and became a chain smoker by the time I was 14. I’ve spoken to a lot of speech-language pathologists, and most would agree that the mechanical techniques which are taught—and Logue used the mechanical techniques—don’t put you in control of your stutter. It requires a psychological turn and that’s what I think made Logue unique and ahead of his time. He used the talking cure in addition to the psychological approach. I didn’t have any of that. But since I was stuttering all the time, I learned all the tricks of the trade about how to keep fluent.

Robinson: How did Colin Firth get involved with “The King’s Speech”?

Seidler: First of all, he had a very astute agent who kept circling the role for him and kept nagging us about “Colin, Colin, Colin.” He was on the first list, but others were being considered as well. And Colin doesn’t look like the king. His head was the wrong shape and he was known as “Mr. Arcy-Darcy.” He was wonderful, but could he do it? Then we saw him in “A Single Man” and realized that, yes, he could do it. He got the role, and let me tell you, we were very lucky to get him.

Robinson: Did the producers bring in speech-language pathologists brought as consultants?

Seidler: Oh, yes. They weren’t going to trust that I got it right! A lot of top-ranking speech pathologists in the U.K. were involved. They talked with me and worked with Colin. Ultimately, they pretty much agreed with my view of the king’s stuttering.

Robinson: What do you hope the film conveys to audiences about stuttering? And what response have you gotten from people who stutter?

Seidler: I hope it helps people understand what stuttering is and the frustration and sense of isolation that it induces. And I hope it conveys that we who stutter are not fools. Some people thought Bertie was feeble-minded; Hitler made the mistake of saying, “Ja, the king of England is a bumbling idiot.” I would like to give courage to stutterers to say finally, “I don’t care. If I’m stuck with this, the rest of the world is simply stuck with listening to me.” I think that’s the key to making the psychological turn. And even if your stuttering never improves beyond that point, you’re no longer a victim to the stuttering. You’re saying, “I have the right to get on with my own life. I have the right to try to achieve what I want to achieve, and nobody’s going to stop me.”

I’ve had wonderful feedback from people who stutter. Two things stand out. One was an e-mail from a speech pathologist who relayed the story of a client, a young girl who was being bullied very badly in school. Normally a stutterer doesn’t fight back, because how can you fight back? You can’t get the words out. Most of us just slink off. But this girl was determined to fight back. And the therapist said, “What’s changed you? What’s made you so determined?” The girl, who had seen film, said, “Because I have a voice!” My daughter also sent me something she had seen online on a site where you can post secrets about your life. And somebody had posted their message on the image of “The King’s Speech” poster that she was 38 years old and often had considered suicide, but the film had made a complete difference to her and she realized that she could get on with her life despite her impediment. I was deeply moved by both those stories.

Robinson: Have you had any official comments from the royal family about the movie?

Seidler: Nothing beyond the recent news report in England that the queen had seen the film and found it moving. We haven’t had any denials from Buckingham Palace, so we can assume that the reports were true. If so, it’s very unusual. The royal family at that level does not divulge what they have seen and how they feel about it. To this day we don’t know if the queen has seen “The Queen.” It was very gratifying that Her Majesty saw “The King’s Speech” and was not offended by the “f-word,” although Bertie was well-known to have quite a temper and quite a vocabulary! But I trust that Her Majesty understood that the film was made with a great deal of respect, love, and admiration for her father.

Robinson: What would you say to the 145,000 members of ASHA, who have been so inspired by this story?

Seidler: I would say that in a very strange sense, being a stutterer, as dark and unpleasant as it can be, is a blessing. If you can survive a childhood as a stutterer, you can pretty much survive anything. It changes you. You know you have withstood this affliction, and you are made of strong mettle. And it is absolute proof that you have the stamina to overcome any obstacle you come across in life. Even if you don’t achieve absolute fluency, that’s really not the point. The point is who you are, what you are, and your real worth.

Lionel Logue: A Pioneer in Speech-Language Pathology

Barbara Mangels — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 18:02:03 +0000

by Caroline Bowen

transition to speech correctionist or speech therapist. Doubtlessly, some were driven by altruism and a desire to help those with communication disorders, by a sense of vocation, or by frustration at their lack of speech-language pathology knowledge. Countless people have been helped by practitioners with Logue’s background using their unique skills, empathy, ingenuity, and personality to achieve better levels of performance, especially in public speaking but also in the pursuit of fluency.

The notion of having a command of spoken language permeated elocution and speech therapy. Both disciplines turned to anatomy, physiology, phonetics, and vocal hygiene for elucidation; both had a concern for children and adults with communication difficulties. Diaphragmatic, rib-reserve, or costal breathing was used with people with fluency and voice disorders; shadowing, masking, and pacing were common techniques in the management of stuttering; and recitation, rehearsal, and homework were familiar practices in dealing with speech difficulties. To the irritation of some speech therapists who wished to distance themselves from elocution practice, there was overlap between the two callings. Recalling the experience of being a 1951 graduate in speech therapy, Porteous (2011) writes, “we…guarded our status by accepting for ‘treatment’ only ‘patients’ referred by medical doctors.” Eventually speech therapy moved toward communication science, drawing on education, linguistics, medicine, and psychology and amassing a theoretical and an evidence base, while elocution stayed with its thespian roots in the art of speech. Lionel Logue, with his matinee-idol good looks, confidence-inspiring persona, and skills as a teacher, performer, and raconteur, was somewhere between the two—an artist at core with a passion for healing.

Logue never revealed the specific treatment he used with the king. He chose not to publish his ideas and methods, saying “…on the matter of Speech Defects, when so much depends on the temperament and individuality, a case can always be produced that can prove you are wrong. That is why I won’t write a book” (Logue & Conradi, 2010, p. 132).

Although history is rewritten somewhat for the sake of a good story, most of what we see in “The King’s Speech” is likely an accurate reflection of Logue’s practice, including his having no inkling of a genetic component in the causation of stuttering. Aspects that do not ring true, and for which there is no archival support, are the swearing scene that appears to be pure David Seidler (the film’s screenwriter, who stuttered as a child), and Logue’s insistence that he should call his pupil “Bertie”—and Albert Frederick Arthur George acquiescing.

Referring to intervention, Logue’s character says convincingly, “There is more to this than just mechanics,” and the historical record suggests that this is what the real Lionel Logue espoused (Eldridge, 1968). He advocated self-belief, motivation, compliance with treatment, and confidence in “cure” as the ultimate goal. Regarding “the mechanics” and the duke and duchess, we have no historical record that Albert and Elizabeth wanted to work only on the motor aspects of speech to achieve fluency, avoiding the psychological and emotional level, as the movie suggests. The suggestion that Logue respected the duke’s wishes, allowing him to set treatment goals, anticipates 21st-century ideas. But who knows? Logue’s apparent restraint in not forcing the issue and waiting until the duke was “ready” for therapy (or motivated, in Van Riper’s terms) is historically accurate (Logue & Conradi, 2010), but the motivation for the delay in commencing therapy may have been more about royal prerogative, the duke’s cautiousness at attempting a new treatment when so many approaches had failed, and a commoner having to do things at the duke’s pleasure—rather than any well-reasoned theory of Logue’s.

Logue expressed his assurance that he could “cure” stuttering during a 1925 radio broadcast in London, a year before he began work with the duke. “I know of nothing which will build so huge a ‘brick wall’ as this defect—the only consolation being that, with hard work upon the part of the student, it can now be cured in about three months.” By contrast, the movie depicts a more contemporary view of long-term intervention and becoming “fluent enough,” with a client’s self-acceptance being the primary goal in therapy rather than the absolute elimination of stuttering.

Logue’s relationship with the king lasted more than 25 years, from 1926 until the monarch’s death in 1952, and it facilitated the development of a national association in the United Kingdom, which Logue cofounded. In 1948 he wrote to his royal “pupil” (Logue’s preferred term) to ask whether the king would become patron of the newly formed College of Speech Therapists, of which he was a founding fellow. The king agreed, and the association was allowed to revise its name to the Royal College of Speech Therapy.

It is not easy to sum up Logue, his contemporary impact, and his lasting legacy. He was not a Henry Higgins helping a Cockney flower girl to sound like a duchess for the sake of a wager, but a conscientious, serious and empathic practitioner who understood the terrible nature and implications of the king’s speech impairment. The royal couple recognized Logue’s gifts and his kindness. Three weeks after she lost her beloved husband at age 57 of lung cancer, Elizabeth wrote Logue from Buckingham Palace to express her gratitude. “I think that I know perhaps better than anyone just how much you helped the King, not only with his speech, but, through that, his whole life, and outlook on life. I shall always be deeply grateful to you for all you did for him.”

Logue died in London a year after receiving the Queen Mother’s letter, and his occupation in his obituary and on the death certificate was recorded not as an elocutionist but as “speech therapist.”

Caroline Bowen, PHD, CPSP, is an Australian speech-language pathologist who has been traveling all her life. She presents internationally in the area of children’s speech sound disorders and through cyberspace as a website owner and moderator of the nearly 7,000-strong phonological therapy discussion group. An expert on Lionel Logue, she has consulted on a play and two books about Logue, and was credited by Logue’s grandson as “starting the ball rolling” in putting the film’s producers in touch with the Logue family. Contact her at cbowen@ihug.com.au.