See and Learn

I have recently found a speech therapy group that is just what I have been hoping to find. It is a group of kids who all have Down syndrome. This is great news because when it comes to speech, children with Down syndrome all seem to need help in the same area - strengthening their oral muscles, and teaching their mouth to move correctly to make the necessary sounds to be understood. This is something that most the population takes for granted. I know I did until I have watched as Antalya has struggled for years to try and pronounce an "L" sound.

But along with their weaknesses they also some similar strengths - one of which is that they are very visual learners. The Down Syndrome Education International has developed the See and Learn program that taps into our children's visual learning style. It's aim is to improve speech through learning to read.

The DownsEd group is based out of the England and I have been hoping to have the opportunity to learn more about, and see in practice, how the program works. Well, the speech group we joined a month ago uses parts of the See and Learn program. And I can't tell you how excited about it I am! You can download and print most of the info from their website. I'm working on making a copy for us at home, and one to send to school with her. I'm hoping that if we are working on the same things at speech, at home, and reinforced a couple times at school that we will see some big improvements in the next few months. I'll keep you posted on how it goes.

While I'm on the topic of speech, tonight in the bath tub Antalya said to Victoria, "Baby, sit down. Baby, be quiet." It was the first time I have ever heard her say those phrases. I was all grins!

And now, because I know everyone loves pictures, I'll leave you with this one of my cuties from a week ago. The sun was shining, it was warm, and we ending up tromping through a mud pile. So, what else could we do, but take off sock and shoes and enjoy a popsicle!