What's in a speech therapy session?

Some time ago, I brought Dumpling to a speech therapist. I have always been sensitive to diction and pronunciation and being phonics trained, I realized that Dumpling was stuck in a rut with a habit of sticking her tongue out between her 2 rows of teeth.

We did as much correction as we could - tongue placement and getting her to sit in front of a mirror to see and then mimic me. We were progressing well but I wanted to seek for professional help as I feel that it could be corrected faster and I wanted a professional assessment too. Interestingly, after a FB shout, I received many comments on my visit with many citing that they were very surprised to know that Dumpling needed to see a speech therapist as Dumpling seems very articulate. Over the next following days, I also received quite a few private messages that poured in asking me why, what was 'wrong' and some who also reached out to ask me for our experience and what to look out for.

That got me thinking a bit - why is seeing a speech therapist seen as such a big matter where there must be something 'direly wrong'? Why is it that articulation is seen to be the same as 'speech production'? And based on the responses, there seems to be a stigma towards seeking such assistance. 

For that, I am pleased to share that the Speech Therapist who assessed and guided Dumpling has agreed to an email interview which I will be sharing in a upcoming post. For this post however, I thought to share a bit more on what some of the more common questions that I received.

:: Assessment

The first session was an assessment for Dumpling which I sat in too. Our therapist, Joanne, introduced herself and chatted with me first. She asked for my input on what my concerns are, my observations and what we've been doing at home. All these while Dumpling was playing / reading for a while on a mat.

Once we were done, Joanne spoke to Dumpling on what she was going to run through with her - she took out some sheets with pictures inside and told Dumpling to tell her what those items were. The pictures were to get a sense of Dumpling's grasp of articulation (all her beginning sounds, ending sounds, consonant clusters) fluency, etc. 

After her assessment, I was relieved to know that I was spot-on: Dumpling basically needed a bit of guidance in one area and that was just on the contraction of her muscle and tongue placement so that she can feel the dip in the tongue the right sound for letter S.

:: Hands on 'exercise'

The next part of the session was focused on guiding Dumpling to let her feel her muscle and how it should contract (for e.g. when she smiles ~ below pic) and then saying the sound.

After that was done, Joanne wrote out a series of S and then open vowel 'sounds' where Dumpling had to work through with Joanne on - S, Sa, Su, See etc. Each time she gets it right, Joanne will stamp a print on that 'word' so Dumpling can see her progress and this encourages her on.

At the end of the session, Joanne advised on 2 things. One, was that I am to practise with Dumpling everyday on those isolation and open vowel sounds like how she did it in the session and she wrote it out on a sheet (as shown in above photo). The second thing that she did was to work out an agreement with Dumpling on the list of sounds she needed to do with me (basically to get her 'buy-in') and where Dumpling basically signed her life away on her very first 'agreement'! :)

:: Follow up session
I was asked this question a lot. In fact, all the FB PMs which I received ask about this. Is it necessary? How often would the child need to see the therapist? How many sessions of 'follow-up' are needed? Is home practice necessary?

Based on my understanding, follow up sessions are necessary since first session is really to assess. How many sessions thereafter and how often will depend from person to person and what the corrections are. And yes, if the therapist suggests for home practice, then it is recommended.

For Dumpling, it was quite a straightforward case of just one sound, tongue placement / contraction as well as habit correction. With the home practices after our first session with Joanne, Dumpling progressed a lot. So for the second session, Dumpling showed Joanne the 'homework' she did with all the sounds and Joanne basically moved on to the next step where it was to encourage Dumpling how to self-monitor.

This was a major concern for me at that point. If Dumpling were to think about it, she'd be doing the sounds right but the moment she started to get animated and speak really fast, she'd forget and start making the wrong sounds and placement out of habit.

One of the techniques taught was using a 'reward and cutback' method as shown here in this clip. Now, the 'surprise' sprang on me was that straight after this clip was taken, Joanne wanted me to do a 'live' practice (so that she can guide us along if we need to) where I had to work with Dumpling just like how they were doing the exercise in the clip below. :p

After our second session, Joanne felt that we did not need to visit her anymore as long as I continue to work with Dumpling from home on this, gentling reminding her. I am happy to share that Dumpling has improved tremendously where mummy friends have also spotted the difference (thank you Jen!). 

In an upcoming post, Joanne will be sharing with us on some of the 'hot questions' which I received: what are the regular speech and language milestones, when should parents be concerned and have their child(ren) assessed, etc., so please stay tuned! 

Note: Dumpling and I attended the speech therapy sessions as a regular paying customer and I am not compensated for this post. My sharing here is based on our own experience at The Speech Pathology Centre and also to address the concerns, questions which I have been receiving on this topic. Should you wish to find out more, the centre's details are as below:

The Speech Pathology Centre Pte Ltd

19 Tanglin Road

#05-29/31

Tanglin Shopping Centre

Singapore 247909

T: 6235 0037

www.speechtherapy.com.sg

Foodie Fridays - Vietnamese Beef Pho!

I love beef and I love soup. Vietnamese Beef Pho rocks it for me. The hubs and I travelled to HCMC before Dumpling came along and we totally enjoyed the place and the food. In fact, we had Pho at every mealtime, just at different restaurants.

The key to good Beef Pho is in the stock. I made this once years back and I was not entirely too satisfied with the flavour of the soup. This time round, I read up a lot more and I added in 2 other ingredients and used a different 'parts' for the soup stock - charred onion and ginger. :)

:: The gathering list
- 2 packets of flat rice vermicelli (we used Ipoh Hor Fun) sold in regular supermarkets here. If yours is the dried version, you will need to soak them in hot water for a few mins based on the instructions on the packaging.  
- Bone marrows (I got this from Giant, frozen section, 2 packets)
- Tendons cut into thirds, length-wise (Similarly, I got this from Giant, frozen section too)
- 2 Yellow Onions
- 1 old ginger (about 4" in length)
- Rock sugar (a 'crystal' of about an inch)
- Fish sauce
- Cinnamon sticks (about 3)
- 6 Cloves
- Peppercorn (I used about 1.5 table spoons)
- 5 Star Anise
- Asian basil (I used at least 10-12 leaves)
- Beef slices (I used those we use for Shabu Shabu as they are sliced up nicely)
- Condiment: chili padi (bird's eye chili), mint leaves, lemon wedges, spring onions
- Optional: Beef stock (In the interest of time as I have only 5 hours to spare, I added in a 500ml packet of beef stock)

Now, I happen to chance upon a shop at the Grandstand which sells spices and they pre-packed the Beef Pho herbs into a bag like this, so this is another option which you can consider. The same thing goes in there - cinnamon sticks, star anise, peppercorns and cloves.

:: The Cookout!
Step 1: Boil a pot of water (mine was a 2 litre pot) and place in the bone marrows (washed). You can use other parts which you like such as oxtail and rump, etc, but I personally like the taste and the broth to be just a bit sticky and thick and for this, I prefer to use bone marrows. Note: it will be a tad oily so you will need to skim away the layer of oil)

Step 2: Add in the herbs (best to place in muslin cloth and tied up) and basil into the soup (or use the packet as shared above).

Step 3: Add in beef stock. After about 30 mins of boiling, you can start to scoop out the brownish residue floating at the top of the soup.

Step 4: Add in the tendons. (Note: tendons do not require much attention just that it takes a long while to soften and in my case, 5 hours with the first 1 hour over medium fire and the remaining 4 hours on low fire.)

Step 5: Char the onions and ginger (this took as long as 20-30 mins for me) using a pair of tongs to 'flip' sides so that they do not get totally burnt. The aim for charring the onions is to release the flavours and to get the outside soft but the core still hard and has that 'bite'. For the Ginger, it was the other way, the outside was dry but the core was full of the wholesome "ginger goodness". (It is ok if the skin is charred as you can peel that away later.) Here's how mine looks like:

Step 6: Add the charred onions, ginger and rock sugar to the broth and simmer on low heat for the next 3 - 4 hours, checking from time to time (if tendons are soft). Add in beef balls (we used a mix of the ready ones as well as our own handmade minced beef bowls as I am not a big fan of using processed meat for Dumpling. But for the minced beef balls, we only added them to the broth just before serving so that they would not be overcooked and turn 'tough'.) 

Step 7: Add Fish Sauce - I added about 5 tablespoons. You can add on more according to your preference.

Step 8: Blanch and then soak the rice vermicelli in hot water for 1 - 2 mins to soften them. Drain the noodles, scoop them into a bowl.

Step 9: Cook the beef slices by dipping and quickly swishing them in the broth (so that they are not overcooked) and then place them in bowl above the vermicelli. (If you are serving this to young kids, please ensure that the meat is properly cooked without any hint of pink to it.) Add on beef balls.

Step 10: Scoop soup over (I have skimmed the layer of oil prior). Serve hot and with condiments on the side - mint leaves, sping onions (scallions), lemon wedges, thin rings of yellow onions. Mint is an acquired taste and while not are lovers, I'd encourage you to try adding this into your soup as it does cut through the 'meatiness' of the dish. The lemon adds some zest to the broth too. Mix and experiment, and importantly, enjoy!

(I do not enjoy raw bean sprouts so I did not add this to the dish but these are widely served and added to the broth along with the condiments so you can add this in too.)

THE ADVENTURES OF ELASTI-CHICK IN REDMART.COM

:: This is me, Mama Sue – aka ELASTI-CHICK.

Why? Because ever since I became a mum, I have suddenly developed super hero powers. The ability to be a mum who nurses all sniffles and coughs, a driver, a wife, an employee and most importantly, the ability to multi-task and mysteriously ensure that my child is well looked after as well as churning good and healthy food on the table.

:: This is Dumpling – aka GREEN, MEAN EATING MACHINE. 

Dumpling likes her food and pretty much likes it on time. Don’t muck around with her meals unless you want a meltdown.

And this is Dumpling at the mercy of Mother Nature where we are either being hit by the rain or (gasp), by the haze lately. So, what are we to do when the groceries run low?

:: Introducing Redmart.com

With my ELASTI-CHICK super hero powers, our groceries were sorted out!

Online shopping is my survival tip. I shop online for virtually anything because

(a) I hate crowds

(b) it saves me much time &

(c) it is virtually impossible to watch over an active preschooler AND shop.

Redmart.com is my secret grocery shopping address where I can beat the crowd, be dressed in my worst jammies and no one can see me (and get frightened by the 3-pound eye bags) and best of all, in the comfort of my own home. J

Can’t wait to find out more? Here’s a sneak peek at this secret address!!! 

(Click on image for an enlarged view!) 

To all of you fabulous parents with SUPER HERO MULTI TASKING POWERS!

HERE'S A 10% DISCOUNT CODE FOR YOU!

All you need to do is to enter this discount code: rm_beanie to enjoy 10% off your first purchase!
So hop on over to redmart.com now!  

JOIN ME AGAIN IN THE NEXT INSTALLMENT OF… 

THE NEW ADVENTURES OF ELASTI-CHICK!

Disclaimer: I was invited to share my User Experience at Redmart. I have been compensated for this post. All opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but my sharing is based on my personal usage and shopping experience at redmart.com. 

Book Review: The True Story of The Three Little Pigs

:: The True Story of Three Little Pigs

“So I walked down the street to ask my neighbour for a cup of sugar.

Now, this neighbour was a pig.

And he wasn’t too bright, either.

He built his whole house out of straw.

Can you believe it? I mean who in his right mind would build a house out of straw?”

The title of this book and the cover design stood out immediately for Dumpling and I when we first saw it. Curious, we both made a dash for it and started flipping through immediately.

Imaginative, hilarious and clever are three words which I would use for this title. All of us know the story of the classic tale ‘Three Little Pigs’ but how many have thought of it from the big bad wolf’s perspective?

Well, this is the ‘other’ side of the story, his story. The untold story of a badly misunderstood wolf who was at the wrong place at the wrong time with a bad cold!   

The story is told by Mr. Alexander T (Al for short) and started from what was supposedly to be a simple task of borrowing a cup of sugar for a birthday cake for his Grandma. This of course became an adventure (or 3!) along the way. This story is a rhyming story peppered with doses of humor and pun.

Now, the comic styled illustrations are wonderfully quirky too. And no wonder! They are illustrated by award winning (Caldecott Honor) artist Lane Smith and the book also won New York Times Best Illustrated book in 1989. 

(Can you spot the additional ‘ingredients’ in the cheeseburger?)

Before the end of the story, I was giggling as much as Dumpling and we re-read it once more. The twists to the classic tale are imaginative and hilarious. We both fell in love with Al as it is just so hard to view him as the 'villain'. After all, how can we blame Al? As he so eloquently puts it “It seemed like a shame to leave a perfectly good ham dinner lying there in the straw” and so he ate the pig up.

Though this is recommended for children of 5 - 8 years old, it is a truly delightful read and I certainly would recommend it for older kids (and adults too!) 

Author:  Jon-Scieszka

Illustrator: Lane Smith

I received this title from My Imagination Kingdom in order to do a review on and give my opinion of it. Just for Beanie N Us readers, I am pleased to share that My Imagination Kingdom is offering a 15% discount for all its titles. 

Just key in BNUS15 upon checking out (billing and shipping info page)! 
Code is valid till 17 July 2013

I was also invited guest post at My Imagination Kingdom to share my experiences and tips on read aloud and literacy. Hop on over to find out more! 

A "NIVEA Body UV Whitening Serum with SPF 25" 14-Day Experience PART 2!

Before I embarked on this challenge, I always thought that it would be very troublesome to use any Bodycare products and that was one of the major deterrents for me. Coupled with the fact that I am highly sensitive to scents and I dislike any form of “residue” on my skin, that’s how I ended up not have much skincare regime. However, after taking on this “NIVEA Body UV Whitening Serum 14 Days Experience”, I can safely share that it required very minimal changing of lifestyle habits. Here’s sharing my experience.

:: Quick Absorption  

What I really like about NIVEA Body UV Whitening Serum with SPF 25 is the “ease of use” because of how quickly the lightweight serum is being absorbed into the skin. It is not thick or oily where I need to rub in for over a minute just to wait for the skin to absorb the serum. Additionally, there was also no feeling of “stickiness” once it dries off.

Here’s a “20 sec” demonstration to share:

I first squeezed out some serum (about the amount / size of a 20 cent coin) and I rubbed it onto my arm for 10 seconds (see centre photo). I then continued rubbing it in for another 10 seconds where you can see that the serum was totally absorbed. Hence, to get the serum on all my limbs is now a ‘less-than-2-minute’ job! So there is no major change in any lifestyle habits, just a 2 minute regime every time when I reapply the serum!

:: Moisturizing Effect

In my earlier post, I shared how dry the skin on my feet was with the years of neglect. During this 14 Days journey, I have been bringing the serum everywhere I headed to and have been applying religiously, sometimes even up to 5 – 6 times a day. This is because I work in an air-conditioned environment which dries out my skin totally.

After a week of usage, my skin was definitely less flakey and more hydrated. I cannot see so many lines on my foot (due to the dehydration of skin) now. The skin tone looks less dull (see centre photo). After 2 weeks, I cannot see any more flakey skin and the skin tone appears more even. I am very pleased that my feet definitely look ‘younger’! I guess that this has to do with the fact that the serum is infused with Hydra IQ and Red Seaweed which aids in a more supple skin.

:: Whitening Effect

Now, what about my arms? Being the family driver means that I am out in the morning chauffeuring my hubs and Dumpling to and fro before I eventually head off to work.

Over the weekends, I would also spend time by the pool while Dumpling has her afternoon swimming lessons and at times, I can see that my arms would get a bit burnt and turn red from the reflection of the harsh rays.

So I do like that the NIVEA Body UV Whitening Serum comes with SPF25 since I am outdoors quite a bit too as I now have a serum which offers daily sun protection and yet moisturizes well! 

Comparatively to before usage, there was a difference after 1 week where there seems to be a reduction of brown ‘patches’. After 2 weeks, my arms definitely look fairer and more radiant too. A quick look at the product information shows that the serum is enriched with Vitamin C from Camu Camu and as we know, Vitamin C is a powerful anti-oxidant which reduces melanin production (yay!) and hence my skin lightened over these 2 weeks.

I am very pleased with the improvements that I have seen in just 14 days. My skin has become more supple and definitely more radiant looking. I would recommend NIVEA Body UV Whitening Serum with SPF 25 to other mums, especially busy working mums like me who need an easy-to-use serum which delivers.

Disclaimer: This is an advertorial for NIVEA and is part of a series of “14 days experience” for NIVEA Body UV Whitening Serum SPF25. I have been compensated for this post. All opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but my sharing is based on my personal usage and experience of the product.