What Can We Do At Home To Help Our Child?

Speechville Express Routes

alternative routes
augmentative communication

advocacy depot
giving you the tools to "get there"

accompanying conditions
associated issues and disabilities

complementary paths
alternative and complementary therapies

kids' caboose
just for kids - homework helpers, games, books and more

teen junction
about teen-agers' issues

link line
extensive links to further information

across the wire
speech, language, disability, and education news

teachers' track
helpful information for teachers

shop Speechville Express
language and learning products

Books for Young Children:
Working on and playing with speech and language

Shop Speechville Express

Books

Software

Augmentative Communication

Toys

Music

Electronic Toys

The Perfect Gift

Diagnosis Destinations

aphasia

apraxia or dyspraxia

articulation disorders

dysarthria

late talking

pervasive developmental disorder

phonological disorder

semantic pragmatic language disorder

specific language impairment

stuttering

View augmentative communication devices at Amazon:

________________

Education Station Helping at Home Helpful Articles

"The Kaufman Approach for Any Late Talker,"
article by Nancy R. Kaufman, M.A., CCC/SLP

Excerpt from Chapter 7 of "The Late Talker" book
"What Parents Can Do At Home To Help"

Eating for Energy: Tips for Managing Your Mood with Food
by Susie Michelle Cortright

10 Tips For Getting You and Your Child Ready For Kindergarten!
By Maryanne Fitzgerald

Eating for Energy: Tips for Managing Your Mood with Food
by Susie Michelle Cortright
author, More Energy for Moms

Here's a meal-by-meal guide to eating for energy and managing your mood with food.

Breakfast
Eating a good breakfast boosts your concentration and revs your energy, particularly in the morning when you may need it most. Without breakfast, you're more likely to make that second pot of coffee by mid-morning.

Instead, keep your blood sugar on an even keel with complex carbohydrates. Avoid refined carbohydrates, such as white bread and white sugar. These have a high glycemic index, which can cause spikes and dips in your blood sugar levels.

The right complex carbohydrates provide your brain and muscles with the steady flow of the energy they need. Grains are great sources of B vitamins, which aid in the metabolic production of energy. The best carb choices for breakfast are natural whole-grain breads and cereals.

For the best breakfast, add a low-fat protein, such as yogurt, cottage cheese, or skim milk, and watch your fat intake as well as your meat consumption (meat takes more energy to digest).

Mid-morning snack
Turns out, snacking may not be such a bad idea. Eating every few hours helps your body use nutrients more efficiently. It stimulates your metabolism, keeps your blood sugar levels steady, reduces stress on your digestive system, and decreases hunger, which means you'll be less likely to overeat when mealtime finally rolls around.

If you're craving carbs, which many of us do at this time of day, choose whole-grain bread, cereal, or fruit.

Fruits and vegetables deliver a low-fat, high-fiber alternative to the vending machine choices. Raw carrots and sugar snap peas, for example, provide a crisp, satisfying crunch and won't zap your energy.
Challenge yourself to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

For maximum energy throughout the day, avoid foods that are laden with simple sugars, such as cookies, pastries, candy bars, and sodas, which can bring on erratic blood sugar levels.

Instead, try some lean protein (low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese or lean meat) to help tide you over until lunch.

Lunch
At midday, go light. Because a hefty helping of carbohydrates can increase the amount of seratonin in the brain and cause that sleepy feeling, focus on low-fat protein.

Protein can actually raise energy levels by increasing
brain chemicals called catecholamines. Eat a lunch of low-fat cheese, fish, lean meat, poultry, or tofu.

Mid-afternoon snack
Choose something that will keep you satisfied until dinner. A little bit of fat is fine. It gives those carbohydrates and proteins some staying power. My favorite? All-natural peanut butter and a few crackers.

Before your work-out
Carbohydrates are fastest to digest and pack quick energy. Add protein for staying power, but stay away from fats. They can make you cramp.

Dinner
The agenda for the evening can dictate what you'll eat for dinner. Need to stay on overdrive for back-to-school night? Choose low-fat proteins. If you're in relax mode, indulge a little.

Whatever's on the menu, remember the Pie Test. Envision your plate as a pie. Seventy-five percent of the pie should be filled with fruits, vegetables, and grains and 25 percent with other foods, such as diary products and meat.

Before bed
Before turning in, a carbohydrate-rich snack can supply seratonin to help you fall asleep. But go easy. Too much food can reduce the quality of your sleep.

Eating for energy is one of the most effective, powerful, and fast-acting mood-boosters. Try it today and see!

Copyright 2003 Susie Cortright

This article is excerpted from More Energy for Moms, by Susie Cortright. Susie is the author of several books for women and founder of the award-winning Momscape.com, a website designed to help busy women find balance. Visit http://www.momscape.com today and get Susie's *f'r'e'e* course-by-email "6 Days to Less Stress."

10 Tips For Getting You and Your Child Ready For Kindergarten!
By Maryanne Fitzgerald
Copyright 2003

Starting school can be a stressful time for children, as well as parents. Do your eyes glisten with tears every time you think of your 'baby' going off to school? Do your nerves rattle when you envision your little one in the care of someone else? Do you wonder what you're going to do with all your spare time now that you're child is starting school? (ok, so maybe you're not wondering about that!)

Here are 10 ways to ease your child's fears and anxieties about starting school (and yours too!)

1) Explain to your child that this is a new phase in their life. They are a big boy/girl now, and they will learn all kinds of fun things at school.

2) If your child is walking to school, pick the safest route, and walk with them. This is a good chance to teach them about road safety. i.e. looking both ways before crossing the street, etc.

3) Teach your child their full name, home address, parents names and phone number.Practice this every day. A good time to practice is while going to/coming home from school.

4) If your child has never been away from you before, practice leaving them with a friend for a few hours at a time, or taking them to a play group.

5) Label coats, shoes, and bags with their name on the INSIDE, so strangers cannot call them by name. And of course, teach them the dangers of talking to strangers. Another good thing to practice while walking to/from school.

6) Emphasize to your child that when you leave them at school, you WILL come back for them. Hug them, kiss them, then leave. Don't linger - this only makes it harder for you both.

7) Don't let your child hear you say things like 'I'm losing my baby'. Always speak positively about school.

8) If you know who your child's teacher will be, tell your child their name. If possible, have your child meet their teacher before school starts.

9) Offer your child lots of reassurance. Don't tease or let anyone mock his/her fears.

10) Above all, keep a positive attitude! If your child sees that you are excited they will be excited as well. A positive attitude now will serve them well for years to come!

Remember, it will be many years until they're off to college, they're not leaving the nest quite yet!

****************************************************
Maryanne Fitzgerald is the publisher of Moms World
Ezine. To subscribe send email to:
mailto: mfitzgerald41@cogeco.ca?subject=SUB
or visit: http://www.homeincomesolutions.net
****************************************************

Ask questions & find answers at Speechville's message board!

Featured Products:

The New Language of Toys: Teaching Communication Skills to Children With Special Needs, a Guide for Parents and Teachers
Sue Schwartz, Ph.D.

______

Childhood Speech, Language, and Listening Problems: What Every Parent Should Know
(2nd Ed.)
Patricia McAleer Hamaguchi
_______

The Late Talker,
a book about children's
speech difficulties,
co-written by Speechville Co-Founder, Lisa Geng

_______

Speechville Express is a resource for families, educators, and medical professionals, offering information about language development in children, helping those who care for toddlers and young children who are late talkers, and connecting you with others who have been down this road. Language disorders and communication impairments included are apraxia, stuttering, pervasive developmental disorder, dysarthria, and aphasia, among others.

About the Site | Copyright Speechville | Disclaimer | Privacy Statement | E-Mail Speechville | Advanced Search | Home | Site Index
Last updated: Wednesday, Mar 17th 2010
Copyright © Speechville, LLC. All rights reserved.