https://seedlingstherapy.com.au/home daily 1.0 2022-03-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/1643019668080-WMDWAQPBFMIK8J5BK0UJ/IMG_3251+copy.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/1646561554152-15OPV0R08V68YCNCXDWR/sandra-seitamaa-1jq3KzwusA4-unsplash.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/1646561716972-AXHSXGCHY7FB1TCAFZ45/vardan-papikyan-DnXqvmS0eXM-unsplash-2.jpg Home https://seedlingstherapy.com.au/faq daily 0.75 2022-03-06 https://seedlingstherapy.com.au/about daily 0.75 2023-03-10 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/319a5ee7-f51c-444d-831e-43d802be9225/Ciara_Reeves_Speech_Therpaist_IMG_4336+2.jpg About - Hello, I’m Ciara I have worked as a paediatric speech pathologist for over 12 years. I graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Applied Science (Speech Pathology) in 2010 and hold a current, certified practising Speech Pathology Australia membership. In 2019, I founded Seedlings Speech & Language. Continuing professional development is integral to my practice. I am trained in Spalding – the reading foundation course which underpins my literacy therapy. I am equipped to use these language programs- Key Word Sign, Robust vocabulary, BLADES language therapy and the Working With Children With Autism Program through Connect Therapy. In addition, I am a PROMPT trained therapist (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Target) and can deliver the Lidcombe stuttering program. In 2023, I completed my foundation training course as an Orofacial Myologist through the Australian Orofacial Myology Collaboration. This training equips me to identify and treat oral and facial muscles, postural and functional disorders, and oral habits (e.g. thumb sucking, open mouth posture, mouth breathing) that may restrict typical dental, facial, swallowing and speech development. I am passionate about working with preschool and school aged children presenting with speech and language related difficulties. I also have a keen interest in teaching the multi-sensory, systematic, phonics approach (known as Spalding) to reading and spelling for children struggling with literacy. Making therapy enjoyable, relevant and targeted, underpins my work! Between 2014-2017, I collaborated with RAW Impact, a charity working to aid the poorest rural villages in Cambodia to become sustainable. I was essential in creating Raw Impact’s SEAL program (Speech, English and Literacy) while working at The Language Tree. This involved providing local Cambodian teachers with the knowledge and tools to teach English literacy and phonics. It was a life changing opportunity and something that brought me significant personal growth. When I’m not working, I enjoy spending time with my two daughters and husband at the beach! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/548d9593-2bfc-47d0-8fa3-19273ac67229/1601384_220809354777689_977765564_n.jpg About RAW Impact's Cambodian SEAL training program underway - teaching and modelling the phonics program to the local teachers. For more information about this charity visit: https://www.rawimpact.org https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/1b396c2b-6707-43b3-a8a4-309306feb04e/1601158_220809171444374_1841796531_n.jpg About RAW Impact's Cambodian SEAL training program underway - teaching and modelling the phonics program to the local teachers. For more information about this charity visit: https://www.rawimpact.org https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/bcd20eea-4957-4ec0-a85f-32bbda560dfd/1620660_220810701444221_304446992_n.jpg About RAW Impact's Cambodian SEAL training program underway - teaching and modelling the phonics program to the local teachers. For more information about this charity visit: https://www.rawimpact.org https://seedlingstherapy.com.au/contact daily 0.75 2022-08-08 https://seedlingstherapy.com.au/services daily 0.75 2022-03-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/9c183fbb-34b2-4345-8f01-37d9ecaa96d6/lez-smith-eixEKMORTsw-unsplash.jpg Services ARTICULATION Does your child have difficulty saying certain sounds? Our lips, jaw and tongue move in particular patterns to create speech sounds. If your child’s patterns are not typical they may have difficulty with articulation and require therapy to remediate patterns. For example a lisp. PHONOLOGY Is your child difficult to understand? Do they get frustrated when people do not understand them? Phonology refers to the understanding of how speech sounds function in words. Children with speech sound disorders can be difficult to understand. They may leave speech sounds out of words or use a different speech sound in its place. For example they say “tat” for cat or “won” for run. I use and tailor the following approaches to each child: articulation therapy PROMPT (Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Target) phonological therapy approaches cued articulation https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/b1333dec-f4a6-4b81-8ae6-5e2aceafbc24/katherine-hanlon-7D1D7-Woa8Y-unsplash-2.jpg Services RECEPTIVE LANGUAGE Does your child find it difficult to follow instructions or understand what you are saying? Receptive language refers to how we understand spoken language. This includes following verbal instructions, understanding questions, understanding a range of concepts and vocabulary, as well as comprehending stories and conversations. Some children may appear to not listen or follow instructions at home, daycare or school. This may be associated with underlying difficulty with comprehension. Early intervention is important if you are concerned your child has difficulty understanding language. EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE Does your child struggle to string words together in sentences? Expressive language refers to how a child uses verbal language to effectively convey what they want to say. This includes using correct grammar, sentence structure, vocabulary and forming logical ideas. Children who have expressive language difficulties may not have babbled much as a baby, have delayed first words and are considered a late talker. They might struggle to think of a word they want to say, form sentences that don’t make sense or use incorrect grammar. The first five years of a child’s life are most critical for learning language. PRAGMATIC LANGUAGE Does your child have difficulty with their social skills? Pragmatic language is the understanding and use of the social language skills required in communication. This includes non-verbal communication such as eye contact, facial expressions and body language. It also involves understanding appropriate social interactions such as turn taking, holding a conversation and higher level language (humour, idioms, sarcasm). https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/bb6cda6f-13d9-4e5c-bb1b-3e67512b27f4/IMG_4447.jpg Services Does your child frequently repeat sounds (b-b-b-because), words (He, he, he fell over) or phrases (I saw-I saw -I saw it there)? Do they seem to get stuck when trying to say a word? A child who stutters knows what they want to say however can not say it fluently. Children can stutter in different ways.* It is recommended to seek professional advice early if you are concerned your child may have a stutter that persists longer than six months or you have a family history of stuttering. I use evidenced based stuttering programs tailored to each child and family including: The Lidcombe stuttering program School-age stuttering therapy Prolonged Speech *School-age stuttering therapy: A practical guide (Reardon-Reeves, 2013) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/c505ceb1-fb55-40b0-86d7-8104160118fc/reading_child.jpg Services Does your child have difficulty sounding out words? Do they guess words when reading or struggle to understand what they read? Literacy refers to being able to read, comprehend, write and spell. Literacy is complex and as such there are many areas that children can present with difficulties. At Seedlings, I ensure that all skills required to read fluently, spell and write are assessed in order to create an individualised therapy plan. Therapy is underpinned by the evidence based, systematic phonics approach, SPALDING. Using this approach, I build the foundations of literacy to ensure your child can identify, read and write all individual letters, letter combinations (e.g. sh, th, ow) and multiple sounds letters can make (e.g. A can make “a” for apple, “ay” for paper, and “ah” for ask). https://seedlingstherapy.com.au/fact-sheets daily 0.75 2022-03-06 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/61ee14881f13cd336369d66b/4427629e-d219-4a3f-af32-54789e8b3929/Screen+Shot+2022-02-09+at+10.29.48+am.png Resources