SLP Coffee Talk

Are you writing following directions goals straight from a CELF subtest score? In this solo episode, Hallie makes the case for asking "why" before you write another three-step directions goal for a middle or high schooler. She explains how to use item analysis to find what's really driving the difficulty, why compensatory strategies often serve older students better than more isolated drill, and how to build self-advocacy into the activities you're already doing. She also shares low-cost, teen-friendly ways to practice when you do need a directions goal.

Bullet Points to Discuss:
-Why a standardized test should give us information, not our therapy curriculum
-Item analysis - looking past the scaled score to find the pattern
-Asking "why" - language, working memory, attention, vocabulary, or the environment?
When more of the same isn't working - the same goal from 3rd grade to 7th grade
Compensatory strategies - teaching what to do when they miss it or can't remember
-Metacognition - recognizing "I didn't understand" is the first step to self-advocacy
-Teacher supports & accommodations - it's an access-to-instruction skill, not just a speech room skill
-Easy, low-cost activities: drawing tutorial videos, a DIY file folder barrier game & Edpuzzle's rewatch button

Here's what we learned:
A standardized test gives you information, not a therapy curriculum, so use item analysis to find the pattern behind a low score
The "why" matters: language, working memory, attention, vocabulary, and environment each call for a different goal
Repeating the same directions goal year after year isn't working, so it's time to change the approach
For older students, teach compensatory strategies like keywords, chunking, repeating back, and asking for one step at a time
Recognizing "I missed something" is the first step to self-advocacy
Following directions is an access-to-instruction skill, so share accommodations with teachers
Drawing videos, a file folder barrier game, and Edpuzzle's rewatch button make strategy practice low-cost and teen-friendly

Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:  

📝 Website: https://speechtimefun.com/

🎲✨ Check out the Secondary Secret Podcast here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/secret-podcast-signup

📘✨ Grab your copy of The Secondary SLP Roadmap here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/stf-book

🎤✨ The Speech Retreat is Back! Learn more and register here!
https://www.speechretreat.com ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ 

Freebie:
https://www.slpmadness.com/shop/p/freespeechtherapydescribingprobe
https://www.slpmadness.com/iep-goal-bank 

Subscribe today and get access to my secret podcast filled with my juicy secrets for planning with ease for secondary speech students. 6 quick episodes that you can quickly listen to and feel refreshed and inspired! https://speechtimefun.com/secondarysecrets

Tired of reaching for the same generic drills no matter what speech sound error walks through your door? In this episode, Hallie chats with Laura Rinella, MA, CCC-SLP, creator of Laura Teaches Speech and a pediatric specialist in speech sound disorders. Laura breaks down how she builds targeted, individualized treatment plans that move the needle on intelligibility, offers her take on telling articulation and phonological disorders apart in real sessions, and explains why she sees every kid's progress as a step toward letting their voice come through.

Bullet Points to Discuss: 
- Why principles of motor learning belong in articulation therapy
- how manipulating practice & feedback results in independence
- When more isn't always better - high trials aren't enough
- The performance trap -  why success during practice doesn't equal learning
- The power of mistakes - update & refine the motor plan
- Variation - the secret sauce/game changer/the closer

Here’s what we learned: 
Motor learning principles matter for every kid with a speech sound error, not just those with residual/lingering errors
Mastering a sound in the therapy room isn't the same as mastering it in real life — that's the performance trap
Variation in rate, intonation, and loudness is what drives carryover to real conversation
Speech motor chaining builds from syllables to self-generated sentences, leveling up as accuracy improves
Buy-in matters as much as biomechanics — kids need to believe change is possible before the movement work sticks

Learn more about Laura Rinella

Website
https://substack.com/@laurateachesspeech                        https://www.archspeechtherapy.com/courses-resources/
Social
https://www.instagram.com/laurateachesspeech/ 

Other links: 
https://substack.com/@laurateachesspeech               
https://www.archspeechtherapy.com/courses-resources/

Freebie - include this on the docs so we don’t need to copy and paste from this document (note for podmachine editor)
https://substack.com/@laurateachesspeech/note/p-188451575?r=7jc6eu&utm_source=notes-share-action&utm_medium=web 

Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:  

📝 Website: https://speechtimefun.com/
🎲✨ Check out the Secondary Secret Podcast here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/secret-podcast-signup
📘✨ Grab your copy of The Secondary SLP Roadmap here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/stf-book
🎤✨ The Speech Retreat is Back! Learn more and register here!
https://www.speechretreat.com ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ 

Freebie:
https://www.slpmadness.com/shop/p/freespeechtherapydescribingprobe
https://www.slpmadness.com/iep-goal-bank 

Subscribe today and get access to my secret podcast filled with my juicy secrets for planning with ease for secondary speech students. 6 quick episodes that you can quickly listen to and feel refreshed and inspired! https://speechtimefun.com/secondarysecrets

Struggling to know what "good" data collection actually looks like, especially with older students on your caseload? In this episode, Hallie sits down with Kayla Obenour, an SLP with over a decade of experience across schools, outpatient, home health, and private practice, to chat all about what real, useful data collection can look like. Kayla shares why she's always aimed to "practice what she preaches" as a clinician, how she helps new clinicians cut through the overwhelm of tracking everything at once, and why qualitative data deserves just as much credit as a percentage on a page.

Bullet Points to Discuss: 
Why data collection creates such heavy cognitive load for new clinicians 
Probe data versus continuous data, and what makes data reliable and valid 
Rethinking the 80% accuracy standard and other ways to measure meaningful progress 
The role parents, teachers, and work samples play in painting a fuller picture 
Breaking annual goals into smaller, more achievable objectives 
Why starting from a student's strengths builds buy-in and confidence

Here’s what we learned: 
Ten solid probe data points can be just as valid as tracking data throughout an entire session. 
Qualitative data, like the type and amount of support a student needed, is still meaningful data. 
Percent accuracy alone doesn't reveal whether a skill functions for a student outside of therapy. 
Parents and teachers often notice things in other settings that never show up in session data. 
Starting with a student's smallest achievable step builds momentum faster than jumping straight to the end goal.

Learn more about Kayla Obenour: 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Rooted-in-Connection-Therapy/61577409999013/ 

Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:  
📝 Website: https://speechtimefun.com/
🎲✨ Check out the Secondary Secret Podcast here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/secret-podcast-signup
📘✨ Grab your copy of The Secondary SLP Roadmap here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/stf-book
🎤✨ The Speech Retreat is Back! Learn more and register here!
https://www.speechretreat.com ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ 

Subscribe today and get access to my secret podcast filled with my juicy secrets for planning with ease for secondary speech students. 6 quick episodes that you can quickly listen to and feel refreshed and inspired! https://speechtimefun.com/secondarysecrets

In this solo episode, Hallie breaks down how to stop drowning in back-to-back groups with completely different goals. She covers why you don't need a separate activity for every student, how one resource — a video, book, article, or even a game — can hit multiple goals at once, and why mixed-goal groups can actually work in your favor instead of against you. If planning has been eating into time you don't have and you're tired of scrambling between sessions, this episode is for you.

Bullet Points to Discuss: 
Why "one activity per student" is a planning trap, not a requirement 
The case for letting mixed-goal groups work side by side 
Keeping students in the loop on their own goals and why it matters
Turning any YouTube video into a multi-goal lesson with Edpuzzle 
Wordless picture books: the ultimate no-prep, any-goal resource 
Squeezing more mileage out of articles, storybooks, and games than "intended" 
Making one resource stretch across grade levels without extra work

Here’s what we learned: 
You don't need a new activity for every student — one resource can carry the whole group. 
Mixed-goal groups pick up extra language just from hearing each other get prompted. 
Edpuzzle lets you drop goal-specific questions right into any video. 
Nobody's handing out a trophy for asking the exact question printed on the card. 
The same resource can flex across grade levels — just adjust the difficulty, not the material.

Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:  
📝 Website: https://speechtimefun.com/
🎲✨ Check out the Secondary Secret Podcast here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/secret-podcast-signup
📘✨ Grab your copy of The Secondary SLP Roadmap here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/stf-book
🎤✨ The Speech Retreat is Back! Learn more and register here!
https://www.speechretreat.com ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ 

Subscribe today and get access to my secret podcast filled with my juicy secrets for planning with ease for secondary speech students. 6 quick episodes that you can quickly listen to and feel refreshed and inspired! https://speechtimefun.com/secondarysecrets

Feeling stuck when it comes to that pesky vocalic R? In this episode, Hallie sits down with Karen Krogg of The Pedi Speechie, a school-based SLP with a serious R obsession, to talk through everything from tongue shape to carryover. Karen breaks down her hand gesture analogies, favorite tools, and how she keeps kids motivated through the long haul of R therapy.

Bullet Points to Discuss: 
Determining when R work is warranted for older students in schools
Retroflex R vs. bunched R, and how to tell the difference
Hand gesture analogies and tools like the typodont and Sketchfab
Making practice fun without turning it into straight drilling
Carryover strategies that actually get used at home
Advice for SLPs and CFs new to treating vocalic R 

Here’s what we learned: 
Progress often comes down to problem-solving, not repetition — no single method works for every student
The quicker a student masters R in isolation, the more predictable the rest of therapy tends to go
A baseline screener at the start of the year makes progress easier to track
Patience is part of the clinical skill set — R therapy can take well over a year
New SLPs don’t need to have it all figured out — CEU courses and online resources help fill the gaps

Learn more about Karen Krogg: 
Website: https://thepedispeechie.com 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepedispeechie/ 
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thepedispeechie_slp 
Teachers Pay Teachers: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/store/the-pedi-speechie
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@thepedispeechie4227 
Speech Therapy Tools

Learn more about Hallie Sherman and SLP Elevate:  
📝 Website: https://speechtimefun.com/
🎲✨ Check out the Secondary Secret Podcast here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/secret-podcast-signup
📘✨ Grab your copy of The Secondary SLP Roadmap here! https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/stf-book
🎤✨ The Speech Retreat is Back! Learn more and register here!
https://www.speechretreat.com ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ 

Freebie:
https://thepedispeechie.com/speech-therapy-tools 

Subscribe today and get access to my secret podcast filled with my juicy secrets for planning with ease for secondary speech students. 6 quick episodes that you can quickly listen to and feel refreshed and inspired! https://speechtimefun.com/secondarysecrets