Smart Speech Therapy

Why ESL Doesn’t Fit: What Parents of Internationally Adopted Children Need to Know About Language Support

Tatyana Elleseff — Sun, 06 Apr 2025 20:30:54 +0000

During my recent webinar, Navigating Language Development of Older International Adoptees (April 3, 2025), hosted by Holt International, one of the most frequently asked questions from parents was: “Why shouldn’t my internationally adopted child attend ESL classes?” It’s a reasonable question—and one I hear often from well-meaning parents and educators who want to ensure their […]

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How to Use the Knowledge Acquisition and Transformation (KAT) Framework to Improve Reading and Writing Skills of Struggling Learners

Tatyana Elleseff — Thu, 01 Aug 2024 13:44:58 +0000

Knowledge Acquisition and Transformation (KAT) framework, developed by Wijekumar and colleagues, involves a systematic approach to teaching students how to comprehend and use text structures to enhance their reading and writing skills. Below is quick review regarding how SLPs can use it in therapy with reading and writing impaired learners. 1. Understanding Text Structures Teach the Students […]

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SPELL-Links™ Wordtivities Word Lists Review and Giveaway

Tatyana Elleseff — Sat, 10 Feb 2024 15:04:26 +0000

In 2020 I reviewed a product kit (instructional guide and cards) from SPELL-Links™ Learning By Design, Inc. entitled Wordtivities: Word Study Instruction for Spelling, Vocabulary, and Reading. Today, I am reviewing a companion to that product kit: SPELL-Links™ Wordtivities Word Lists. This 180-page guide contains sets of pattern-focused word lists for whole class, small group, and […]

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In Search of Evidence in the Era of Social Media Misinformation

Tatyana Elleseff — Sat, 16 Apr 2022 13:53:26 +0000

Social media forums have long been subject to a variety of criticism related to trustworthiness, reliability, and commercialization of content. However, in recent years the spread of misinformation has been steadily increasing in disproportionate amounts as compared to the objective consumption of evidence. Facebook, for example, has long been criticized, for the ease with which […]

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Dear SLPs, Don’t Base Your Language Intervention on Subtests Results

Tatyana Elleseff — Thu, 07 Apr 2022 19:14:53 +0000

For years, I have been seeing a variation of the following questions from SLPs on social media on a weekly if not daily basis: “My student has slow processing/working memory and did poorly on the (insert standardized test here), what goals should I target?” “Do you have sample language/literacy goals for students who have the […]

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Free Literacy Assessment Resources for SLPs

Tatyana Elleseff — Wed, 05 Jan 2022 01:25:15 +0000

A few years ago I wrote a post, which offered a compilation of FREE literacy resources for parents and professionals. Today I would like to expand upon my previous article by providing professionals with a compilation of free literacy assessment tools. Assessment tools tend to be expensive. Few professionals have unlimited budgets to purchase the […]

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Quality Assessments for Students with Suspected/Confirmed “APD”

Tatyana Elleseff — Tue, 04 Jan 2022 01:58:18 +0000

Recently I wrote a blog post offering a free handout for parents and professionals entitled, “Deconstructing Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) for Parents and Professionals: Informational Handout“. While it was incredibly well-received, it resulted in numerous professionals asking the same questions: How do we help students with “APD? What constitutes a good quality assessment for a […]

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Deconstructing Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) for Parents and Professionals: Informational Handout

Tatyana Elleseff — Thu, 30 Dec 2021 19:10:13 +0000

The diagnosis of auditory processing disorder (APD) has long been steeped in significant controversy. I have been writing about the serious issues surrounding it for a number of years. Today I am expanding upon the posts I wrote in the past on this subject by adding a link to a handout for parents and professionals […]

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The Science of Reading Literacy Certificate for SLPs: FAQs

Tatyana Elleseff — Tue, 20 Jul 2021 16:47:55 +0000

In August 2021, the CEU Smart Hub (Powered by the Lavi Institute) has launched a new certificate program: The Science of Reading (SOR) Literacy Certificate for SLPs. Because of the multitude of questions we have received in advance of the certificate rollout (Financial Disclosure: I am a 50% partner in the CEU Smart Hub/Power Up […]

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Review of Wordtivities by SPELL-Links

Tatyana Elleseff — Sun, 23 Feb 2020 15:41:13 +0000

Today I am reviewing a newly released (2019) kit (instructional guide and cards) from the Learning By Design, Inc. entitled Wordtivities: Word Study Instruction for Spelling, Vocabulary, and Reading. The 101-page instructional guide was created to address the students’ phonological awareness, spelling, reading, vocabulary, and syntax skills by having them engage with sounds, letters, and […]

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