Methods of intervention with non-native French-speaking children
Towards perfect synergy: Parental partnership and speech therapy
Attention all speech therapy enthusiasts! I am thrilled to tell you more about our newly published article. Accompanied by Lorianne Lacerte , we had the honor of being featured in the “Journal de Rééducation Orthophonique” with our study entitled “Parental support in speech therapy: an overview of clinical practice in Quebec”.
Our approach was to highlight the dynamics of parental partnership and its crucial role in successful speech therapy. We delved into Quebec clinical practices to observe how professionals integrate families into the rehabilitation process and what synergy can result.
This article is the result of hard work and close collaboration. We outline the strategies implemented to enable speech-language pathologists to become true partners with parents in speech-language therapy interventions, an aspect that can revolutionize outcomes for children.
Imagine a world where speech therapy isn't limited to the usual sessions between therapist and patient. A world where parents are true partners, actively involved in their children's therapeutic process. This is precisely the vision our publication reveals.
If you are a speech therapist, a parent, or simply interested in the impact of therapies on child development, our article offers enriching and innovative perspectives.
Don't hesitate to dive into this captivating read, accessible via [this link] —> https://www.orthoedition.com/revues/n-297-le-partenariat-parental-4442 .
I look forward to your impressions and am open to any discussion on these new practices.
The role of parents in observation
As a general rule, parents should be trusted, and any parental concerns should always be addressed. In my clinical and parental experience, a parent's instinct is always well-founded!
But what if we have questions about the child and their language? What resources could a professional help with in the meantime?
Means of intervention and support
There are many possible support measures, strategies that are truly effective. One or more of the following strategies can be offered as needed:
- To provide more time to process information
- Repeat the instructions
- Confirm that the student has understood the instructions by asking them to repeat/rephrase them.
- Use gestures
- Provide models of what is expected of the child
- Encourage the child to respond in any way they can: gestures, isolated words, another language
- Allow the child to respond in their native language and then provide the model in the second language (this way, you validate the child's understanding).
- Provide visual aids (images, organizational diagrams, narrative structure, etc.)
- Highlight critical information
- Teaching academic vocabulary explicitly
- Making connections between new information to be learned and past knowledge
All these strategies are valid and should be implemented systematically, one by one. It's not about trying everything at once, but rather about adapting to the student.
In a school setting, these resources could be part of an individualized intervention plan overseen by a specialized education professional.
If you would like more support regarding your work with these children, I have also developed a pre-recorded training course just for you. You can read all the details here:
Strategies for promoting the mother tongue
Finally, there are more general strategies for promoting the mother tongue that I often advise families to use, and that you too can advise them on for lasting bilingualism and a love for all these languages:
- For some families, it is possible to travel to the parents' country of origin.
- Celebrating family origins by cooking traditional meals
- Celebrate traditional holidays and continue family customs related to language/culture
- Listening to music in the home language
- Singing songs or nursery rhymes with your child in your home language
- Visit multicultural grocery stores to find foods from “home”
- Reading books in the home language
- Trying to find children's podcasts, children's radio shows, or even high-quality programs in the local language
- Surround yourself with family/friends of the same culture/ethnicity
Hopefully these tips will be as useful to you as they are to the families you work with!
