See Marnee and TinyEYE at ASHA 2008 in Chicago!!
Marnee's Presentations at ASHA:
Friday, November 21 9:30-10:30am: Speech Therapy Telepractice: Efficiencies, Efficacy, & Ethics (Session #0410)
Friday, November 21 at 2:00-3:00pm: Addressing Rural Populations & the Speech-Language Pathologist Shortage With Telepractice (Session #0414)
Visit Booth # 472 and Say Hello!
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"Play is the beginning of knowledge."
-- George Dorsey
Hi Everyone,
It is my joy to offer speech and language services through my on-line therapy office. What I tend to enjoy the most is the adventure I find myself on with my students. We float in the boat and catch fish, we visit a dinosaur and caveman, then we have just enough time to swim with the mermaids before the recess bell rings. For adults - this is called an escape from reality. For kids - this is called pretend play. I would like to share this article that I wrote when I was exploring the benefits of pretend play.
Read it if you would like - it is the first in a series of articles I will post about play and its relationship to communication development.
Benefits of Pretend Play
• Pretend play means "acting". For example, acting out a trip to the store, acting out housekeeping, acting out a story, and acting out gas station are all examples of pretend play. Besides being fun, play encourages language ability, literacy development, thinking skills, and imagination.
• Copy Cat! Children are eager to do what grown-ups do. Pretend play, props, and materials can encourage children to imitate adult's work and leisure activities. These activities help children to develop their language and interaction skills as they act out stories and activities of daily living. First, children need experiences with the real world to know how to imitate it.
• Many children create their first stories through pretend play as they involve characters, plots, problems, and solutions.
• Environments that simulate children's natural environments, such as a play-house or a pretend post office, help them to more easily transfer their emerging language skills from the pretend play setting to the real life setting. The play experience gives them extra practice with the vocabulary and with using social and language skills to interact.
Pretend Play Develops Language and Literacy Skills
• Story-telling skills-creating a story-line and characters
• Sequencing-putting the events of the story in order (beginning, middle, end)
• Logical thinking-thinking through what each character would do or say in a particular situation
• Imagination - creating mental pictures without the use of real objects (pet pony)
• Comprehension-understanding the flow of the story, and the responses, motives and actions of the characters
• Communication Skills - listening, explaining, considering another person's point of view...
Pretend Play Develops Social Skills
Quick Check: The following skills should be evident or developing in three year olds:
- Sharing, cooperating, and co-creating
- Leading an activity and imitating others
- Resolving conflicts and problem solving
- Following or declining a peer's idea
- Developing empathy and considering another person's point of view
- Getting a peer's attention, showing affection or hostility towards the peer
- Compromising, negotiating, controlling, and standing up for themselves
- Integrating what the child has learned about objects and people
- Taking Turns
- Learning to use and read non-verbal language, such as eye contact, gestures, and facial expression.
Have a great day!
If a school district in your area needs Speech-Language Pathologists, please let me know by email as we at TinyEYE can help!
Marnee Brick, MSc
Speech-Language Pathologist and Director of of Speech Therapy
TinyEYE Therapy Services (Speech Therapy Telepractice)
http://www.TinyEYE.com-Online Speech Therapy Telepractice
