Katherine G, the SLP

05/11/2026

Last week and this week, my theme for my therapy sessions has been Emotions ❤️💛💙

Learning to label emotions and identify how others are feeling is an important part of speech and language development in early childhood. When children can name emotions like happy, sad, frustrated, excited, or worried, they are better able to express their wants and needs, communicate their feelings appropriately, and build self-awareness.

Identifying emotions in others also helps children develop social skills, empathy, perspective-taking, and stronger peer relationships. These skills support conversations, play skills, problem-solving, and emotional regulation in everyday situations.

Throughout our therapy sessions, we’ve been using books, flash cards, play-based activities, discussions, and even a mirror to practice identifying facial expressions, labeling emotions, answering WH- questions, and building emotional vocabulary. 😊

Helping children understand emotions gives them the language and confidence to better connect with the world around them 🌈✨

04/07/2026

Join us for our Spring 2026 Parent/Child Workshop!

This 5-week series begins April 10 at 10:30 AM. It’s a fun, informal, play-based program for parents/caregivers and their children ages 1–3.

Families will have the opportunity to spend quality time together, make new friends, and talk one-on-one with a different community resource professional each week.

No registration required—tickets will be available 30 minutes prior to each session.

For more information cflib.info/kids or 281.290.3210 (option 3)

04/06/2026

GO TO THE LIBRARY STORY TIME!

As a pediatric speech-language pathologist, I see firsthand how powerful early experiences with language can be—and library story time is one of the best ones out there. 📚✨

Story time isn’t just about reading books. It’s about building the foundation for communication, literacy, and social connection. 🗣️💬 When children listen to stories, sing songs 🎶, and engage with others, they are learning new vocabulary, understanding sentence structure, and developing listening skills—all critical for speech and language development.

Even more importantly, story time creates opportunities for interaction. Pointing to pictures 👉📖, answering simple questions ❓, repeating phrases 🔁, and participating in songs 🎵 help children practice expressive and receptive language in a fun, low-pressure environment.

For little ones with speech or language delays, these moments are incredibly valuable. ❤️ Repetition, rhythm, and visual supports used during story time can boost comprehension and encourage participation.

And let’s not forget the social piece—taking turns 🤝, sitting with peers 👧👦, and engaging in group activities all support pragmatic (social) language skills.

Plus, it fosters a lifelong love of books—which is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children. 📚💖

And the best part? It’s completely FREE. 💛🆓

If you’re in the Houston area like I am, Harris County Public Library has excellent children’s programs such as Tales for Tails 🐶📖 (children reading to therapy dogs), Baby Story Time 👶📚, arts and crafts 🎨✂️, and much more.

Check out their website at https://hcpl.net/ 🌐 and find your nearest branch for activities and more! 📍

So next time you’re considering whether to attend library story time… go. It’s not just a fun outing—it’s an investment in your child’s communication and learning. 💬✨

04/03/2026

Can you guess what our thematic language theme is this week? 🐒🍌

We’re going BANANAS with a monkey theme! From silly stories to interactive play, themes like this make therapy engaging, memorable, and FUN for kids.

Why a thematic language approach works so well in childhood language therapy 👇
✨ Builds stronger connections – Kids hear and use the same vocabulary across books, play, and activities
✨ Increases repetition without boredom – Repetition is key for learning, and themes keep it exciting
✨ Supports deeper understanding – Children grasp concepts more easily when they’re connected
✨ Encourages participation – Familiar, playful themes boost confidence and communication

When learning feels like play, that’s where the magic happens 💛

03/19/2026

Why do I use the same books in my therapy sessions for at least a two-week period? 📚✨

Because repetition builds language 🧠💬 and children learn best through routine 🔁🗓️

Reading the same story multiple times helps children:
• Strengthen understanding and comprehension 📖
• Build vocabulary and expressive language 🗣️
• Gain confidence and participation 💪😊
• Predict what comes next, which supports learning 🔍

Repetition isn’t boring—it’s powerful! 💡 It creates comfort, familiarity, and the perfect environment for growth 🌱💕

Trust the process 💫

03/16/2026

Does any other SLP or pediatric therapist geek out over thematic units like me? 🙋‍♀️

There’s just something so fun about building a session around a theme and watching kids connect the pieces. Today’s farm unit brought out all the favorites—interactive books, manipulatives, matching activities, and plenty of chances to practice language and sounds while playing. 🐄🐖🐑

When therapy feels like play, everyone wins. 💚

Anyone else love a good themed session???

03/16/2026

Narrative language isn’t just about storytelling—it plays a major role in children’s memory, learning, and overall language development.

Research by Hill et al. (2025) found that children ages 4–7 who used stronger narrative structure (characters, setting, events, attempts, outcomes) when retelling stories were able to remember more story details later, even a week afterward. These kids also answered more comprehension questions correctly and produced more accurate retells.

Importantly, narrative structure predicted better recall even after accounting for general language ability, suggesting that explicitly targeting narrative skills may be especially valuable in therapy for children with developmental language disorder (DLD) and memory challenges.

The takeaway: narrative organization helps children encode and retrieve information. When kids learn to structure events into meaningful story elements, those details become easier to notice, understand, and remember.

This is just one more reason why narrative intervention is such a powerful tool in language therapy- it can support memory, comprehension, vocabulary, and literacy skills all at once.

https://www.theinformedslp.com/review/An-unforgettable-story?fbclid=IwY2xjawQlCpNleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFCaGMwOVFZSkRXenlNeTY1c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHgp2C5aOOS_tHRmQGn-uaEdO9KkvOH2pOI8SH9OlMWFZiuzCVT7zqB19gOVj_aem_zdlvHyf3CCPlSTQmkKhj6A

A better understanding of narrative structure predicts better recall and story comprehension.

03/07/2026

🗣️ SLPs, check this out!

Amazon currently has several Melissa & Doug therapy favorites for over 50% OFF! 🎉

These toys are amazing for speech sessions because they help with:
✨ vocabulary building
✨ pretend play
✨ requesting and describing
✨ turn-taking and social language

Parents and therapists may appreciate these deals too, especially if you're looking for fun ways to support communication and play at home or in sessions!

If you're looking to add some new materials without spending a ton, this is a great time to grab them!

🔗 Check out the deals here:
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Tag another SLP, parent, or therapist who loves a good learning toy deal! 👇

Monkeys can’t stop jumping and kids can’t stop popping! Poke the irresistible click-to-count buttons to hear satisfying “clicks” and “pops” as you count all the little monkeys! This sturdy 20-page interactive board book invites kids to pop along as they count all the little monkeys jumpi...

03/02/2026

Repetitive line books like Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and The Napping House are beloved favorites in early childhood because their rhythmic, predictable text invites participation and make reading feel fun and interactive. These books use repeating phrases and patterns that young children can start to “read” along with, building confidence and laying the foundation for strong early language skills.

As a speech-language pathologist who treats early childhood language disorders, I use repetitive line books in my practice frequently. Their predictable structure provides built-in opportunities for children to practice expressive language, target specific speech sounds, expand vocabulary, and build sentence structure in a supportive, low-pressure way.

📚 More great repetitive line books:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

We're Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen & Helen Oxenbury

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. & John Archambault

Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney

🌟 Why repetitive line books matter for language development

Repetitive text supports early language and communication in several ways:

--Predictability helps children anticipate words, boosting early literacy confidence and comprehension.

--Repeated phrasing reinforces vocabulary, strengthening word learning and recall.

--Supports speech-language goals, allowing children to practice articulation, expand utterances, and develop grammatical structures within a meaningful context.

--Encourages participation and turn-taking, which are key social communication skills.

--Builds narrative and sequencing skills, as children learn story structure through patterned progression.

We know how important it is to read with our children. Shared reading supports bonding, attention, listening skills, and overall language growth. I strongly encourage parents to incorporate repetitive line books into their home routines. Reading these books again and again is not only okay — it’s incredibly beneficial.

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?
https://amzn.to/3MSaLpI

The Napping House
https://amzn.to/4rEB5CK

The Very Hungry Caterpillar
https://amzn.to/3N8A0Eh

We're Going on a Bear Hunt
https://amzn.to/4rKMtNo

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
https://amzn.to/4cmUVOf

Llama Llama Red Pajama
https://amzn.to/4b1IyEK

Llama llama

02/23/2026

I love this idea from North Star Pediatric Speech Therapy!