Another view of the family cos they are so cute!

Jj is for Jottings 20. The Other Side of the Coin.

Last time I talked about the important role speech pathologists can play in literacy, and this is quite true. In theory, we can make a huge difference. However, as with learning any new skills or working to improve existing skills, practice is paramount. So, while the speech pathologist may set homework consisting of exercises which are tailored specifically for a child’s unique set of difficulties, it is not going to be very effective without good follow-up at home. This is broadly in two parts: 5-10 minutes per day of the exercises set, and more general ongoing work which may consist of reminding about particular sounds or language structures in conversation, pointing out sounds or language structures in the parents’ own conversation, looking for opportunities to broaden a specific exercise into everyday situations, checking that the child understands word meanings, looking for opportunities to explain new word meanings, and so on. One half-hour session per fortnight (in my case – it may be different in other situations) is not going to make much difference if the work is not followed up properly at home. And let me tell you, it’s very frustrating to know that you have devised an appropriate therapy plan for a child, but progress is not being made as it should because of minimal or no regular practice at home.
Learning to read and spell is a similar situation. Obviously children receive more input at school than half an hour a fortnight, but without regular practice at home children will not learn effective literacy skills and will not feel comfortable with reading and spelling. Then everything to do with literacy becomes a chore for the child and a negative spiral is set up. There is a school of thought (if you will pardon the pun) that literacy and numeracy and various other things are the school’s job to teach, and the not the parents’ role. It is the school’s job to teach these things, but it is the parents’ job to practise with their children. Similarly, young people attend driving lessons where they learn how to drive, but it the parents’ job to give them the time to practise what they have learned. Not to teach them, but to assist them to consolidate their skills. In the field of sport (the puns are coming thick and fast today) it is universally accepted that you need to keep practising to improve your game. It’s just the same with learning speech, language and literacy.