Archives for May 2019

From the time your children are born, you nurture and protect them, guiding them through the intricacies of growing up. But at some point, you have to send them out into the real world. You can only hope that you’ve prepared them for the challenges that they’ll face.

But what if they’re being bullied? It’s probably not something that you planned for, and it can be tough for their young minds to comprehend. For their entire lives, everyone has been nice, and now someone is suddenly being mean. And you’re not going to stand for it. Here are some ways to deal with your child getting bullied.

Explain What’s Happening
Once you realize that your child is being bullied, make sure that they understand what is happening. They may be blaming themselves, thinking that they’ve done something wrong. Children need to understand that bullies have a problem, and that their behavior isn’t acceptable.

Gather Information
It’s important to let your child know that you’ll need to get other people involved to stop the bullying. They may be scared of what will happen when the bully finds out. They need to understand that it’s the bully that’s in trouble and not them. When you’re talking to your child, let them know that you’ll need as much information as possible to make the bully stop.

• What is the bully’s name?
• Is it just one person or a group of kids?
• Where is it happening?
• When is it happening?
• What are they doing?

Make Contact
Once you have all of the details, it’s time to make contact. Reaching out to the bully or their parents might not be the best idea.

If the bullying is happening at school, you’d want to contact the principal first. They can intervene, notifying the bully’s parents, and possibly arrange some sort of intervention that could solve the problem.

If it’s happening at a local club or other organization, you would want to speak to whomever is in charge. Your goal is to involve a third party with authority who will investigate the issue, involving the bully’s parents at some point.

Follow Up
Once all parties are aware of the bullying issue, there should be a zero tolerance policy concerning any threatening behavior. If your best efforts have failed, and the bullying continues, you could have legal options. Children aren’t allowed to threaten or harm other children.

If your child has been diagnosed with a speech or language delay, there is plenty you can do at home to reinforce the lessons they learn during their time with a speech therapist. Check out these eight ways to help your child develop language skills.

Reduce Audio Distractions
Although it may seem counter-intuitive, having the TV on or music playing are audio distractions for a child with a speech delay. Better to shut off the noise for a while, so that you and your child can talk to one another, one-on-one, with better clarity.

Speak Often
Encouraging a dialogue encourages speech, so it helps to talk (in short sentences) about what you’re doing, putting names on the objects you’re handling and repeating those words frequently.

Speak Clearly
Depending on your child’s age and their individual speech assessment, speak distinctly and in short, concise sentences. Model proper sentence structure, but keep it simple.

Repeat Often
In conversation, repeat what your child says back to you so they know that you understand what has been said. Consider adding on to what they say, perhaps by using a descriptor. “You want the ball?” “Do you want the red ball?”

Use Sign Language
Researchers have discovered that using sign language helps children with speech delays learn how to communicate until their verbal skills improve. This reduces frustration that may arise from the difficulty they have making their wants and needs known. You don’t have to memorize every sign in ASL, just check out YouTube videos for some basic signs to get you started.

Make A Game Out Of Mouth Muscle Exercises
Whether your child’s speech therapist has recommended the old button-and-string pull, or frequent use of a crazy straw, try to make a game out of the exercises so they enjoy them more.

Ask Them Questions
Give them a choice between two objects and ask them to pick. Do you want grapes or strawberries? Do you want milk or juice? Ask them to identify objects for which they may already recognize the words, such as Where’s the dog? or Where’s your sister?

Play
One of the best, and most fun, things you can do to support your child’s speech development is to play with them one-on-one. Even simple throw-and-catch games allow for an exchange of short sentences within the context of the game. Sing rhyming songs, and point out birds, trees, and other aspects of the natural world, all which help your child make the necessary language connections.