The Power of Two: How Co-Treatments Can Transform Your Child's Therapy
Sarah Sidwell Sarah Sidwell

The Power of Two: How Co-Treatments Can Transform Your Child's Therapy

At Ability Innovations, our goal is to be interdisciplinary. We believe that by working together, we can provide better care and achieve greater success for the children we work with. According to Nick and Megan, co-treating offers several key benefits:

  • Better Outcomes: When two therapists from different specialties work together, a child often makes greater progress in both areas. The therapists can build on each other's work and augment the benefits of each session. For example, an OT might work on a child's core strength on a swing, while the SLP uses that regulated state to encourage communication and language skills.

  • Efficiency for Parents: Co-treating can significantly shorten the time a family has to spend at the clinic. Instead of attending two separate appointments, you can get two therapies in one session. This is a huge time-saver for busy families.

  • Holistic Care: Therapy isn't just about one specific skill; it's about helping a child function better in the world. By combining two disciplines, therapists can address multiple goals at once. Megan shared a great example of a scavenger hunt she did with an OT. While the child was working on fine motor skills and handwriting with the OT, Megan had them practice and write words that targeted their speech sounds.

Read More
Sensory Avoidance Vs. Sensory Seeking
Sarah Sidwell Sarah Sidwell

Sensory Avoidance Vs. Sensory Seeking

In the world of occupational therapy, sensory processing plays a vital role in helping individuals navigate their daily lives. Two common sensory patterns—sensory avoidance and sensory seeking—represent opposite ends of the sensory spectrum. Sensory avoidance refers to individuals who are overwhelmed or distressed by certain sensory input, such as bright lights, loud noises, or specific textures. These individuals often withdraw from stimuli, preferring quiet, calm environments. In contrast, sensory seekers actively crave sensory input and may engage in behaviors like touching everything around them, making loud noises, or constantly moving.

Read More
Is Your Child Struggling? Here’s What to Know About Pediatric Speech Therapy
Sarah Sidwell Sarah Sidwell

Is Your Child Struggling? Here’s What to Know About Pediatric Speech Therapy

If you've ever wondered about the signs of a language delay in a child or the benefits of speech therapy, the video "What Is Pediatric Speech Therapy?" by Ability Innovations provides a helpful overview. The video focuses on pediatric speech therapy for children from birth to 21 years old and highlights a play-based approach to treatment.

Read More
Hodson’s Cycle Approach: Why I Love It and Why It’s Great for So Many Kids
Speech Therapy Sarah Sidwell Speech Therapy Sarah Sidwell

Hodson’s Cycle Approach: Why I Love It and Why It’s Great for So Many Kids

If your child is highly unintelligible or has multiple phonological patterns, Hodson’s Cycles can help them become more understandable quickly. Here are some of the reasons I love this approach:

Quick Improvement: By focusing on primary speech patterns that impact overall intelligibility, we often see faster results.

Suitable for Young Children: It works for kids as young as 3 years old.

Personalized Targets: We select specific patterns and words tailored to each child, usually only 4-5 words instead of a long list of words.

Word-Level Focus: We only need to work at the word level to see improvements.

Generalization: Working on specific patterns or sounds often improves other sounds that aren’t directly targeted.

Phonological Awareness: Hodson’s cycles includes phonological awareness activities that may boost literacy outcomes.

Fun and Fast: The method is engaging and can be done quickly.

Read More