March 2025 Newsletter

As March comes to a close, it’s hard to believe how quickly 2025 is flying by! We’re nearing the end of the first term, and our clinic is as busy as ever. We hope you’re feeling prepared as we head into the final stretch of the term and making great progress toward your goals.

In this newsletter, we’ll highlight the value of using questions in everyday conversation and how this simple practice can significantly enhance communication and expression.

Our ‘Resource of the Month’ for March is Bubbles! Keep reading to discover how we use bubbles in the clinic to support our clients in reaching their communication milestones.

We’re also thrilled to introduce two new team members this month. Meet Angelina and Alyssia, who have joined our wonderful team of speech therapists at Eastside!

Importance of Questions

Questions, Questions, Questions.

We all use questions in our everyday conversations. Some questions help us gain –

• information. These include “who, “what”, “where”, “when” and “how” questions
• gain reassurance or confirmation, such as “Is it?” and “Does it?”
• check or test that the other person has understood
• give instructions politely or gently, such as ‘would you like to get your bag?” “instead of “get your bag!”

Sometimes we use questions in games, like “hide and seek”, “20 questions”, “Animal, Vegetable or Mineral”, “Go Fish”, “Guess Who”, or “Hedbanz”. It can be fun. These types of games help learn and practice using questions.

For young children, “Where’s Spot?”, “Whose Tail?” and the other lift-the-flap books in these series and others are great to practice using questions.

Sometimes questions can be toxic. Using lots of questions can make the other person feel reluctant to join in or answer. They may feel “bombarded” or overwhelmed by lots of questions. We often use questions to show what our children can do, or when we are trying to teach them. Children who are peppered with questions often stop interacting or refuse to answer.

Sometimes questions can be confusing. A good rule of thumb is: don’t ask a “yes/no” question (that is a question that is answered by “yes” or “no”) if you really mean to give an instruction or direction.

For example: if it’s time to go somewhere in the car, don’t say:” Would you like to get in the car?”. If the young child responds “NO!” you may have an argument on your hands. You could say: “It’s time to get in the car, can you climb in yourself?” – which gives a clear message but might give a child some feeling of control in the process.

Ask “yes/no” questions when an answer of either “yes” or “no” is okay. For example: “Do you want the red cup or the blue cup?”

Use your questions to:

show your interest in what they are doing;

create some excitement or anticipation in an activity

offer suitable choices or engage in decisions (at a developmentally appropriate level)

Resource of the Month: Bubbles

Bubbles are not only fun, but they’re also a powerful tool for supporting speech and language development. Here’s how to make the most of them:

• Speech Sounds: Use bubbles to practice words with /b/, /p/, and /m/ sounds like “bubble,” “pop,” and “more.”
• Following Directions: Start with simple commands like “Blow a bubble!” and increase difficulty over time.
• Vocabulary: Introduce descriptive words like “big,” “float,” and “sticky.”
• Taking Turns: Model phrases like “My turn” and “Your turn.”
• Building Sentences: Encourage phrases like “Wow, a big bubble!”
• Answering Questions: Ask questions like “What happens when you touch a bubble?”

For added variety, try scented, colored, or giant bubbles to keep things engaging. This simple tool can make a significant impact on language learning.

Meet out new team member: Angelina

Angelina is a passionate and experienced speech therapist dedicated to helping individuals enhance their communication skills. She has a strong background in pediatric speech therapy and language development, bringing empathy, expertise, and a client-centered approach to her work.

She believes in empowering individuals and their families through personalized strategies and evidence-based practices.

Meet our new team member: Alyssia

Alyssia enjoys working with both children and adults as a Speech Pathologist, supporting effective communication. She is passionate about providing patient-centred, holistic care to suit individuals of all ages. Alyssia’s friendly and warm nature assists her in making experiences with clients positive, as well as help them reach their goals.

Alyssia has experience providing care across hospitals, schools, and paediatric clinics. Alyssia has a particular interest in supporting adults with Parkinson’s and Aphasia, as well as working with children with Developmental Language Delays, Autism and fluency difficulties.

Alyssia is dedicated to building meaningful connections with clients and families from diverse backgrounds.