Advocacy is our middle name. We say this because it is true in several ways – advocacy is the “A” in our name, but it is also at the forefront of everything we do. We advocate for our clients and their families’ rights in the education system, law, and therapeutic process. By many measures, our […]
Come join CHAT’s Associate Board for a night of chicken wings and philanthropy! At CHAT, we believe communication is a human right. All proceeds will enable CHAT to continue to offer speech therapy services to underserved children throughout Chicagoland, at no cost to their families. Cash Bar – Music – Hot Wings $25 General Admission:
Chicken Challenge & Social Read More »
The forecast is calling for clear skies and ☀️ sunshine, but just in case… our rain date will be Sunday, June 4, 2023. Come support CHAT at our family-friendly mini golf fundraiser! All proceeds will enable CHAT to continue to offer speech therapy services to underserved children throughout Chicagoland, at no cost to their families. Raffles
Mini Golf Fundraiser – Change Lives Putt by Putt Read More »
We hear it all the time from parents that CHAT is different, that CHAT SLPs really take the time to get to know their clients and tailor therapy to each child. Building rapport and establishing trusting relationships is key to the therapeutic process. When CHAT SLPs work to earn the trust of their students, that
Jax was 17 months old when he started reading. He quickly became infatuated with the alphabet but wasn’t interacting with his parents or exploring new things and couldn’t answer yes or no to questions. Jax’s parents were at a loss. The experts they consulted had no answers. The speech therapists weren’t helping. They searched for
All I want for Christmas… Such a well-known phrase. But such a hurdle for a child with limited vocabulary. One year ago, four-year-old Maya was not able to complete this phrase to tell her mother what she wanted for Christmas. Despite being in speech therapy since she was two years old because of a language
Give the gift of communication Read More »
‘Tis the season… for college applications and questions of “what’s next?” For high school juniors and seniors, this is a time of many possibilities. But what happens when a student is navigating a speech and language difficulty, as well as their future? Does their next step become more uncertain? Does their dream of following their
Over the last few months, we have shared with you some of the impact that CHAT has on the children we serve: children with few – if any – other options for speech and language therapy services. Most recently, we shared Corey’s story in our annual appeal to your postal mailboxes. If you have
Give to CHAT this holiday season! Read More »
Every day, CHAT works to serve children with few – if any – other options for speech and language therapy. One such child is Corey, a 16-year-old from the west side of Chicago. One in 12 children has a speech and language disorder, and Corey is one of them. He is also on Medicaid and
Annual Appeal – Corey’s Story Read More »
Speech Language Pathologists (SLPs) help students develop their communication skills. But often, and core to our mission, CHAT SLPs serve another person a student’s life – to advocate for their needs and help them to be their own best advocates. This was the case with Devon. Devon has selective mutism, which is a commonly misunderstood
We’ve all just lived through the annual ritual of back to school. While many students were busy picking out their first-day outfits and comparing schedules with friends, others faced the return to school with trepidation. For families of children with learning and emotional disabilities, typical back-to-school worries seem like luxuries, as the return to school
On August 27th, members of the CHAT team (including CEO Karine Fiore, SLP Shanah Slade, SLPA Nadia Ibrahim, and Associate Board member Myles Francis) took part in Salaam Community Wellness Center’s First Integrative Health and Wellness Expo. It is the mission of the Center to help build and support healthy communities by empowering them through
LOMBARD – July 13, 2022 – CHAT – Life Changing Speech Therapy (CHAT) has been chosen as one of eight Chicago region non-profits to receive “Project Innovation” grants from the Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation and NBCUniversal Local, a division of NBCUniversal that is home to NBC/Telemundo owned stations. The grants are being given to 90 organizations that
CHAT – Life Changing Speech Therapy Chosen as Comcast/NBC5 Projection Innovation Grantee Read More »
For the first time ever, CHAT participated in Giving DuPage Days. This was a five-day virtual fundraiser (May 2nd to May 6th) to spur giving to over 95 local non-profits. During that week, CHAT was busy sharing information about who we are, why we exist, and our impact on children to potential donors through email
CHAT Raises Money Through Giving DuPage Days 2022 Read More »
We closed our clinic on Monday, October 11, in observance of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, and gathered our staff for team-building. This day is particularly relevant to our mission as a nonprofit dedicated to providing inclusive and culturally responsive services. To that end, it was important for us to take the time to acknowledge the meaning behind this reclaimed
CHAT SLP Team Gathers for Indigenous Peoples’ Day Read More »
LOMBARD, ILLINOIS, MAY 28, 2021—There’s no doubt that outgoing Franco Bibbiano is a confident 14-year-old. But that was not always true for this boy with Down syndrome who struggled to articulate and share his thoughts and ideas with others. Franco will now take center stage and cut the ribbon at the Friday, June 4 (4:30-6:00
Most hyperlexic learners (HxLs) begin to communicate using delayed echolalia based on written language they have read. These scripts, or gestalts, can be meaningful and have purposeful intent! It is our job, as providers and caregivers, to figure out what our HxL is trying to communicate, and help them use the right language. We are lucky in that we can support our HxLs by modeling the target language by writing it down!
Let’s CHAT about Hyperlexia: Echolalia Read More »
This presentation discusses the top mental health conditions in children in the US currently–ADHD, emotional-behavioral issues/disorders, and anxiety/depression–and how these disorders may affect communication and/or co-occur with various speech and language disorders. It is imperative that speech-language pathologists keep mental health in mind when treating speech/language, and this presentation provides insight about various ways SLPs
Speech Therapy and Mental Health Advocacy: What is Our Role? Read More »
May marks both Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Better Speech and Hearing Month! With heightened anti-Asian violence, India’s COVID-19 crisis, and the invisibilization of Pacific Island communities, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (API) have been thrust into the spotlight. Yet many Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders refuse to define themselves solely by their oppression. With diverse heritages and languages, API activists have historically come together in solidarity to meet the linguistic, social, and
API Heritage Month Read More »
Templates are consistent written prompts that help organize information or create a narrative. Templates are an important tool that can support writing, summarizing, retelling, storytelling, and so much more. Hyperlexic learners (HxLs) benefit from the patterned and predictable support that templates can provide!
Let’s CHAT about Hyperlexia: Templates Read More »
The importance of focusing more than fluency in stuttering therapy
Comprehensive and Inclusive View of Stuttering Management and Therapy Read More »
An examination of current research to support teachers with vocal disorders
Voice Hygiene for the Educational Professional Read More »
Providing written scripts is one of the best ways to promote expressive language use for hyperlexic learners (HxLs). We can model whole sentences in writing that our HxLs can read and use functionally to express their wants, needs, knowledge, opinions, and so much more!
Let’s CHAT about Hyperlexia: Scripts Read More »
Many of our HxLs have incredible memory capacity that allows for immense vocabulary knowledge! We like to label items around our clinic, important parts of the story while reading a book, language concepts during therapy activities, and so much more! How do you support your hyperlexic learner with labeling and describing?!
Let’s CHAT about Hyperlexia: Labeling and Describing Read More »