If you have been following me on social media, you know that I am part of the quartet of SLP bloggers responsible for the Speech Retreat. I’ve been getting a lot of questions about it, so I wanted to share what exactly it is!
The Speech Retreat is a new kind of professional development for school based speech-language pathologists – it is an entire day of practical, hands-on ideas and advice that you can immediately implement to make your life as a busy school SLP easier and more efficient!
Our goal is for therapists to leave refreshed, recharged, and ready to tackle the new school year with increased confidence and ideas. It started in 2017 with events in Anaheim and Chicago, with stops in NYC in 2018, and Raleigh and Houston in 2019.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, our July 18, 2020 event is completely virtual and online! More details at www.speechretreat.com.
The Speech Retreat is a collaborative effort between myself, Hallie Sherman from Speech Time Fun, Felice Clark from The Dabbling Speechie, and Maureen Wilson from The Speech Bubble SLP. It is designed for school-based and/or pediatric speech-language pathologists, as well as CFs, SLP-As, and graduate students. We aim to provide over 300 therapy ideas that you can return home and immediately implement in therapy the next day!
One of our guiding principles behind planning the Speech Retreat was to be transparent and honest about what it is like to live the #speechlife, and for our attendees to know they aren’t alone in their challenges, and offer them solutions. The real #speechlife is not always beautifully organized, or with thoroughly planned therapy sessions, or stress-free. But it is, as I think most SLPs would agree, one of the best jobs in the world!
We also have been to SO many professional development sessions that just weren’t that useful, or covered only a small portion of our caseload. Our goal is to give our attendees therapy ideas to work with a majority of their elementary caseload.
Our topics have varied a bit from event to event, but some of our sections have included:
- Power Hour: Organization, Data Collection, & more
- 30 Ideas for Therapy That Take 30 Seconds – or Less – to Prep
- Make and Takes – practical ideas that our attendees were able to leave the retreat with an implement the next day
- Adapting Materials for Different Ages & Disorders
- Easy Articulation Ideas
- Literacy Therapy
- Social Skills
We have also had some amazing giveaways over the years, including from some generous sponsors, including:
- Therapy Travelers
- Speech Pathology Group
- The Informed SLP
- Erik X Raj
- Smarty Ears
- Ooly Ooly
- Peaceable Kingdom
- Teachers Pay Teachers
- Raymond Geddes
- Dinky Doo Dads on Etsy
- Charmingly SLP on Etsy
- The Type B SLP on Etsy
- The Pencil Grip
- Kwik Sticks
and so many more!
I must admit, I’m much more comfortable behind a computer screen than I am up on stage in front of a crowd, but presenting with some of my best friends and in front of such an amazing audience made it such a wonderful experience!
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I would come if you came to Nashville TN
We’re unable to travel this year, but we did move online! Join us July 18, 2020 for our first ever virtual Speech Retreat! More details at http://www.speechretreat.com
Sounds interesting. I would like to come.
We’d love to have you join us! We’ve moved online this year – find more details about our July 18, 2020 event at http://www.speechretreat.com.
I need more details about cost, etc….
Hi there! You can find all the details about our current virtual retreat on July 18 at http://www.speechretreat.com.