Helpful Information About Working with OWLS Therapy for Your Child’s Speech Therapy Needs

OWLS Therapy is an in-home private practice. We can also travel to your child’s daycare, preschool, or private school once the necessary clearances and forms are completed. Our therapists are VIRTUS trained, meaning they can provide sessions within Catholic Schools. In addition to in-person therapy, OWLS Therapy provides teletherapy (virtual) sessions as well.

We schedule 30-minute sessions within the school setting, and 45–60-minute sessions in the home setting.

Therapy appointments are recurring timeslots. They may be one or multiple times per week, depending on the speech-language pathologist’s recommendations. Frequency of treatment is determined by a variety of factors, including type of disorder, skill set, maturity, severity of disorder, age, and comorbidities. There is also such a thing as too much therapy! The SLP will be able to make an informed recommendation based on the above factors.

Speech and language therapy isn’t always a quick fix! There is no one-size-fits-all recommended duration of therapy. Each child develops and progresses at different rates. It takes hard work over many months, or even years, depending on the severity of your child’s needs. However, with consistency, progress or complete remediation is possible. Additionally, parental involvement, such as completing exercises at home, can make speech therapy more effective.

Yes! At OWLS Therapy, we believe that parents and caregivers are integral to successful treatment. Parents and caregivers are welcome to observe sessions. For young learners, observations during sessions, or parts of sessions, is encouraged.

A therapy note will be provided following each speech session. This note will include data, therapy methods used, cues provided, activities completed, recommended strategies, homework, and at-home carryover ideas. In addition, the child’s SLP will participate in consistent communication via email or scheduled phone meetings to share progress updates.

Yes! Home practice is important for your child’s progress and generalization of skills. Repetitive practice increases motor learning. For younger children, home practice may be parent or caregiver focused, such as strategies to employ during play. For school-aged children, homework may consist of more structured practice.

Evaluations

Beginning speech and language services may not be something that you ever planned on having to experience. However, we are here to walk you through the process so you know what to expect. To begin, the speech-language pathologist will compile information regarding the difficulties that your child is experiencing from a range of sources. This can include anything from parent/teacher interviews to standardized tests to playing games and toys with your child. Once the speech-language pathologist has identified the area of need, determining the best course of treatment can begin. Depending on your child’s needs, therapy sessions may include one-on-one or in-classroom treatment to help build and generalize the carry-over of skills to all environments.

Therapy sessions have a beginning, middle, and end. Often, a session begins by reviewing home practice items and discussing any updates since the previous session. The session shifts into activities selected based on your child’s goals and interests. The length of speech therapy sessions is determined based on your child’s needs. Therapy sessions typically range from 45 minutes to 60 minutes in length. The appointment ends with a review of what was addressed during the session, parent/caregiver education, and information for home practice.