B.F. Skinner said it best, "The way positive reinforcement is carried out is more important than the amount."
One of the fondest memories that I have from graduate school is the impact that positive reinforcement had with one of my clients. This child in particular loved penguins and up until I incorporated penguins into the session, I never really felt like I was getting very far with some of the therapy sessions. I started to incorporate penguins somehow within each session whether it was receiving a penguin sticker after producing 10 sounds or if it was receiving a piece of paper with penguin letterhead printed from the computer. Penguins made all of the difference because it helped the clinician and client to build a rapport based on the notion that the therapist took the time to incorporate an interest of the child. To an outsider looking in, this statement may sound a little unrealistic, but sometimes it surprises me how much the dynamics of a session can change by finding something that interests the child and/or adult. It is all in how the reinforcement is carried out because sometimes it is in the smallest ways that make the biggest difference. Some of the pictures above are a few of the the items that I have used with children as reinforcement during some of the sessions.
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Dysphagia is pronounced DIS~FAY~JAH and if you need an audio clip to hear how it is pronounced go to http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=dysphagia...Home Speech Provides a great resource entitled Dysphagia: The Essentials,
http://www.home-speech-home.com/dysphagia.html this is a great overview of Dysphagia and it provides a nice breakdown of the "essential" components of Dysphagia. If you are like me, visuals always are helpful and it is beneficial to have engaging videos while you are learning. View these YouTube videos for visuals of Modified Barium Swallow Studies....... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hf2kRD85zvc and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xu_YYOAlZEw... If you want a little more in depth tutorial of Identification of Swallowing Patterns Associated with Dysphagia, then you may want to check out this great resource http://www.d.umn.edu/csd/current/courses/swallowing/index.html on the University of Minnesota Duluth's website under the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders program. This great tutorial was developed by Mark Mizuko, John Hatten, Rachel Komarek (UMD) & Joe Piette & Peggy Stone(St.Mary's/Duluth Clinic Health Systems). Special Thanks to Diane Kulseth for recommending another great Dysphagia Nutrition website http://www.nestlenutritionstore.com. She said "They have a lot of great articles and products that fall in line with the National Dysphagia diet." "Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain." ~Author Unknown~ I love quotes and I try to find a new one everyday to write in my quote book. I came across this one today and absolutely loved it! I think this quote is great because it is so true! Personally, I can relate to this because I remember my first therapy session with a client and I got so wrapped up in the "small pebbles", such as "I hope the child is going to like this activity," "I wonder if this child will be receptive to my style of teaching?" and all of the questions and thoughts that poured into my head. During the therapy session, all of those "small pebbles" begin to disappear as my comfort level increased. I came out of the session feeling as though I had "crossed the mountain" and accomplished something great. Each of us may have different "small pebbles" in our lives that try to hinder us from our "mountain" (end result). If we can challenge ourselves to change our thought process and visualize the outcome that we are aiming for, then it becomes easier to take the steps necessary to surpass the pebbles in our lives to rise to bigger things. |
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