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PODCAST

The Preschool SLP

Kelly Vess, MA, CCC-SLP

Are you an agent of change? Looking to create real, life-long change in your work and in yourself? Ready to turn your visions into reality? Looking to work smarter, not harder—and have lots of fun along the way? Every Thursday, join international author, researcher, and speaker Kelly Vess to put only the best research to work. Kelly covers effective, practical strategies for children AND therapists to thrive. You are a miracle. Your time here is short. Let’s make the most of it. Follow Kelly

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All Episodes

28:59

204. The R Workout: Applying Exercise Science to Fix...

The Preschool SLP ·

2026/01/22

What if the problem with treating the R sound isn’t the child—but the way we train it? In today’s episode, we step outside the field of speech-language pathology and borrow powerful, evidence-based principles from exercise science and kinesiology to rethink how we treat speech sound disorders. Why? Because exercise science has done what our field largely hasn’t: isolated what actually works using controlled trials, precision, and specificity. Speech is a complex neuromuscular skill. Treating ...

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29:09

203. Consonant Clusters Aren’t Too Hard: They’re the...

The Preschool SLP ·

2026/01/15

Are consonant clusters really “too complex” for kids with severe speech sound disorders—or have we been aiming too low? This episode tackles one of the most persistent myths in speech therapy: that children with childhood apraxia of speech, autism, or severe speech delay aren’t ready for clusters. I’m unpacking the real science behind complexity, coarticulation, and system-wide change—and why waiting for “readiness” often slows progress rather than supporting it. Let's break down three common...

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17:22

202. When AAC Feels Hard, It’s Working: What...

The Preschool SLP ·

2026/01/08

If you work with children who are minimally speaking with autism or you love a child who is minimally speaking, today’s episode matters. Over the past year, I’ve been doing something deeply intentional. I’ve been having long, honest conversations with speech pathologists and special education teachers who are truly effective with high-tech AAC. These weren’t quick chats. Each interview ran over an hour. I asked open-ended questions. I pushed for specifics. I wanted to know what is actually wo...

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14:19

Six Self-Care Swaps for Peak Performance in Therapy

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/12/18

If you work with children who have complex communication needs, you already know this truth: you cannot pour from an empty cup. In this episode, I share six realistic self-care swaps I use from morning to night to support energy, focus, and emotional regulation in the work we do. These are not trends. They are practical, research-informed adjustments that help me show up fully present in therapy sessions, even during long, demanding days. As winter approaches and energy dips, comfort-fo...

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14:07

201. The Movie Every SLP and Special Educator Needs...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/12/11

If you work with parents of children with special needs, this episode is non-negotiable. Instead of diving into research, we’re heading straight into a film that delivers the kind of uncomfortable clarity our field rarely gets. Today, we break down If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You—Mary Bronstein’s raw, emotionally accurate look into the lived experience of parenting a neurodivergent child—and why every SLP, special educator, and early-intervention professional needs to watch it. This movie exposes...

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25:37

My Five Favorite Literacy Habits That Boost Early...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/12/04

If you love weaving books into speech and language therapy, this episode is absolutely your lane. In this conversation, Kelly breaks down a 2025 scoping review on early language development and reading aloud, then translates it into five practical literacy “hacks” you can use with preschool and early elementary students starting tomorrow. She pulls zero punches about the study design: you’ll hear exactly what a scoping review is (and isn’t), why it doesn’t carry the same weight as a systemati...

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17:19

199. Selective Mutism + Hectic Holidays — Make Sure...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/11/20

Children who speak freely at home but shut down in public aren’t being stubborn. Their capacity is getting crushed by the demands of new people, new settings, and unpredictable routines. In this episode, we break down how to build capacity using the PRIDE approach—explicitly adapted for reluctant speakers and children with selective mutism. You’ll hear how to shift out of “thermostat mode” and into “mime mode,” using 10 minutes a day of pure responsiveness to lower pressure, increase connecti...

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20:02

198. Put PRIDE to Work to Improve Behavior:...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/11/13

If you serve young children with behavior challenges, this episode delivers a framework you can put to work immediately. Today, we break down the PRIDE skills: five evidence-based behavior strategies drawn from Parent-Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT) and Teacher-Child Interaction Training (TCIT). These methods have more than 50 years of empirical support and consistently improve behavior, engagement, emotional regulation, and communication across diverse populations. You’ll learn how to...

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41:24

197. Ten Predictors of Poor Progress in Speech...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/11/06

If you treat speech sound disorders (SSD) and you’re not seeing the gains you expect, this episode is your playbook. We cut through the noise and name the 10 research-informed predictors of slower progress—attention/self-monitoring limits, sensitive temperament, co-occurring language/working-memory load, hearing impairment (fricatives/affricates), motor speech factors, structural constraints (e.g., open bite), low stimulability, later start to intervention, low therapy intensity/irregular att...

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31:42

196. 10 Reasons to Use the ‘Look at’ Sentence Strip...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/10/30

If you work with children with autism who are minimally speaking, this episode is a must-listen. We’re breaking down why the “Look at” sentence strip has been a total game-changer in my therapy room—and why it consistently helps children begin to speak, connect, and comment on the world around them. After 25 years of practice, I can tell you this tool does more than encourage speech—it builds neurological pathways for speech to flow. You’ll learn: ✅ The neuroscience behind why repetition and...

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20:58

195. Groundbreaking Autism Study Reveals How Autism...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/10/24

Discover how a 2025 Nature autism study transforms early intervention in speech language pathology. Learn how family history, genetics, and executive function shape assessment, therapy planning, and lifelong communication outcomes. If you work with children with autism, this episode will change how you think about early intervention forever. A major 2025 study published in Nature titled Polygenic and developmental profiles of autism differ by age of diagnosis has revealed that early onset aut...

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21:52

194. 5 Myths About High-Tech AAC—Debunked by Research

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/10/16

If you work with minimally speaking children or children with autism, this episode is a must-listen. Speech-language pathologist Kelly Vess takes on the five biggest myths about high-tech AAC (augmentative and alternative communication)—and backs every point with current peer-reviewed research. Learn why high-tech AAC devices: ✅ Do not require self-regulation or joint attention first ✅ Are not too complex for preschoolers ✅ Increase social interaction rather than limit it ✅ Should no...

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21:49

193. Teaching Little Kids Big Sentences: The Most...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/10/09

Today’s episode is a can’t-miss if you work with children with developmental language disorder (DLD) or developmental language delays. I’m sharing my #1 most powerful responsive language strategy—one that works with every child on your caseload, regardless of temperament. We’re going beyond basic expansions and simple recasts. Instead, I’ll show you how to transform simple sentences into complex ones by adding finite clauses—what I like to call “clausing.” You’ll hear about peer-reviewed rese...

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31:33

192. Are Final Clusters the Overlooked Key to Bigger...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/10/02

If you work with children with speech sound disorders, this episode is a must-listen. We’re diving into cutting-edge research on final consonant clusters—a treatment target that has been largely overlooked but may unlock powerful generalization gains. For decades, evidence has shown that choosing complex targets leads to greater overall progress. Now, new research suggests that working on final 3-element clusters may be just as effective—and possibly more efficient—than the traditional initia...

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24:28

4 Strategies to Build Decontextualized Language for...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/09/25

If you work with preschool or early elementary students, this episode is a must-listen. We’re diving into decontextualized language—a skill that’s rarely discussed but critical for literacy and academic success. Decontextualized language is when children talk about things outside the here and now—past events, future plans, ideas, feelings, and abstract thinking. Why does it matter? Research spanning over 20 years shows that children with strong decontextualized language skills in presch...

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16:44

190. How to Use Digital Tools to Actually Boost...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/09/17

Are you ready to go digital the right way in your therapy sessions? Today, we’re diving into the latest systematic review research on using digital tools to improve preschoolers’ language and literacy outcomes. The evidence is clear: digital media can be a powerful tool — when it’s used intentionally. In this episode, you’ll discover five key strategies that work, including: Why children should never be left alone with a deviceHow to make digital activities multimodal and engagingThe language...

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29:45

189. AAC for Social Communication: Research, Reality,...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/09/11

If you work with minimally speaking children using low-tech or high-tech AAC, this episode is for you. A brand-new systematic review just dropped — but the published research is sparse, messy, and often mislabeled. Today, we’ll dig through the “recycle bin” of studies to uncover what actually works, why commenting is more powerful than requesting, and how to take action on Monday morning. You’ll learn: Why many so-called “commenting interventions” are really prompted responses, not true initi...

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19:11

188. Does Telepractice for Speech Sound Disorders Work?

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/09/04

Is telepractice just as effective as in-person therapy for treating speech sound disorders? In this episode, we take a realistic, research-driven look at what the evidence really says about speech telepractice—and what factors determine whether it works. You’ll discover: The exact client profiles that are NOT a good fit for telepractice.The active ingredients that make telepractice sessions as effective as in-person therapy.Why dose isn’t just about reps—and how complex targets create massive...

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29:52

187. The 3 Biggest Goal-Writing Mistakes (and How to...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/08/28

Are your speech therapy goals actually creating change or just filling space on an IEP? In this episode, I share the three biggest mistakes I made in writing goals (and what to do instead). You’ll learn how to: Write measurable annual goals that track real growth.Use complex clusters and the complexity approach to accelerate progress.Show parents exactly how to cue, fade prompts, and buy-in to accomplish the quarterly objective so they become co-interventionists right from the start.Avoid clu...

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19:05

186. Speech Sound Disorder Goals Made Easy: Try This...

The Preschool SLP ·

2025/08/21

If you work with children with speech sound disorders, this episode is for you. I’m breaking down my simple 3-step method for writing speech goals that not only improve clarity but also empower parents and the entire intervention team to stay on the same page. You’ll learn how to: Use your single word standardized speech tests to track progress with confidenceWrite easy to measure annual goals that are reliable to connected speechCreate clear, evidence-based objectives that scaffold from maxi...

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206 results

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