BNM Professional Consulting Services, Inc.

Though speech disorders in children are actually very common, it can sometimes be difficult to identify them. Some speech disorders are harder to detect than others, but it’s important to try and understand the signs of some of the most common speech disorders so that you, as a parent, can potentially spot them in your children.

If you’re someone who’s worried that your child may be struggling with a speech disorder but aren’t exactly sure what signs to look out for, read on to learn more about 3 common types of speech disorders in children:

Stuttering

Stuttering occurs when a person gets stuck on certain sounds or words while speaking. This speech disorder is most commonly seen in children who are between the ages of 2-6 years old. Some common signs of stuttering to look for in your child include repeating syllables or words, prolonging words, having a hard time beginning words, quickly blinking their eyes while talking, and frequently using filler words while talking.

Speech Sound Disorders

Speech sound disorders are when children pronounce letters or words improperly. It’s important to note that if your child can’t properly pronounce their letters/words after the age of 4, they may have a speech sound disorder. Some common signs of speech sound disorders in children include removing syllables from words, adding sounds to words, leaving out sounds from words, and leaving out consonants from words.

Dysarthria

Dysarthria is caused by brain damage and makes your muscles weak. This speech disorder can make it difficult for those who have it to talk. Dysarthria can be seen in children of any age. Some common signs of dysarthria to look for in your child include slurred speech, speaking too slow or too fast, consistent hesitations while talking, difficulty with mouth or tongue movements, and monotone speech.

If you find that your child is falling behind in their speech and language development, or needs help with stuttering, dysarthria, or a speech sound disorder, please don’t hesitate to contact us to talk to a Speech Language Pathologist in Chicago. Our team would be happy to answer any questions you may have, and can help you decide if speech therapy is right for your child.

There is a lot more to public speaking than simply just presenting your speech to an audience. In fact, one of the most crucial aspects is the preparation work that goes into a speech. Being able to plan and practice what you’re going to say is vital to your overall success as a speaker, and practicing ahead of time is only going to help you feel more confident and comfortable when you step in front of your audience.

Interested in learning more? Read on to get a better understanding of the importance of practicing your speech:

Receive Feedback Ahead of Time

One of the best things that you can do is prepare for a speech is to practice in front of your family or friends. They are the ones who know you the best and will be honest with you when it comes to giving you feedback. Ask them for their opinion when it comes to things they liked about your speech as well as things that they think could be improved. Take their advice into consideration and make adjustments as you see fit. Then, consider presenting your speech in front of your loved ones again with their feedback in place.

Gain Confidence

The more that you practice things in life, the better you will become, and the more confidence you’ll gain. This is especially true when it comes to giving a speech. As you work on practicing your speech, you’ll begin to better understand the topic and content of your speech. Furthermore, the more you practice your speech alone or in front of others, the more confidence you’ll have when presenting in front of a real life audience.

Have Better Delivery

Practicing your speech allows you to work on items such as your body language, movement, and voice, which will only benefit you during your public speaking engagement. You’ll have a better understanding of what works and what doesn’t, and you can then use that knowledge to better your overall delivery when presentation day arrives.

Take Notes and Make Revisions

When you practice your speech in front of a mirror or in front of others, you get the chance to take notes and/or suggestions and make revisions as needed. Practice allows you to truly understand what works and what doesn't when it comes to your presentation, which is why the more you practice, the better you’ll be able to recognize what body language works, what tone works, and how exactly you should deliver each section of your speech.

For help with your next speech, consider working with a Chicago speech coach. Executive speech coaching can help you prepare for that next big job interview, an upcoming presentation, or your overall communication skills as a rising leader. Contact us today to get started!

When it comes to the topic of public speaking, most people immediately have a certain uneasiness come over them. In fact, almost 77% of the population have some level of anxiety when it comes to public speaking, according to Verywell Mind. We get it! It can be nerve wracking to step in front of a crowd and give a speech, especially if you’re fairly new to public speaking.

But the one thing that most people don’t realize is that there are actually plenty of benefits of public speaking. The more public speaking engagements that you partake in, the more confidence you will gain, and the better you will feel about stepping on stage.

From bettering your communication skills, to having instant gratification after a speech - here are some of the benefits of public speaking:

Gain Confidence

Though you may not always feel confident when you first start public speaking, your confidence is sure to grow over time. Every public speaking engagement that you partake in will only boost your self esteem, and will help you start to feel less anxious as time goes on. As you start to believe in yourself more and more, you’ll notice that you’ll begin to feel more confident in front of your audience, as well as throughout your personal life. Facing your fears head on and proceeding to conquer them is one of the best confidence boosters in the world.

Improve Your Communication Skills

Another benefit of public speaking is that it can help improve your overall communication skills. When you write a speech, you have to truly think about the words that you’re putting down on paper. You want your speech to make a lasting impression on your audience, and have them walk away feeling like they learned something. The more you write and give presentations, the better you get at communicating in your professional and personal life. You’ll find yourself truly thinking about the words you want to say before you say them, which can help strengthen your relationships with your friends, family, and colleagues.

Instant Gratification

One of the greatest benefits that comes from public speaking is the sense of instant gratification you receive after successfully delivering a speech. Many people become very anxious and worked up before having to give a speech, and their nerves are usually at an all time high. But once they hop up on stage and successfully present their speech, they end up having instant gratification wash over them due to the fact that they conquered their fear of public speaking.

For help with your next speech, consider working with a Chicago speech coach. Executive speech coaching can help you prepare for that next big job interview, an upcoming presentation, or your overall communication skills as a rising leader. Contact us today to get started!

If you find that your child is falling behind in their speech development, there are some really awesome books out there that can help them catch up. Children thrive from learning visually, which is why it’s important that you set some time aside each day for storytime. Pick up one of these fun books to read to your child, and have them get involved by asking them questions or by having them describe specific items on the page.

Ready to get started? Here are some great books for children who have delayed speech development:

Touch and Feel Farm

Touch and feel books are one of the best ways to help children who have delayed speech development. As you flip through each page of the book, introduce your child to each animal, tell them what noise that animal makes, and allow them to feel the unique textures of each animal. Once you’ve gone through the book once, go through it a second time and have your child try to name each animal and make the corresponding noise all by themselves.

First 100 Words

The First 100 Words book is full of colorful and adorable graphics, as well as 100 common first words that your child can get familiar with. Included are fun images of vehicles, animals, foods, and so much more. Your child will love flipping through each page while discovering new objects and words along the way.

TouchThinkLearn

This book is one of the most interactive on the market for working on speech development. Inside you’ll find bright pages full of fun 3D objects and other unique textures. Your child will learn all about the letters of the alphabet while being able to trace them with their fingers at the same time.

Talk With Me

Last but certainly not least, Talk With Me is a fantastic book that was designed specifically for children who have delayed speech development. Each set of pages comes with a familiar nursery rhyme and cute matching graphics that your child will love. The book encourages children to learn words based on rhyming, and highlights which rhyming words parents should be having their children say aloud.

If you find that your child is falling behind in their speech and language development, please feel free to contact us to talk to a Speech Language Pathologist in Chicago. Our team would be happy to answer any questions you may have, and can help you decide if speech therapy is right for your child.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many meetings, presentations, and public speaking engagements are now being held virtually instead of in person. This has led to many speakers who are used to in-person speaking engagements feeling flustered and unsure of how to give a virtual presentation, when in reality, there’s no need to feel stressed out! There are numerous tips that you can use during your next online presentation that will help you to feel more comfortable and confident in front of your virtual audience.

Not sure where to start? We’re here to help! Here are some great tips that you can use during your next online presentation:

Set Up Your Camera Ahead Of Time: An hour or two before your presentation is set to begin, make sure that your computer’s camera is working properly. Check that it turns on and that you can see yourself clearly, that the lighting in your room is bright enough to see your entire face and body, and that there’s nothing distracting in the background. Doing this will ensure that you don’t have any technical difficulties when it comes time to give your presentation.

Make Sure There Are No Distractions Around: We understand that many people have been working from home while their kids are partaking in virtual schooling at the same time. This can lead to extra background noise during your presentation and you may end up being preoccupied by what’s happening around your home. If you can, try to find a spot in your house where you can give your virtual presentation without having to worry about any distractions such as a home office.

Stand, Don’t Sit: While giving your virtual presentation, be sure to stand, not sit. Standing will make you seem more professional, will help make you feel more comfortable, and standing allows you to use more gestures throughout your speech. On top of that, it’s just good practice to stand whenever you are partaking in a public speaking engagement.

Speak Clearly, and Loudly: The audio on computers and mobile devices can be a little finicky at times and it may be harder for some of your virtual audience members to hear you while you’re giving your presentation. While speaking, keep in mind that you should be clearly projecting your voice to your audience. This means that you should talk loud enough so that everyone can hear you, and clearly enough to ensure that you’re getting all of your information across.

Engage Your Audience: Even though your audience may not be there in person during your presentation, doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t still try and get them involved in your speech. One great thing about virtual speaking engagements is that you can still interact with your audience by telling them a story, sharing intriguing facts/statistics about your topic, or even by asking them questions that they can respond to simply by raising their hand. Engaging your audience throughout your virtual speech is a fantastic way to keep their attention.

For help with your next virtual presentation, consider working with a Chicago speech coach. Executive speech coaching can help you prepare for that next big job interview, an upcoming public speaking engagement, or your overall communication skills as a rising leader. Contact us today to get started!

Lisps are one of the most frequent speech disorders that we see in both adults and children alike. Having a lisp is actually more common than you may think as nearly 10% of the population in the United States has a lisp. If you’ve noticed that your child has developed a lisp or are concerned that they may be beginning to develop a lisp, there’s no need to fret. With time, patience, and practice, your child’s lisp will slowly start to dissipate.

Ready to get started? Here are some ways that you can help correct your child’s lisp:

Make Your Child Aware of Their Lisp: Some children (especially younger children) may not even know that they are talking with a lisp. When speaking with your child, let them know that they are pronouncing their words incorrectly, and proceed to tell them the correct pronunciation. This will help your child better understand how their words should sound.

Help Your Child Correct Their Tongue Placement: The two most common letters that people who have a lisp struggle with are “s” and “z”. They have a hard time pronouncing these letters correctly because of poor tongue placement. You can try and help your child correctly place their tongue while speaking by having them close their teeth together and practice saying “s” words and then “z” words. Tell them to focus on where their tongue is while performing this exercise, as this is a good indicator of where their tongue should be naturally while talking.

Have Your Child Drink Through a Straw: Believe it or not, drinking through a straw can help correct your child’s lisp. When you drink through a straw, your tongue is pointed down and pulled back away from your teeth. Continually drinking through a straw can help your child to become more aware of their tongue placement, and may be able to actually correct the natural placement of their tongue.

Practice, Practice, and Practice Some More: Correcting your child’s lisp isn’t going to happen overnight, it’s going to take consistent practice and persistence. Continue to help your child by correcting their pronunciation when they speak, find new ways to help them correct their tongue placement, make sure that they are drinking through a straw whenever possible, and most importantly, have patience. With some patience and a whole lot of practice, your child will be on the road to correcting their lisp in no time.

If you find that your child is falling behind in their speech and language development, or needs help correcting their lisp, please feel free to contact us to talk to a Speech Language Pathologist in Chicago. Our team would be happy to answer any questions you may have, and can help you decide if speech therapy is right for your child.

Happy New Year from all of us at BNM Professional Consulting Services! With each new year comes a new opportunity to set new goals for yourself. Many people make resolutions in regards to their health, career, or finances (to name a few), but one subject that sometimes gets overlooked when it comes to making resolutions is public speaking.

Many people struggle with public speaking in more ways than one - confidence, delivery, etc. - which is why it’s extremely important to set goals for yourself at the beginning of the year, so that you can work on improving in those areas as the year progresses.

If you’re someone who’s looking to get better at public speaking in the upcoming year, but aren’t sure where to start, here are some public speaking resolutions that you should consider for 2021:

Incorporate More Stories

One of the main resolutions you should consider making as a public speaker this year is to incorporate more stories into your speeches. Stories give your audience the opportunity to get to know you on a more personal level and will really pull them in. Try to fit in a story at the beginning of your speech if possible as you’ll immediately grab the attention of everyone listening.

Practice, Practice, and Practice Again

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “practice makes perfect”, at some point in your life. Well, when it comes to public speaking, practicing your speech is only going to help when it comes time for you to present. Start out by reading your speech in front of a mirror to help you get your gestures and delivery down. Then, once you feel comfortable, ask a friend or family member if they’d listen to your speech. If you feel good presenting while at home and in front of your loved ones, you’ll be ready to go on presentation day.

Learn From Other Speakers

One of the best ways to become a better speaker is to learn from other great speakers. To begin, pick one of the videos from this list of popular TED Talk videos. As you’re watching each video, take note of how the speaker makes you feel, and write down some things that the speaker does to keep you engaged throughout the entirety of the speech. Once you’ve made a list of all of the things you thought the speaker did well during their speech, try to incorporate some of those items into your next presentation.

Try and Be More Confident

Maybe the most important resolution you should consider making for 2021 is to try and be more confident while public speaking. Many people are afraid of public speaking because they aren’t confident in their abilities. To try and boost your confidence while giving a presentation, practice your speech ahead of time until you feel comfortable with the topic, take a deep breath before you start your speech, and overall, just don’t overthink it - you’re going to do great!

For help with your next speech, consider working with a Chicago speech coach. Executive speech coaching can help you prepare for that next big job interview, an upcoming presentation, or your overall communication skills as a rising leader. Contact us today to get started!

Stuttering is a common speech disorder that occurs in about 3 million Americans with it occurring mostly in children between the ages 2-6. These years are a crucial time for children as it’s when they’re developing their speech and language skills.

If not detected early on, stuttering can make it harder for children to work on their speech and communication. This is why it’s very important that you, as a parent, know what signs to look out for when it comes to stuttering, so that you can take the necessary steps to help your child manage or overcome their stuttering.

With that said, here are some early signs of stuttering in your child to look out for:

• Having a hard time beginning a word
• Repeating syllables or words
• Your child begins prolonging words
• Quick eye blinking while talking
• Your child uses filler words consistently in between words
• Continuous throat clearing while talking
• Has facial tics while talking
• Your child has anxiety about talking
• Your child tries to avoid talking whenever possible
• Consistent hand tapping while speaking
• Your child becomes frustrated while speaking
• Long pauses in between words or sentences
• Your child constantly changes words midway through for fear of stuttering
• Your child has tight fists while talking
• Your child feels self conscious while talking

If you find that your child is falling behind in their speech and language development, or needs help with their stuttering, please feel free to contact us to talk to an SLP in Chicago. Our team would be happy to answer any questions you may have, and can help you decide if speech therapy is right for your child.

Most people think that when you give a speech you’re going to be the center of attention. Little do they know, the audience should be just as involved in your speech as you are! Sure, you’re presenting the information, but your audience is actively listening, and will be even more intrigued in your speech if they feel as if they’re a part of it. Many speakers aren’t sure how to include their audience, and most of the time, will end up losing their attention all together. If this sounds like you, there’s no need to worry - we can help!

Here are some ways that you can get your audience involved during your next speech:

Have a Q&A at the End Of Your Speech

One way to get your audience involved is to hold a Q&A at the end of your speech. Even if you feel like you’ve covered your speech topic from top to bottom, your audience members may still have some questions at the end of your speech. Once you have wrapped up your presentation, leave some time for people to ask any questions they may have, and be prepared to answer to the best of your ability. Have everyone who wants to ask a question raise their hand, choose one audience member at a time, and proceed to answer each question one by one.

Start With a Story

Start by telling the audience a personal experience that you’ve had that relates to the topic of your presentation. Your audience will feel more involved now that they know more about you, and on top of that, stories are a great attention-grabber. Telling your audience a story during the beginning of your speech will not only make your audience feel connected to you, but will also make them feel more involved while listening to the rest of your speech.

Ask Interactive Questions

One final way to get your audience more involved during your speech is to ask them interactive questions. Take some time out before presenting and come up with some questions that you can ask. For example, if your speech topic is, “common mistakes people make during an interview”, you may want to begin your speech by asking your audience to raise their hand if they’ve ever felt nervous at an interview. Odds are, many of your audience members will end up raising their hands during a majority of your questions, thus, making them feel as if they are now part of your speech.

For help with your next speech, consider working with a Chicago speech coach. Executive speech coaching can help you prepare for that next big job interview, an upcoming presentation, or your overall communication skills as a rising leader. Contact us today to get started!

The holiday season is upon us, and we couldn’t be more excited. This time of year is one of our favorites because it’s a chance to get into the Christmas spirit, spend time with loved ones (in-person or virtually), and watch as children run into the living room excited to see all of their presents waiting under the tree.

Before you write out your gift list this year, we wanted to share some of our favorite toy ideas with you. Believe it or not, there are many types of toys that are not only fun, but that will also help with your child’s speech and language development. As you read through this blog, make sure to keep a pen and a piece of paper by you - you’re going to want to write these gift ideas down!

LeapFrog Speak & Learn Puppy

The LeapFrog Speak & Learn Puppy is sure to become one of your child’s favorite new toys. Not only is it adorable, but it will actually respond to your kiddo’s speech in real time. With this fun gift, your child can learn their numbers, colors, songs, ABC’s, can make up stories with the puppy, and so much more - the possibilities are endless! With three language levels and plenty of activities included, this toy will help develop your child’s speech and language skills no matter their age.

Melissa and Doug Farm Magnets

These farm magnets from Melissa and Doug are the perfect toy to help your child develop their speech and language skills. This set comes with 20 cute wooden barnyard animals and accessories that are also magnetic. You and your child will love sticking the farm magnets on either the side of your fridge or a cookie sheet, while taking turns making the animal noises, making up a story about the farm, or playing pretend. The possibilities are endless with these farm magnets!

Playskool’s Mr. Potato Head

Playskool’s Mr. Potato Head has been around for decades and is still very popular today. Your child will love building their new friend, and can develop their language skills by describing each body part and accessory as they attach them. Another great way to work on their speech and language skills is to play pretend with Mr. Potato Head, or make up a story about him. If you want to participate in the fun, you could also get Playskool’s Mrs. Potato Head and play along!

Happy holidays from all of us at BNM Pro Consult! Even though the holidays are going to look a little different this year, we hope that you can find a way to connect with your loved ones. As always, if your child needs further help developing their speech and language skills and needs to see a Chicago speech language therapist, please don’t hesitate to contact us - we’d be happy to help!