About
Lori Jenkinson
Lori is a licensed speech and language pathologist, who works with children diagnosed on the autistic spectrum and with language impairments. She has been in private practice since 2006, having worked in early childhood school, hospital and private clinic settings prior to that. With a master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology from Arizona State University, Lori is an expert DIR Floortime Player, completing her competency training with ICDL (Interdisciplinary Council of Developmental Learning). Currently, she provides in-home language therapy and consults in several private and public schools, and works closely with other disciplinary therapists. She uses developmental language intervention and the DIR/Floortime® Model to meet the individual needs of each child she works with.
Background
After working tirelessly for ten years in private practice, preschool and hospital settings, speech pathologist Lori Jenkinson sought a new initiative offering families a developmental approach to language learning. Circles Developmental Therapies is an organization centered on establishing relevant connections between parents and children that strengthen bonds and mobilize language learning – together.
Mission
To provide language therapy services to children and families where the child is the agent to their learning and families are provided with the tools they need to create meaningful interactions. Together, they build and share new ideas, gain new comprehension and express new meaning while participating in back-and-forth circles of communication.
FAQ
Sometimes I notice that my child doesn’t always respond to me, or he has difficulty engaging, communicating and playing. Is this something to be concerned about? How can I tell if my child’s communication is delayed?
Research has identified several areas of communication that if not observed in your child it may be an indicator of a delay in development. If your child is showing difficulty with:
– Eye gaze and emotion
– Babbling
– Using communication, gestures, sounds and words
– Understanding words and making meaning
– Using objects with purpose
Then you may need to talk with your child’s pediatrician about referral to a speech and language pathologist.
I am noticing delays in my child’s communication skills. Should I wait to have him evaluated?
Early Intervention can make a difference in the developmental path your child is on. Intensive, well designed and timely intervention can improve the prospects—and the quality of life—for many children who are considered at risk for cognitive, social, or emotional impairment.
My baby is not yet communicating and I am noticing delays in his ability to use eye gaze, emotion, gestures and play. Will speech and language therapy be beneficial for him? What will be the goals of therapy?
For young children that are not yet communicating verbally but showing signs of delays in their non verbal communication, engagement and play – early and intensive language therapy can support the development of the precursors to language that emerge between 0-12 months of age, prior to the expression of first words. In the first year of life a child is developing the foundation for communication in the areas of intentionality, shared attention, affective engagement, reciprocity and the building of ideas and meaning. (ICDL-DMIC) Goals of therapy will help to develop these skills in the context of meaningful and playful interactions with parents and caregivers through gestural affective exchanges.
My child is having a difficult time responding to my comments and questions. Her responses are not always contingent. She has difficulty expressing her ideas in a cohesive and logical way. Her sentences do not make sense and her thoughts are fragmented. It can be hard to have a conversation with her. Will therapy be helpful?
For a child that is intentional and using language but showing signs of impaired comprehension and expression it might be a good idea to contact a speech and language pathologist to get a better understanding of her current language system and why these errors are occurring. A full language assessment analyzing language in the areas of form (word order and syntax), content (ideas, meaning and vocabulary knowledge) and use (how I say what to whom) in addition to comprehension will help us determine her current stage of language acquisition. Goals can then be developed and family supported in how to model, scaffold and create rich and meaningful hands on experiential learning opportunities that provide repetition and practice across a variety of contexts.
What is Language?
Language goes beyond words. It is not just the vocabulary your child uses. It is how we share ideas, share feelings and represent the content of our minds to our communicative partner (Bloom and Lahey).
What is comprehension?
Comprehension goes beyond following directions, answering questions and understanding vocabulary. It is the ability to interpret and make sense of spoken or written language (Miller and Paul, 1995). Comprehension involves many aspects of understanding. It takes into account what the child knows about social communication (when to respond to another), what the child knows about concepts and ideas (vocabulary knowledge) and what the child knows about how the words are said and what the word orders signifies.
What is Developmental Language therapy?
Therapy uses developmental language models that are based on the science of what is known about the language acquisition of typical child development.
What is the DIR Floortime Model?
The DIR/Floortime®model developed by Dr. Stanley Greenspan and Dr. Serena Weider is a framework for understanding and treating children challenged by autism spectrum and related disorders. It is based on mobilizing six developmental milestones through affective and emotional exchanges with caregivers and therapists.
The DIR model helps to tailor intervention programs to the unique strengths and challenges of children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and other developmental challenges. The objectives of the DIR®/Floortime™ Model are to build healthy foundations for social, emotional, and intellectual capacities.
Floortime is a specific technique to both follow the child’s natural emotional interests (lead) and at the same time challenge the child towards greater and greater mastery of the social, emotional and intellectual capacities. Pivotal to Floortime is the role of the child’s natural emotions and interests which has been shown to be essential for learning interactions that enable the different parts of the mind and brain to work together and to build successively higher levels of social, emotional, and intellectual capacities.
For more information on the DIR/Floortime model and intervention visit these websites:
www.icdl.com
www.stanleygreenspan.com
www.profectum.org
