When it became apparent to the Office of Student Support Services in Sumter School District that the traditional school model would likely not be in place this year, they drafted a “must have” list to guide their search for a teletherapy solution for special education. Angela McLeod, the lead Speech Language Pathologist for the county, wanted a solution that their own staff of therapists could quickly learn and successfully use. It needed to work for speech and language, mental health, occupational and physical therapy, as well as for administering assessments and diagnostics. She wanted technical training and to ensure continued support. And since their therapists were used to face-to-face sessions with students, therapy materials and tools to prepare them for virtual therapy services were also necessary.  

“The team at E-Therapy have not only met those initial lists of must have items but they have exceeded them,” McLeod wrote.

What’s on Your List? Get in Touch So We Can Talk It Through.

E-Therapy: designed to meet student’s needs

E-Therapy is an advanced teletherapy company that provides online services to PreK-12 schools across the United States. Much like Sumter County’s need, brought on by Covid-19, E-Therapy was founded on a need to reach more students.

Travel less, serve more

In the mid-2000s, Diana Parafiniuk, an SLP in Arizona, spent hours each week driving from school to school in rural parts of the state. She knew there was a better way to reach under served students, so in 2009, she founded E-Therapy. Her vision was to help PreK-12 schools remotely access speech and language services using teletherapy. Today, E-Therapy continues that vision of providing the highest quality services and reaching students and schools across the United States.

Schools send out an SOS

Now that many schools have turned to virtual learning, E-Therapy’s teletherapy expertise has provided a lifeline to special education teams striving to ensure their students do not regress or fall behind on their speech and language goals. The company’s account managers provide expansive teletherapy training and access to resources therapists can use to motivate and engage the students they serve. 

“E-Therapy had been a lifesaver for PreK -12th grade students with disabilities receiving speech-language therapy and other related services before the pandemic,” said Parafiniuk. “Now that we find ourselves with a requirement for compensatory time, E-Therapy’s online therapy services are more important than ever.”

Helping school therapists manage compensatory time

E-Therapy developed its newest teletherapy solution, eSMART, as a direct response to Covid-19. It helps school’s SPED teams provide students with compensatory minutes. Efficiencies include session monitoring, detailed data tracking, and Individual Education Program (IEP) reporting.

E-Therapy’s account managers train school-based teams to get virtual sessions up and running quickly. They continue to offer support as the team works to compensate for learning losses their students may have. 

Speech therapists, as well as mental health counselors, have access to a vast library of digital resources. These tools are proven to engage students and provide positive outcomes to advance academic success.

“eSMART meets the needs of special education programs right now,” said Parafiniuk. “Its ease-of-use has revolutionized how speech therapists and school administrators track and monitor their student’s IEP speech session progress. Therapists and administrators can see real-time clinical data that charts student progress at a glance.”

Overcoming the ultimate challenge

Sumter County’s Office of Student Support Services went into this school year feeling like it was going to be the ultimate challenge for their therapy service providers.

“The onboarding, training and support provided to our district has been outstanding,” said Ms. McLeod. “The team at E-Therapy made the transition to teletherapy and virtual learning much smoother for the staff, students, and parents.” 

Need a complete teletherapy solution for your school-based therapists? Or is your school district facing a shortage of therapists? Your unique problems require a unique solution. Let us help. Manage compensatory time with E-Therapy’s help.

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So often kids struggle with their emotions and don’t know how to deal with them. They don’t have the tools to process their feelings so they get weighed down by anxiety, stress, and depression with no way to move through them. Luckily, there are techniques that kids can use to help them release emotions. One such technique, Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) also known as Tapping, is an easy and fun way to clear negative emotions, ease emotional distress, and release trauma. It’s a simple technique that can help kids enjoy life and experience happiness.

What is EFT Tapping?

EFT is a form of energy medicine based on the ancient Chinese meridians. It has been described as “emotional acupressure.”

By tapping on meridian points on our face and upper body while voicing our emotional issues, it is believed that our energy is re-balanced and we gain relief from emotional distress and anxiety.  By releasing the emotional blocks the child faces, they free their mind and body to work in the most optimal way.

How EFT tapping works

By tapping on your body’s meridians with a fingertip, you stimulate specific energy points that help alleviate the fight or flight (stress) response and re-wire your brain to think more clearly about the problem.

By stimulating these pressure points we bring down the amygdala part of our brain, which controls the part of the brain that is responsible for assessing threats, detecting danger, and producing fear. It is hyperactivated when traumatized resulting in feeling chronic stress, vigilance, fear, irritation, lack of safety, and sleep difficulties.

Tapping helps calm kids and bring their emotions back into balance.

Why tapping is good for kids

Many kids struggle to understand their emotions and get easily overwhelmed. Tapping is an easy, fun way to help students release and experience their emotions.

One great thing about working with kids is that they tend to be more intuitive than adults and more connected to their bodies. As adults we have learned to close off to our emotions and hide our feelings. Children tend to have a more immediate connection their emotions.

Kid’s problems also tend to be less complex with fewer layers as they don’t necessarily have years of traumatic experiences to unravel. This allows children to quickly process and resolve their issues. Sometimes it only takes a single session to experience relief.

Before you begin tapping

• Develop trust with the child. It is important kids feel safe and comfortable opening up and sharing their feelings.
• Share with the child that tapping is a special technique that helps their mind and body feel happy and relaxed. Ask if they want to try it. Don’t force them to do it, and let them follow along if they want.
• Show them the tapping points. Let them know that these are special points that help their body feel calm. Practice tapping on the points so they feel comfortable. For smaller children, practice tapping on a stuffed animal.
• Question how they are feeling; physically, emotionally, and mentally.
  • Starting with the body, find out if they are tired, sore, or stressed.
  • Then go into their emotional well being – find out if there is anything going on at school or what is bothering or annoying them.
  • Identify the most pressing issue and let that be basis of the tapping process.

It is very important to tap using the child’s exact words. As you progress through the tapping process, you can begin to introduce the underlying issues you identified. To start, make sure the child feels comfortable and reflected.

Let the child know they can use this technique on their own and practice whenever they feel upset.

How to Tap

Step One: Clearly identify the problem

Ask the child to think about their problem. If they are visibly upset, they are already connected to their problem. Let them know that this tapping exercise will help them calm down and be able to think more clearly about their problem.

To identify the problem, follow these steps:

• Start with what the child is experiencing in the moment.
• Ask them what they are experiencing physically – “Where do feel this in your body?” Get them to describe it with colors, textures, sensations.
• Next move onto the emotions. Get them to identify and name the feelings. Do they feel anxious? Sad? Lonely? Scared?
• What is going on/what events have caused them to experience these feelings. What are the thoughts going through their mind? How is this affecting them mentally?

Step Two: Rate the intensity on a scale of 0-10

• Ask them “How upset are you about this problem?”
• If they are very young you can have them use their arms to show a little or a lot.

Step Three: Create the set-up statement

The set-up statement consists of two parts:

1). Naming the fear or the problem – “Even though I feel bad because my friend is angry…”.

2) A statement of acceptance– “I completely and deeply love and accept myself.” If they are young kids here are a few variations that might feel more comfortable:

• “I know I am a great kid.”
• “I still like myself.”
• “I will be OK.”

You use the set-up statement to tap on the Karate Chop point (see below).

An example of a set-up statement is: Even though I have anxiety about school, I know I am a great kid.

Step Four: Develop a tapping script

Using their exact words fill in the following statements:

• Round 1 – Name the feeling –
  • “All this sadness…”
  • “So much loneliness…, anxiety, etc.”
• Round 2 – I feel (describe in detail using their words how they feel physically, emotionally, mentally)
• Round 3 – Acknowledge the problem and end with a positive affirmation – Even though I have (state the problem), I choose to release this sadness, be happy, etc or I am loved, safe, etc.

Step Five: Tap

To tap you start on the “Karate Chop” point using the set-up statement.

Even though I have anxiety about school, I know I am a great kid.

Then go through each point using a reminder phrase.

Use the following tapping points:

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Karate Chop point

Top of head

Inside of Eyebrows

Side of Eyes

Under Eyes

Under Nose

Chin

Collarbone

Under arm

Example of tapping

• Karate Chop point –
  • Even though I am anxious about school, I know I am a great kid (repeat 3 times).
• Top of head –
  • Round 1 – All this anxiety about school…
  • Round 2 – I feel worried that I will fail.
  • Round 3 – Even though I have this fear, I choose to be brave.
• Inside of Eyebrows –
  • Round 1 – So much fear about school…
  • Round 2 – I feel overwhelmed by so much homework.
  • Round 3 – Even with all this worry, I know I am smart and can succeed.
• Side of Eyes –
  • Round 1 – All this stress about homework…
  • Round 2 – I feel anxious I will never get it all done.
  • Round 3 – Despite this worry, I believe in myself.
• Under Eyes –
  • Round 1 – So much fear of failing…
  • Round 2 – I am afraid I will get it wrong.
  • Round 3 – Even if I’m unsure, I choose to have faith.
• Under Nose –
  • Round 1 – All this worry…
  • Round 2 – I don’t know how I will get it all done.
  • Round 3 – Even though I have this doubt, I know I will figure it out.
• Chin –
  • Round 1 – All this anxiety…
  • Round 2 – I feel angry there’s so much work.
  • Round 3 – I choose to let my stress go as best I can.
• Collarbone –
  • Round 1 – So much fear…
  • Round 2 – I am afraid I will fail.
  • Round 3 – Despite this fear, I know it will be okay.
• Under arm –
  • Round 1 – All this worry…
  • Round 2 – What if I’m not good enough?
  • Round 3 – I know I can do it.

Step Five: Measure the intensity again

After you finish your rounds of tapping, check in to measure the intensity of the child’s feelings on a scale of 0-10.  Hopefully, the intensity has dropped. Your goal is to get to zero.

If they are still at a higher level, ask what is still there or what came up for them during the tapping.

Did they experience anything in their body?

Did they have any new ideas or thoughts?

Did they feel strange or uncomfortable?

Step Six: Do another round of tapping on what came up

Start the process over using their exact words and tapping on the next layer of the issue. Repeat until you get to zero (or a 1 or 2).

With so many students suffering from mental health issues, utilizing the Emotional Freedom Techniques of Tapping is a great way to help children and adults of all ages process and alleviate emotional distress.

Visit our eCALM room

Our mental health therapists have created a special eCALM room that you can use to focus on YOU! Please visit E-Therapy’s eCALM room for videos and blog posts that can help you manage your own mental health.

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The end of the school year is coming fast and we could all use a little self-care. Have you ever used a personal digital planner or journal? Check out E-Therapy’s Digital Wellness Tracker! This colorful tool is easy and fun to use to track

• Hydration – drink water throughout the day to positively impact your energy levels and keep your brain functioning
• Gratitude – practice gratitude by writing what you’re grateful for every day. Learn more about how gratitude can help you beat stress.
• Positive Affirmations – positive self-talk can help you overcome negative thoughts
• Sleep – Get enough sleep every night to enhance your physical and psychological wellness
• Heart Map – noticing what would otherwise be considered insignificant develops your appreciation for the world around you

https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/EHr1UqECN4g?feature=oembed&controls=1&autoplay=1&enablejsapi=1&rel=1#038;enablejsapi=1&origin=https://www.electronic-therapy.com” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture” allowfullscreen>

This tracker is available in a Google Slides version and a PDF version.

The Google Slides version works well on a computer or chromebook. Click on the link below to make your own copy and save it to your drive. Open and use the Google Slides tracker in edit mode and click on the hyperlinked tabs on the right side. Slides have editable text boxes and embedded movable images. 

Get your Wellness Tracker for Google Slides

To use the PDF version, click on the link below for the preview then download the document to your computer. Open the document using Acrobat Reader. Use the tabs to toggle between pages, type in the editable text fields, and click on the check boxes. To add additional annotations, click on the comment icon (looks like a yellow speech bubble) to make the annotation toolbar visible.  The PDF version of the Digital Wellness Tracker can also be used with an iPad using the Acrobat Reader app, which is available free in the app store. 

Get your editable PDF Wellness Tracker – you will see a preview, then you will need to download the PDF to your computer or Drive

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Ring the ezBELL to quickly notify E-Therapy’s staffing manager when you need SLPs, OTs, PTs, or Mental Health professionals.

Have you ever discovered a product or service that you didn’t know you needed? Now, you can’t imagine life without it? Well, it’s here- a feature that schools have been waiting for but didn’t know you needed!

Introducing our new ezBELL!

E-Therapy’s ezBELL is now live on the E-Therapy website, and we couldn’t be more excited to let you in on this little service bell that we designed with you in mind. Our ezBELL is a handy little Chrome extension that will make your life easier when you are in need of our help, services, or even therapists like Speech Language Pathologists or School Counselors. Want to learn more? We will give you all the information you need to get started. 

Ring our ezBELL for immediate teletherapy services!

It came to us one day that we needed a feature on our website that easily allows school personnel to ring our “bell” for immediate assistance or services. So we created an extension that is called the ezBELL to address your last minute teletherapy needs for your school. Your students won’t miss a session when you ring our ezBELL.

We know that during this challenging year that you need a teletherapy company you can rely on, and that is hands down E-Therapy. We provide direct services, compensatory time services, licensing of our platform for assessments and diagnostics, and clinical staff to help you out when you are in a bind. Once the ezBELL is rang on your end – our dedicated team will contact you and help determine what services you need from us. 

It is easy, seamless, and you can tap into our national team of certified clinicians when you need them. Once we determine what services you need, our platform or both- we can set you up in hours through our platform and you will receive instructions on how to download the ezBELL Chrome extension in case you need to ring us again.

The best part is that the ezBELL is completely free and unobtrusive but always just a click away. 

We hope you love it as much as we had fun creating it. Learn more about E-Therapy’s ezBELL for Chrome.

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We are excited to celebrate Better Hearing and Speech month this May by bringing you original and thoughtfully created speech therapy games and activities for your online sessions. Speech-language pathologists across the country are working harder now than ever to provide excellent services for students, and we are here to make your job a little (or a lot) easier with our FREE teletherapy activities.

May Calendar of Activities

It’s here! Check out our E-Therapy Daily Activity Calendar for May. This is SUCH a time saver for therapists and online educators. Simply download your free copy of the calendar, and you instantly have distance learning activities for every day of the week. This “national day” calendar is great to use as a class warm up, a conversation starter, or to target specific student goals.

Articulation Jamboard for the R Sound

Our E-Therapists have been having a lot of fun with Jamboards in teletherapy sessions. They are really dynamic, engaging, and free- what’s not to love? We know you love Jamboard activities too, but if you are busy completing progress reports and IEP paperwork, you don’t have much time for creating materials. That’s why we have done the work for you!

Check out our R Jewels Articulation Jamboard. If you have students who need to practice the /r/ sound, this activity is for you! Simply click the link above to make a copy and you are ready for your next session.

R Picture Reveal PPT Game

As a Speech Therapist, we know you can never have enough articulation activities, especially for targeting the /r/ phoneme. If you are looking to freshen up your /r/ therapy sessions, look no further! Our R Picture Reveal Game helps you to address R in all word positions and even includes word lists that can be used as a progress monitoring tool. This game is a fun and effective way to practice articulation skills that is therapist and student approved!

Multiple Meaning Words Game

FREE Multiple Meaning Words Game Board! This activity includes two boards with homonyms and two boards that can be customized to suit your student’s particular needs. We have even included 3 black and white print-friendly versions in case you want to print the boards to use with kiddos onsite. These customizable game boards are perfect for use in teletherapy sessions, for sharing in a Google classroom, to send as homework, or in a brick and mortar setting. Click the link above to snag your copy now!

SEL Positive Affirmations Game

The activities just keep coming. The teletherapy experts at E-Therapy bring you yet another dynamic online activity that is effective and fun. Our SEL Positive Affirmations Game is a motivating way to help students develop positive self talk while targeting a variety of learning goals. This game is great for upper elementary through high school, and no prep work is needed. Simply download the PPT game and go!

Get monthly Speech Therapy games to use in your online therapy sessions

Check out our monthly Activity Round-ups for even more fun online games and activities that can easily be used in your online teletherapy sessions.

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We all write poems; it is simply that poets are the ones that write in words.”

~John Fowles

April is Poetry Month! E-Therapy’s expert speech therapist, Diana Martin, has created a comprehensive guide with resources, games and speech therapy activities that are perfect for ELA, Speech and Language, and SEL lessons. Start here with her video overview:https://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/7tWkFMmOCrE?feature=oembed&controls=1&autoplay=1&enablejsapi=1&rel=1#038;enablejsapi=1&origin=https://www.electronic-therapy.com” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture” allowfullscreen>

Do your students moan, groan, and sigh when asked to write a poem? Maybe they say they hate writing altogether. Introducing poetry is a great way to reset their thinking about themselves as writers. Whether you are an SLP, special education teacher, or counselor, poems and poetry writing can support a host of instructional goals.

Poems tend to be shorter, more accessible texts and may appear easier to tackle than a longer selection that students are asked to read, write, or talk about. Modeling your own thinking, writing, and writing process (modeled writing, shared writing) are all important strategies to help your students recognize that as a teacher or therapist, you understand what it is like to struggle with ideas and putting your own thoughts into words. Students benefit from hearing you read poems, talk about poems, and write poems.

Kick off a poetry unit with Immersion

As part of poetry immersion, share the written texts of poems while reading them (shared reading) and make lists of what learners notice. Using the Poetry Unit of Study Virtual Room is a useful tool in this process. This allows students to engage with poetry through a writer’s eye.

In order for students to grow in their poetry discussion, writing, and reading skills, they need to feel safe to take risks. Often students are only told what they did wrong with their writing or what is missing. Putting words down on paper feels very risky if feedback feels negative. Feedback should name and notice a few things that the writer did well and one thing to fix. And when offering a fix, instruct the student how this fix will make their poem stronger.

Poetry immersion also shows students that they can imitate other poets and use their poems as mentor texts, just like great painters learn by imitating master artists.

Using the Poetry Unit of Study Activity Guide includes over 30 links and lesson ideas of moving your students from the immersion process to actually composing their own poetry drafts.

Poetry can be used to teach, practice and/or reinforce the following goal areas:

• Comprehension strategies
• Questioning and inferential skills
• Figurative language (simile, metaphor, personification, idioms)
• Identifying main idea or themes
• Purpose of punctuation, white space, line breaks
• Synonyms
• Adjectives
• Nouns
• Verbs
• Point of view
• Articulation skills (words, phrases, sentences, conversation)
• Fluency techniques such as easy-onset, light contacts, pull-outs, cancellations, pausing, and phrasing.

Get more DIY activities from E-Therapy

Subscribe to E-Therapy’s YouTube channel. Hit the bell to be notified when we upload instructional videos for new activities!

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