When possible, I recommend short frequent therapy sessions. I spend time with the child and the family to determine what the child's interests are and then do my best to incorporate those interests into the therapy targets. If the child has no functional communication, the family and I will work to create some method of communication for that child. This may include sign language, picture communication, augmentative communication apps, or a combination of methods. At the same time that we are helping that child be able to communicate his/her wants and needs, we also begin to work on improving motor planning for speech.

Therapy will begin at the level at which the child can be most successful. If that is at the vowel level, then the child will be taught to use those vowels to approximate the target word. The family will be taught as well to praise these word approximations. Consonant sounds will be probed and the work will begin to combine consonants with vowels to produce closer approximations of the target words. Cueing will be used as needed and may include visual, verbal and/or tactile cueing.