Day 1 smiLE Therapy Training

Content

This training provided an introduction to smiLE Therapy and gave the basics to start delivering smiLE Therapy with your pupils. Participants focused on the key principles, structure and methodology of this innovative therapy and were introduced to the 10 steps in every smiLE Therapy module. Participants developed an understanding of how to implement one sample module in detail. It involved active learning, watching video clips, watching role play, paired activity and planning for your particular pupils. The session featured:

• Learning about the flexibility of the therapy and how to modify the sample module making it easier or more challenging for your pupils.
• Learning to use specific visual techniques to actively teach new social skills and communication skills with your small group of students.
• Better understanding the importance of teaching actively and in a structured way, functional communication and social skills for life to your pupils.
• Practising in pairs to experience and learn how to implement key aspects of the therapy.
• Understanding how important it is to ensure emotional safety in all sessions to enable pupils to achieve maximum learning.
• Learning how to support pupils to self-evaluate their performance by watching the before and after therapy videos.
• Understanding that a parent workshop and staff workshop are part of every module, to follow through with skills pupils have learned and actively support their maintenance and transference of skills.
• Understanding that there are many smiLE Therapy modules designed for a wide range of pupil needs: eg, how to make a simple request in a school office, how to request in a local shop.

Target Audience

Teachers, Speech and Language Therapists and Speech and Language Therapists assistants, Occupational Therapists, SENCOs, Educational Psychologists and Education staff. Special Needs Assistants, Learning Support Assistants and Communication Support Workers are welcome on the training if they attend together with a Teacher or Therapist they work with.

Access Support: BSL interpreting and Captioning will be provided.

Presenter

Karin Schamroth is a Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, who worked in the NHS for 30 years.

She created smiLE Therapy (Strategies & Measurable Interaction in Live English) in 2002, initially for Deaf students to give them a structured and meaningful way to learn essential communication and social skills for everyday use in the mainstream hearing world. Since 2009 she has extended smiLE Therapy to use it with children, young people and adults, from age 7 to 25, with communication challenges due to Down Syndrome, Autism, Learning Difficulties, Developmental Language Disorder, Physical Disability. Karin trains Speech and Language Therapists, Teachers, Occupational Therapists, SENCO’s, Educational Psychologists and Education staff across the UK and internationally.

The principles of the therapy was laid down in her book smiLE Therapy: Functional Communication and Social skills for Deaf students and Students with Special Needs Routledge, 2015.

• Website: www.smiletherapytraining.com
• SmiLE Therapy Training email: info@smiletherapytraining.com