Rehab

School speech program makes a SPLASH

Rehab Regs, May 28, 2001

A new program is helping preschoolers with their communication skills at the S. June Smith school in Lancaster, PA. Called SPLASH, or Sound Play and Language Awareness Story Hour, this weekly program for children between the ages of two and three incorporates active listening with hands-on learning. Each class consists of eight children, four with special needs and four without. Some of the activities in the class--which was created by speech-language pathologist Robin Williams Harnish--include a "sound bag," and stories, as well as a program where fourth-graders come to the class and help the children with other activities. A sound bag is a sack filled with various items that have similar sounds. For example, if the "sssss" sound is being taught that day, a toy spider or a snake might be in the bag. Parents who spoke to the Sunday News of Lancaster raved about the one-hour class. "I think all children would enjoy this. They learn so much, yet they don't feel like it's a class," said Teresa Astarita. "It is truly a fun way to develop speech."

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