SLP Coffee Talk

Not sure where to start with AAC assessment? Hallie chats with Alyssa Croll, AAC the SLP, an SLP and assistive technology specialist for a very large school district. With more than 10 years of experience, Alyssa is also a public speaker and consultant who offers practical, nuanced AAC solutions grounded in the reality of school-based practice. Together they talk about why a standard starting app...

Do worksheets have to be boring? In this solo episode, Hallie shares four easy ways to make worksheets more engaging for older students without adding a ton of prep or turning every session into a game. She explains how to pair worksheets with simple games, choose high-interest topics that connect to students’ lives, give them more choice in how they complete the activity, and use a simple white c...

Are you writing following directions goals straight from a CELF subtest score? In this solo episode, Hallie makes the case for asking "why" before you write another three-step directions goal for a middle or high schooler. She explains how to use item analysis to find what's really driving the difficulty, why compensatory strategies often serve older students better than more isolat...

Tired of reaching for the same generic drills no matter what speech sound error walks through your door? In this episode, Hallie chats with Laura Rinella, MA, CCC-SLP, creator of Laura Teaches Speech and a pediatric specialist in speech sound disorders. Laura breaks down how she builds targeted, individualized treatment plans that move the needle on intelligibility, offers her take on telling arti...

Struggling to know what "good" data collection actually looks like, especially with older students on your caseload? In this episode, Hallie sits down with Kayla Obenour, an SLP with over a decade of experience across schools, outpatient, home health, and private practice, to chat all about what real, useful data collection can look like. Kayla shares why she's always aimed to &quot...

In this solo episode, Hallie breaks down how to stop drowning in back-to-back groups with completely different goals. She covers why you don't need a separate activity for every student, how one resource — a video, book, article, or even a game — can hit multiple goals at once, and why mixed-goal groups can actually work in your favor instead of against you. If planning has been eating into t...

Feeling stuck when it comes to that pesky vocalic R? In this episode, Hallie sits down with Karen Krogg of The Pedi Speechie, a school-based SLP with a serious R obsession, to talk through everything from tongue shape to carryover. Karen breaks down her hand gesture analogies, favorite tools, and how she keeps kids motivated through the long haul of R therapy. Bullet Points to Discuss:  Determinin...

Feeling like data collection is eating up all your therapy time? In this episode, Hallie sits down with Michele Rothstein of SLP Madness, a 26-year elementary school-based SLP, to talk all about how to make data collection clean, efficient, and legally defensible. Michele shares her 3:1 treatment-to-probe ratio, how she handles Medicaid billing without sacrificing real therapy time, and why she be...

Struggling with how to support a student who stutters without falling into the “fix it” trap? In this episode, Hallie sits down with Wendy Dietz, an SLP and clinic owner in Colorado who specializes in stuttering therapy, to chat all about what an acceptance-based approach really looks like. Wendy shares how a moving college essay first sparked her interest in stuttering, how the CARE model she lea...

In this solo episode, Hallie unpacks one of her go-to therapy strategies for grades 4-12: word webs. She covers why this simple visual tool does so much heavy lifting in mixed therapy groups, how it hits multiple goals at once, and why it beats another boring vocabulary worksheet every time. If you've been looking for a way to teach vocabulary that actually sticks (and doesn't require a...

Feeling unsure about AAC? You're not alone. In this episode, Hallie sits down with Cassidy, a speech therapist and owner of Around the Spectrum Therapy in Pennsylvania, to talk through what makes AAC feel so overwhelming and how to move past the "getting it right" mentality. Cassidy shares her journey from knowing next to nothing about AAC to building a robust vocabulary approach wi...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie's back with returning guest Shelby Davis, a school-based SLP at Community High School in Teaneck, NJ, and a doctoral candidate at Monmouth University. Shelby's diving into the 5th-year transition program she's helping build for students on the spectrum and others with complex learning needs — designed to bridge the gap between high school...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie sits down with researchers Klaire Brumbaugh and Katy Cabbage, who are part of a team building a nationwide study around something secondary SLPs know all too well: the older student still working on that R who has zero interest in being in the speech room. They're developing tools to actually measure student motivation—so SLPs have real data behind...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie chats with Alyssa Antcliff—SLP and founder of IndiAide—about what's actually happening with your clients between sessions, and how technology can finally give you the full picture. Alyssa shares how her frustration with paper handouts and vague "it went fine" updates led her to build a between-session therapy management platform, and why re...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie chats with Ana Hernandez—SLP and founder of Adult Stuttering—about why she ditched fluency therapy and never looked back. Ana breaks down the adaptation effect, why you can’t sit in the middle ground, and what it actually looks like to run an affirming stuttering session from start to finish. If stuttering has always felt like uncharted territory, this on...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie finally tells her own story. From an undecided freshman at University of Buffalo to accidentally falling in love with speech pathology through a friend doing phonetics homework in the library, to getting peed on the morning of her one job interview in 2009 — yeah, that happened. If you’ve been listening for a while and always wondered how Speech Time Fun...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie chats with Victoria Dertouzos—SLP and founder of Speech and Stuttering Therapy of New Jersey—about why stuttering therapy looks so different than it used to, and why that’s a good thing. Victoria breaks down what a modern, neurodiversity-affirming approach to stuttering actually looks like in practice, how to assess what you’ve been missing, and what to...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie chats with Mary Woodward—speech-language therapist, justice and mental health specialist, and university lecturer based in Sydney—about why trauma-informed care belongs in every SLP’s toolkit, no matter where you practice. Mary shares what trauma actually means clinically, how it shows up in communication and behavior, and the core principles that can sh...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie chats with Emily Byers Chaney—pediatric SLP, private practice owner, and neurodiversity affirming advocate—about why following directions goals might not be telling you what you think they are. Emily shares how working alongside Jessie Ginsburg shifted her entire clinical lens, what’s really happening when a child doesn’t follow a direction, and how to b...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie chats with Sarah Bishop—14-year school-based SLP, California Speech-Hearing Association president, and union rep—about why being a generalist is actually your biggest flex. Sarah shares her winding path to the field (spoiler: it starts with an art history degree and museum tours), why school-based SLPs need to stop apologizing for knowing a little of ever...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie gets honest with new grads and CFs who are quietly wondering if they’re already behind. She talks through what imposter syndrome actually looks and feels like in those early weeks — the brain-blank first session, the late-night Google spiral — and why all of it is completely normal. If you’re a new SLP asking “what if I can’t do this?”, this one was made...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk, Hallie breaks down the realistic SLP toolkit that no grad program actually prepares you for. She walks through what new grads really need before stepping into their CF year — from skipping the summer shopping spree to treating week one like a recon mission. If you’re a brand new SLP wondering where to even begin, this one’s for you. Bullet Points to Discuss:  Do...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie chats with Daj Mitchell—school-based SLP, online educator, and Illinois State University graduate—about getting everyone on board with AAC. With over six years of experience serving pediatric and adult clients across settings, Daj breaks down her buy-in stair step framework and explains why many SLPs accidentally skip to the last step. She shares practic...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie tackles the real reason your middle and high school students check out the moment you explain the session goal — and it’s not the goal itself. She walks through five signs your explanation isn’t clicking and how to flip each one so students actually get it. If your students would rather do anything but be in your session, this one’s for you.​​​​​​​​​​​​​...

In this episode of SLP Coffee Talk , Hallie Sherman chats with Bradi O’Rourke, owner of Braxy Speech Therapy, all about the magic of play-based, child-led therapy. Bradi breaks down how ditching rigid, drill-heavy sessions and leaning into connection, creativity, and a little bit of mess can lead to more meaningful communication. She shares how meeting kids where they are, following their lead, an...