It is important to remember that no one accent is better than another one.  Many people take pride in their accents; however, some people may encounter difficulties communication because of their accent.  Some of the difficulties may include:

•  people not understanding you
• limited social interaction with those who may not understand you
•  frustration from having to repeat yourself
•  people focusing on your accent more than what you are trying to say

With a lot of hard work and practice, those who wish to change their accents, there is help.  Changing your accent is known as “accent modification” or “accent reduction”.  A speech-language pathologist can provide services to those who want to modify or reduce your accents. People who seek a qualified speech-language pathologist (therapist) for these services may include:

• Non-native English speakers or English-As-A-Second-Language Speakers
• Speakers from various regions
•  Business, medical and professionals who want to improve their communication skills

Part of effective communication is speaking clearly so that others can understand you.  Don’t let your accent get in the way of being heard an effective speaker.  Let people focus more on what you have to say instead of how you say it. 

Denise Moore Revel is a leading Speech Therapist & Coach who specializes in improving adult communication skills. Visit her website www.askthespeechtherapist.com and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for more tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve speech and language development.

Most children have at least one bout with otitis media (ear infection) by one year of age.  Your child may have all, some, or none of the following symptoms:

• Child pulls on ear
• Child says ear hurts
• Drainage from ear
• Fever (acute otits media)
• Irritability
• Poor sleep

During the first three years when children have the most problems with otitis media, they are learning to speak and understand words.  It may be harder to hear and understand speech and language if sounds are muffled by fluid in the middle ear.  Some researchers suggest that frequent otitis media may lead to speech and language difficulties.  It is important that you pay close attention to the speech and language development of your child if he or she experience frequent otitis media.

Here are a few tips to help your child who may be experiencing frequent otitis media:

• Wash your hands and your child’s hands after blowing nose or going to the bathroom (this will fight the spread of gems)
• Clean toys that have been in your child’s mouth before and after he/she plays with them
• Bottle-feed in an upright or slightly leaning position.  Your child should not be put in bed with a bottle. (Liquid from the bottle may go up a small tube leading to the middle ear, causing middle ear fluid).
• Keep your child away from smoke. Cigarette smoke increase your child’s chance of middle ear disease.

Denise Moore Revel is a leading Speech Therapist who specializes in improving adult communication skills. Visit her website www.askthespeechtherpist.com and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for more tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve speech and language development.

• It’s okay to be nervous.
  Even seasoned speakers and presenters still get nervous before speaking. Being nervous means you care about giving a good presentation. Your nervousness produces adrenaline which helps you think faster, speak more fluently, and add the needed enthusiasm to convey your message.
   
•  Don’t try to be perfect.
  The fear of public speaking often stems from a fear of imperfection. Accept the fact that no one ever gets it perfect and neither will you. You do not have to become Super Speaker, never saying “er” or “uh,” and never losing your train of thought. Be yourself-your audience will appreciate it.
   
•  Know your subject.

          Become an authority on your topic. The more you know, the more confident you will be.
 

•  Involve your audience.
  Ask listeners questions or have them participate in an activity. Keeping your audience actively involved will hold their attention, increase their retention, and reduce your nervousness as your presentation becomes
  more of a dialogue than a monologue.

• Focus on your audience and your message.
  What you have to say is important! Your audience needs to hear your message. Focus on that, rather than on your nervousness. You can do this!

Denise Moore Revel is a leading Speech Therapist & Coach who specializes in improving adult communication skills. Visit her website www.askthespeechtherapist.com and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for more tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve speech and language development.

Five ways speech coaching can help you in moving  your career forward :

• Enhance speech skills
• Improve listening and understanding
• Elevate career growth opportunities
• Increase self-confidence and self-esteem
• Elevate an individual’s or organization’s image

Set yourself apart from the rest by improving your communication skills and learn to speak with impact.

Denise Moore is a leading Speech Therapist & Coach. Visit her website at www.askthespeechtherapist.com/ and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve communication skills.

There are rules and expectations for communicating with others.  The rules are not top secret, but they are not always obvious.  If you break a rule by mistake, you may be misunderstood.  People may think you are rude or even incompetent.

Here are five good reasons to master the rules and expectations of good communication:

•  Good communication makes a good impression. People will respect you. Good communication makes it easier to get a job and to get along with family, friends, and co-workers.
•  If people can understand you easily, they will pay more attention to what you have to say.
• Good communication can help you avoid conflict. You will have strategies to deal with problems more effectively.
• If you take charge of the way you communicate with others, you will be more confident.
•  Good communication makes it easier to work and learn with other people. Everyone benefits.

Once you know the rules, using them is up to you.  You can decide how you want to communicate to get exactly the results you want. Remember good communication is key to lifelong success.

Denise Moore Revel is a leading Speech Therapist & Coach who specializes in improving adult communication skills. Visit her website www.askthespeechtherapist.com and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for more tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve speech and language development.

When you speak, you make sound in your larynx (voice box) with your vocal folds. Your vocal folds are soft tissue folds that consist of muscle, ligament and mucous membrane. The vocal folds need to be lubricated with a thin layer of mucus in order to vibrate efficiently.

Here are a few tips to help your vocal fold stay hydrated and healthy:

• Drink, swig, or sip room temperature water. Most physicians recommend 32 ounces per day as a minimum. And 64 ounces is even better.
• Limit caffeine and alcohol. Caffeine and alcohol pull water out of your system and deplete the vocal folds of needed lubrication. Caffeinated drinks include coffee, tea, and soft drinks. Small amounts of these beverages are acceptable but must be counterbalanced by drinking more water.
• Keep your environment moist. Dry environments can dry out your vocal folds. If your home or work environment is dry, consider using a humidifier.
• Nurse your voice when sick. Many over-the-counter cold and flu medications contain agents that dehydrate your vocal mucus membranes. While the medicines may alleviate some of your cold symptoms, they also may dry out the vocal folds. Drink plenty of liquids.
• Minimize throat clearing: Clearing your throat can be compared to slapping or slamming the vocal cords together. Consequently, excessive throat clearing can cause vocal cord injury and hoarseness. An alternative to voice clearing is taking a small sip of water or simply swallowing to clear the secretions from the throat.

It is believed that 7.5 million people have diseases or disorders of the voice. Some of these disorders can be avoided by taking care of your voice. So remember to stay hydrated and you will maintain a healthy voice for years to come.

Denise Moore Revel is a leading Speech Therapist & Coach who specializes in improving communication skills. Visit her website www.askthespeechtherapist.com and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for more tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve communication skills.

You may find it easier to talk to your child while playing with a theme play set, like barnyard animals set, doll house set, etc. This way, you can tell your child a story and let the animals or dolls in the play set show it. Here are 5 common toys you can turn into language-building toys:

• Doll: When playing with a doll, talk to your child about body parts. Label the eyes, nose, ears, feet and hands on the doll. Then point out your child’s body parts on his or her body.

• Dump truck: When playing with a truck, talk to your child about the parts on the truck such as the wheels, doors, and lights. Also, make sure you use action words like pushing, rolling and dumping while playing with the truck. And don’t forget to put different items, like blocks, cars, stuffed animals in the truck to dump out for even more fun.

• Ball: When playing with ball, talk to your child about the shape of the ball, the way it bounces and rolls. Again, use action words like throw, catch and bounce when playing with your favorite ball.

• Tea set: When playing with a tea set, talk to your child about using a spoon, cup and plate. It’s also important to talk about using good table manner such as turn-taking, good posture and saying “please and thank you”.

• Rubber Duckie: Playing with a Rubber Duckie it is a great way to introduce animals and the different sounds they make.

As the caregiver, you are the primary language builder for your child. But the most important thing to remember when playing with your child is to have fun. Turn learning time into fun time.

Denise Moore Revel is a leading Speech Therapist who specializes in improving children communication skills. Visit her website www.askthespeechtherapist.com/ and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for more tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve speech and language development.

These 6 everyday activities are really rich language-building activities in disguise!

• Taking a walk down the street: Have your child identify the different color of the cars, trucks or buses that he or she sees.
• Watching a movie: After the movie is over, ask your child simple questions about the movie like, “who was your favorite person in the movie or what did you like most about the movie?”
• Playing board games: This activity is great for building great social skills, like turn-taking, staying focused on tasks, and following directions.
• Riding in the car: While riding in the car, this is great time to point out safety symbols like stop signs and traffic lights. This is also a great time to introduce safety rules.
• Listening games-identify the sound: Have your child close his eyes and see if he can identify the various sounds in the environment. This activity encourages creating great listening skills.
• Going grocery shopping: Have your child identify which category the items on your shopping list belongs, like apples are fruits, chips are a snack and water is a drink.

All the activities listed above are things you are already doing with your child on a regular basis.  So, turn ordinary activities into extraordinary learning activities that will have a great impact on your child’s development for years to come.

Denise Moore is a leading Speech Therapist that specializes in improving communication in children. Visit her website at www.askthespeechtherapist.com/ and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve communication skills.