Apraxia

Apraxia is the most over-diagnosed speech disorder, which is why the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association continually puts out guidelines for accurate diagnosis and does research on effective treatment. Annie follows these guidelines and uses treatment strategies supported by high-quality evidence. She is able to make the diagnosis or provide a second opinion, and her therapy approaches are effective for apraxia.
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Articulation/Clarity

​Annie is able to improve articulation and fix speech sound disorders rapidly. She is able to help children speak clearly and can fix long-standing speech sound errors.
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Autism

Autism is characterized by a constellation of communication issues, which may include social/pragmatic language, expressive/receptive language, language processing, stuttering, apraxia, or other speech-sound disorders. Sensory issues may also impact communication. Annie has expertise in all of these areas and enjoys working with children who have autism spectrum disorders. She is able to establish rapport and can typically elicit or identify communication where none has been present. ​

Chromosomal Differences

Annie has worked with children who have Trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome), microdeletions, and other chromosomal differences. These disorders have widely varied presentations and require highly individualized treatment. 
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Cluttering

Cluttering is a fairly rare disorder of speech clarity, which is sometimes mistaken for stuttering or articulation disorders. It requires particular strategies in order to make progress, which Annie uses effectively.
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Deaf & Hard-of-Hearing

Annie enjoys working with deaf and hard-of-hearing children, whether they use hearing devices or not. With her fluency in American Sign Language and expertise in auditory-oral therapy, she is able to individualize an approach that will work for each child. 
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Early Communication

Given years of experience with the birth-5 population, Annie has established early communication for many children. She loves to get down on the floor to play and learn with infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Parent involvement is particularly important with this population, and Annie is a certified Hanen instructor. 

Expressive Language

From nonspeaking children to those using sentences, Annie is able to get each child to the next level with expressive language. She also takes into account the impact expressive language has on education and socialization. 
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Global Delay

Annie has worked with many children who are globally delayed, which may include issues with expressive/receptive language, speech clarity or apraxia, motor skills, sensory issues, vision difficulty, feeding disorders, etc. She is able to take into account the broad picture of the whole child when working on communication skills.
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Phonological Disorders

Annie is an expert on phonological (pattern-based) speech-sound disorders, having taught workshops to other speech pathologists around the state of Maryland. She has also worked internationally with speech pathologists via the internet, assisting them with their unintelligible clients. Annie is able to help children with phonological disorders make rapid progress.
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Processing

Auditory processing and language processing disorders require a different approach than typical language disorders. Processing disorders impact the ability to learn language, socialize, and participate in the classroom differently than other communication disorders. Annie is able to customize an approach for each child and share strategies and accommodations.

Reading Difficulty

From decoding (saying the words) to reading comprehension, speech and language greatly impact reading. Annie is fantastic at helping children bridge the gap between communication and reading. This includes pre-reading skills, phonics, pronouncing the words, answering questions, formulating longer responses to the text, and more.

Receptive Language

While there is some overlap, receptive language generally requires different strategies than expressive language. Receptive language includes answering questions, following directions, and doing as you are told. Receptive language is the foundation for expressive language, and Annie is highly skilled at helping children increase their receptive language skills.

Spelling

Spelling difficulty is related to communication. There are several disorders that may underlie spelling difficulty, and Annie is able to identify and treat issues with spelling.
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Stuttering

Annie is able to distinguish stuttering disorders, which need speech therapy, from developmental stuttering, which can be a passing phase during early childhood. With specialized training from the Stuttering Foundation of America, Annie is able to treat stuttering and its related issues effectively and with compassion.

Tongue Thrust

Tongue thrust is a disorder of articulation, swallowing, and resting posture, which requires a different approach than typical articulation therapy. Annie is an experienced practitioner at treating tongue thrust, with familiarity in orofacial myofunctional therapy. 

Case Studies

The parents of two children with complex speech issues have given permission for Annie to use their information to demonstrate her competence in helping children speak clearly. Their names have been changed. Click on the images to look over their info.

Michael

Carly