We used to plan our speech therapy sessions in grad school, but as soon as I graduated, I stopped planning. I had too many other responsibilities, so I didn’t plan for 7 years. Then, I came up with 3 reasons why I needed to start planning my therapy sessions.
1. Work-Life Balance
Sometimes, being an SLP means sacrificing your personal life. The demands of our job just get bigger and bigger.
Since becoming an SLP, I found myself doing paperwork or trying to plan my therapy sessions at home. It was becoming overwhelming, not only to me, but my family.
My work-life balance wasn’t balanced because I couldn’t figure out how to plan great sessions for EACH OF MY STUDENTS. I had too much paperwork and too many meetings.
2. Overwhelm
I was overwhelmed trying to plan therapy sessions for each student. How was I supposed to plan individualized therapy for so many students?
I realized that I had to do something before I had a breakdown. I realized that if I organized and planned my therapy sessions ahead of time, it would save my time and sanity. Not only would I get my time and sanity back, but I would also be able to give my students my best.
3. They Deserve My Best
So, I began planning my therapy sessions ahead of time. This planning wasn’t just jotting down some notes, but entailed creating goal specific materials, writing directions for EACH therapy session, listing and gathering materials ahead of time and organizing the materials into colored manila folders.
No more sub-par sessions thrown together as I am walking down the hall to get my students. My students all participate in the same activity, but they are able to work on their own goals with their goal specific materials! Plus, EVERYTHING IS READY TO GO when I need it!
So, How Did I Do It?
Each month of therapy plans has taken me 45+ hours to create. Why? Because I wanted to make sure that I could use each activity for ALL OF MY GROUPS (mixed or not). Therefore, I created materials that have the same activities, but have goal specific pictures and words.
I can’t stress enough how much this planning has truly changed my work-life balance, my overwhelm and the quality of my therapy sessions.
Now, if you are saying to yourself, ‘I don’t have time to create my own plans’ or ‘I don’t know where to start’, don’t worry! I created the SpeechTherapyPlans.com membership for SLPs who would love to have therapy plans and materials, but don’t have the time to do it!
If you want to get your work-life back in balance, decrease your overwhelm and provide your students with quality therapy, visit SpeechTherapyPlans.com.
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