Expert Tips for Educators & Therapists

The AAC Carryover Plan That Actually Gets Used

AAC carryover plans work best when they make the next step unmistakably clear. This one-page template gives teachers, paras, and families exactly what they need to know: what to do, when to do it, and what successful AAC support can look like.

Why We're Spending September on Deaf Awareness

Deaf Awareness Month is an opportunity to move beyond awareness and build practical skills for supporting Deaf and hard of hearing students. This September, we’re exploring DHH-informed practice through communication, inclusion, classroom strategies, Deaf culture, and lived experiences.

A Conversation You Don't Want to Miss: Office Hours with Sarah Bevier & Lisa Kathman

What does meaningful data collection actually look like for a busy school-based SLP? SLP Toolkit co-founders Sarah Bevier and Lisa Kathman share practical strategies for collecting better data, simplifying documentation, and capturing the full story of student progress.

When SLP Summit Showed Up: The Courses That Changed Everything

Some SLP Summit courses teach you something new. Others stay with you for years. Looking back across nearly a decade of Summit, we’re revisiting the sessions, presenters, and pivotal moments that made an impact far beyond a single hour of professional development.

A Love Letter to Nine Years of SLP Summit

Nine years of SLP Summit means nine years of unforgettable presenters, unexpected friendships, powerful courses, and the occasional live-event curveball. Co-founder Sarah Bevier looks back at the people and moments that have stayed with her most.

The Course That Made Everyone Mad - And Everyone Better

One of SLP Summit’s most memorable grammar courses left attendees asking one question: “Where can I buy that?” The answer? You can’t. Bill Bolden’s practical approach gave SLPs something even better: the tools and confidence to create and adapt activities themselves.

How SLP Summit Topics Actually Get Chosen

How does a topic make it onto the SLP Summit lineup? From live chat conversations and attendee feedback to presenters with practical ideas worth sharing, discover how the Summit community helps shape each event.

What Progress Actually Looks Like: A Cleaner Way to Measure What Matters

Percent accuracy can tell you whether a student performed a skill in therapy, but it doesn’t always tell you whether their communication is changing in real life. This four-layer progress monitoring framework helps SLPs capture acquisition, generalization, maintenance, and functional impact without drowning in data.

Office Hours Recap with Nikki Hunjan

Our June Bright Conversations Office Hours with Nikki Hunjan was the perfect end-of-school-year exhale. We talked organization, wrapping up the year, connecting with fellow SLPs, and simple ways to make life a little easier for your future self.

When Is It OK to Stop? An SLP's Guide to Dismissing from Therapy

How do you know when a student is truly ready to graduate from speech therapy? This practical framework helps SLPs think through dismissal using eligibility, data, generalization, functional communication, and the student’s ability to move forward without skilled support.

How Can We Create Summer Homework Families Will Actually Use?

Summer home programs don’t need to be long to be effective. By building practice into routines families already have, SLPs can create simple, realistic home programs that make carryover more manageable all summer long.

Wrapping Up the School Year

End-of-year documentation may be unavoidable, but spending your final weeks of school buried in reports doesn’t have to be. A few simple shifts can help SLPs write faster, reduce overthinking, and get those reports submitted without sacrificing the information that matters.

Honoring Communicative Intent: What AAC Progress Actually Looks Like

AAC progress doesn’t always begin with the “right” word. Rachel Madel’s framework for honoring communicative intent helps SLPs and teams recognize the early reaches, taps, explorations, and initiations that build the foundation for meaningful AAC communication.

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