About this item
Give your child the gift of conversation with Small Talk!You are your child's most valuable resource when it comes to learning to talk. In Small Talk, speech and language therapist Nicola Lathey and parenting journalist Tracey Blake demystify the six stages of language learning, from "Pre-Babble" to "Complete Sentences," so you can tune in to what your child is saying -- or trying to say! You'll also learn: * Why the babbling stage is so important* How to encourage your baby's first words * Communication techniques to calm your toddler's tantrums * The truth about pacifiers, baby signing,and the impact of TV on language development * Causes for concern and where to turn for help. Written by experts who are also parents of young children, Small Talk helps you to give your child the best head start by encouraging language and vocabulary development early on.
About the Author
My name's Nicola Lathey and, since 1999, I've been fortunate enough to have my dream job - a children's Speech and Language Therapist. My work has taken me to child development centres as far afield as Australia, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, but now I am based in Oxford where I run my own private practice, The Owl Centre.I specialise in working with children under the age of five and have, over the years, helped patients with all sorts of speech, language and communication problems - from babies who aren't yet babbling, to toddlers who are more interested in Thomas The Tank Engine than talking, to children whose speech has been severely affected by their dummy addiction.I was inspired to become a Speech and Language Therapist after observing the support given to my younger brother with Down's Syndrome. This personal experience of the effects which Speech and Language Therapy can have on children and on their families gave me a real insight into the importance of good communication skills and the difficulties which can emerge if those skills are absent or weak. I have one daughter, Jess, who was born in 2010 and who is definitely a chatty cheeky monkey!My first book, co-authored with national journalist, Tracey Blake, is called Small Talk, and was published by Macmillan in the UK in June 2013. It is a parent's guide for boosting children's speech, language and communication development. Our agent, Elizabeth Sheinkman, has recently found a publisher for Small Talk in the US and the book is due to be released in April 2014.I have also written a number of children's books which are underpinned by speech and language therapy techniques for bedtime reading which is highly focused on developing the sounds and words relevant to the child's age group. The first instalment of these books will be published by Macmillan in spring 2015.I provide lectures on Small Talk to large organisations with parent programmes, and am happy to receive requests.Under the brand Small Talk, SLT-approved resources (such as beakers and toys) are in the process of being developed for the international market.Our website address is www.smalltalktime.com (where you can also find an email address to contact me).My twitter handles are:@smalltalktimeand@st_NicolaLathey
