No matter how old your kiddos are, fostering independence is one of those skills I think we all probably try really hard to impart to our little cherubs. Sometimes we’re successful as we patiently share a process or explain a rationale for the umpteenth time. And sometimes we scrap that nonsense all together and just do it ourselves - done!

If this sounds familiar to you, you’re going to love this latest episode.

I've had the good fortune of joining a group of Speech-Language Pathologists from The Hello Foundation on two international service trips and was really struck by the power of the tools they used with kiddos who struggled to communicate. It was clear to me that these tools could be used with any kids, no matter their level of communication proficiency. At the end of the day, an SLPs job is to foster independence, work themselves out of a job, if you will. And isn’t that our job as parents, to a certain degree?

In this episode, I invite a dear friend and one of the SLPs that was on those international trips to chat about some of these communication tools she relies upon every day in her work. Turns out, they can be uber-useful for ANY household. My friend Kira Wright explains how and why.

Can’t get your kids to follow a basic bedtime or morning routine? Kira explains why you might want to try a visual checklist and how to create one.

Do the weekends somehow slip away from your family, creating stress on Sunday night when no one’s accomplished what they need to? You’ll definitely want to hear about the family whiteboard system that Kira and her family use successfully to set expectations.

Are you a parent that feels the need to look over your kid’s shoulder when they’re doing homework? Kira’s got some advice on that as well.

You’ll find all this and more on today’s episode of Cause Talk Radio. So tune in now!

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