Purchase this webinar by clicking the “Shop Resources” link below.
Do any of these sound familiar?
-
I do want to speak but the words just won’t come out.
-
It feels like the words are stuck in my throat.
-
I don’t like it.
-
I don’t want to do it.
-
She’s such a chatterbox at home.
-
The closer we get to school the less he speaks.
-
She looks like a rabbit in the headlights.
-
It’s like he is almost about to speak to me.
-
The more I ask the more she clams up.
-
Sometimes she talks and sometimes she doesn’t.
-
He’s really slow and hesitant to get started with things like writing and dressing.
-
They think he’s being stubborn.
-
Talking in front of certain people feels too scary.
Someone you know may be suffering from Selective Mutism (SM) or speech confidence difficulties. SM is a condition that will not go away if left untreated. For more information click the shop button below or click here to go to the main website.
What is Selective Mutism?
Selective Mutism (previously known as elective mutism) is a disorder that usually occurs during childhood. It is characterised by a child having difficulty speaking (or is silent) in at least one social setting, despite being able to speak normally in other situations.
Often it will be shown by children who can speak confidently at home but are silent at school.
The child can be described as having a real FEAR around speaking or social interactions in certain situations and it can be incredibly distressing for the child and family. Selective mutism typically occurs before a child is 5 years old and is usually first noticed when the child starts school but it can often be missed resulting in later or misdiagnoses.
Principal Therapist: Danielle Cottam – Senior Speech Pathologist
BSc (Hons) MSPA CPSP
A Senior Speech Pathologist with over a decade of experience working with children, families, schools and community services in Australia and the UK. Danielle is registered with The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Private Practice, Speech Pathology Australia and The United Kingdom’s Health Professionals Council.
As a Mum herself, Danielle is passionate about the delivery of fun, evidence-based interventions that consider the needs of the whole child and family. Danielle has extensive experience in providing in-home and in-school therapy services and understands the need to tailor interventions so that they are manageable (and enjoyable) for everyone involved. Danielle is passionate about empowering parents to help their children and teens become confident communicators and learners in all their walks of life. Alongside this, she works together with the child/teen, schools and other health professionals to provide training and therapy to target Selective Mutism where it happens day-to-day!
Danielle has developed specific expertise in the areas of Selective Mutism and Oral-Motor Issues (speech sound and eating and drinking difficulties) following post-graduate training and specialism in these areas. She has been involved in the set-up and management of services in these areas across the UK and Australia for over 10 years. This includes the Bolton NHS Selective Mutism Care Pathway, Western Australia’s first Selective Mutism Support Group and Western Australia’s first, community based, multidisciplinary mealtime team at one of WA’s largest Not for Profit organisations.
In addition, Danielle has many years of experience working in the public and Not For Profit sectors. This has enabled experience in the full range of childhood communication difficulties e.g. speech sound difficulties, language delay, AAC (Alternative and Augmentative Communication), social communication needs e.g. Autism which ensures a well rounded approach to any therapeutic interventions.
Communication and mealtime issues rarely require a one-fits-all approach. Having worked closely with Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Dieticians, Psychologists and medical teams for over a decade Danielle is adept at recognising the needs of the whole child and is an advocate for trans and multidisciplinary interventions. Similarly, Danielle is skilled in the development of holistic treatment plans, that integrate a variety of approaches, based upon in-depth assessment. To enable this approach Danielle is trained in many specialist skills and programmes including:
-
Post-Graduate Selective Mutism training – Maggie Johnson
-
Selective Mutism Across the Lifespan
-
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy – children and adolescents
-
Core Sensitivities – Attachment Circles of Security
-
Triple P – Positive Behaviour Management
-
Emotion Coaching – Gottman Institute
-
KidzMix
-
Hanen
-
Lego Therapy
-
Talk Tools Oral Placement Therapy
-
Talk Tools Sensory Motor Impact on Mealtimes
-
Ellyn Sattyr Division of Responsibility
-
Suzanne Evan’s Morris – Feeding the Whole Child
-
Post-graduate Dysphagia qualification
-
LAMP – Liberator AAC
-
PECs
-
Key Word Sign and Signalong
-
Talking Mats
-
Word Aware
Want to know more?
- Check out the resources on my website by clicking here – Selectivemutismwa
- Contact me by filling in your information on the form here – Contact Us
Purchase this webinar by clicking the “Shop Resources” link below.
Do any of these sound familiar?
-
I do want to speak but the words just won’t come out.
-
It feels like the words are stuck in my throat.
-
I don’t like it.
-
I don’t want to do it.
-
She’s such a chatterbox at home.
-
The closer we get to school the less he speaks.
-
She looks like a rabbit in the headlights.
-
It’s like he is almost about to speak to me.
-
The more I ask the more she clams up.
-
Sometimes she talks and sometimes she doesn’t.
-
He’s really slow and hesitant to get started with things like writing and dressing.
-
They think he’s being stubborn.
-
Talking in front of certain people feels too scary.
Someone you know may be suffering from Selective Mutism (SM) or speech confidence difficulties. SM is a condition that will not go away if left untreated. For more information click the shop button below or click here to go to the main website.
What is Selective Mutism?
Selective Mutism (previously known as elective mutism) is a disorder that usually occurs during childhood. It is characterised by a child having difficulty speaking (or is silent) in at least one social setting, despite being able to speak normally in other situations.
Often it will be shown by children who can speak confidently at home but are silent at school.
The child can be described as having a real FEAR around speaking or social interactions in certain situations and it can be incredibly distressing for the child and family. Selective mutism typically occurs before a child is 5 years old and is usually first noticed when the child starts school but it can often be missed resulting in later or misdiagnoses.
Principal Therapist: Danielle Cottam – Senior Speech Pathologist
BSc (Hons) MSPA CPSP
A Senior Speech Pathologist with over a decade of experience working with children, families, schools and community services in Australia and the UK. Danielle is registered with The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Private Practice, Speech Pathology Australia and The United Kingdom’s Health Professionals Council.
As a Mum herself, Danielle is passionate about the delivery of fun, evidence-based interventions that consider the needs of the whole child and family. Danielle has extensive experience in providing in-home and in-school therapy services and understands the need to tailor interventions so that they are manageable (and enjoyable) for everyone involved. Danielle is passionate about empowering parents to help their children and teens become confident communicators and learners in all their walks of life. Alongside this, she works together with the child/teen, schools and other health professionals to provide training and therapy to target Selective Mutism where it happens day-to-day!
Danielle has developed specific expertise in the areas of Selective Mutism and Oral-Motor Issues (speech sound and eating and drinking difficulties) following post-graduate training and specialism in these areas. She has been involved in the set-up and management of services in these areas across the UK and Australia for over 10 years. This includes the Bolton NHS Selective Mutism Care Pathway, Western Australia’s first Selective Mutism Support Group and Western Australia’s first, community based, multidisciplinary mealtime team at one of WA’s largest Not for Profit organisations.
In addition, Danielle has many years of experience working in the public and Not For Profit sectors. This has enabled experience in the full range of childhood communication difficulties e.g. speech sound difficulties, language delay, AAC (Alternative and Augmentative Communication), social communication needs e.g. Autism which ensures a well rounded approach to any therapeutic interventions.
Communication and mealtime issues rarely require a one-fits-all approach. Having worked closely with Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists, Dieticians, Psychologists and medical teams for over a decade Danielle is adept at recognising the needs of the whole child and is an advocate for trans and multidisciplinary interventions. Similarly, Danielle is skilled in the development of holistic treatment plans, that integrate a variety of approaches, based upon in-depth assessment. To enable this approach Danielle is trained in many specialist skills and programmes including:
-
Post-Graduate Selective Mutism training – Maggie Johnson
-
Selective Mutism Across the Lifespan
-
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy – children and adolescents
-
Core Sensitivities – Attachment Circles of Security
-
Triple P – Positive Behaviour Management
-
Emotion Coaching – Gottman Institute
-
KidzMix
-
Hanen
-
Lego Therapy
-
Talk Tools Oral Placement Therapy
-
Talk Tools Sensory Motor Impact on Mealtimes
-
Ellyn Sattyr Division of Responsibility
-
Suzanne Evan’s Morris – Feeding the Whole Child
-
Post-graduate Dysphagia qualification
-
LAMP – Liberator AAC
-
PECs
-
Key Word Sign and Signalong
-
Talking Mats
-
Word Aware
Want to know more?
- Check out the resources on my website by clicking here – Selectivemutismwa
- Contact me by filling in your information on the form here – Contact Us