Is it weird for a speech therapist to ask to meet alone with my 9-year-old right after he begins treatment?

[Anonymous]

Is it weird for a speech therapist to ask to meet alone with my 9-year-old right after he begins treatment?

Supposedly, the speech therapist wants my kid to open up more and the like, but he's perfectly compliant and vocal during treatment, and I sort of want to see if the therapy is worthwhile. I've sat in on all of my kid's other sessions and it's never been recommended that I sit out.

I learn a lot from watching these sessions (including whether the therapist is a good fit, how to help my kid practice skills elsewhere, etc).

Confused.

[Anonymous]

Ugh. Don’t sit in our the sessions! You need to trust your therapist and give them the opportunity to build rapport. They’ll tell you what you need to work on at home if they are good. I mean he’s 9!

[Anonymous]

No, it’s not weird.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Don't people sit in? I can't imagine paying the gobs of money for therapy that I do without have a good sense of what's going on.

Doesn't knowing what's being discussed help you understand if this is time and money well spent?

So many places support having parents sit in--at least the ones I've talked to.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Don't people sit in? I can't imagine paying the gobs of money for therapy that I do without have a good sense of what's going on.

Doesn't knowing what's being discussed help you understand if this is time and money well spent?

So many places support having parents sit in--at least the ones I've talked to.

Honestly? Not really. I don’t know what is effective in speech therapy because I am not an SLP. It’s like a car mechanic - you can do your research but at a certain point, you have to just trust them.

[Anonymous]

Nope. Not weird. If your kid interacts with a teacher without you present, then he/she can interact with an SLP without you present. That said, the SLP should spend maybe 2 mins with u at the end to tell you what to work on with your child that week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, it’s not weird.

+100

[Anonymous]

OP here. Oh wow. I've weeded out so many not so productive therapies by sitting in these sessions.

I've sat in since my son was 3 and needed a lot of assistance with articulation.

Super surprised people aren't sitting in more frequently. It's interesting.

I myself have gone through several therapists before I found the right one. How do you know what's going on unless you hear the info being exchanged?

Also, I guess I don't understand the *cost* of a parent listening in (like a fly on the wall) until a kid is a tween/teen. So why not?

[Anonymous]

Sitting in sometimes is good for you to learn what's happening. But your kid also needs time away from you to avoid being distracted, and the therapist might be uncomfortable with you watching, worried about you judging the therapist.

[Anonymous]

I didn’t sit in with my 3-4 year old and neither did the other parents in the waiting room. It’s not a parent thing as far as I am aware.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Oh wow. I've weeded out so many not so productive therapies by sitting in these sessions.

I've sat in since my son was 3 and needed a lot of assistance with articulation.

Super surprised people aren't sitting in more frequently. It's interesting.

I myself have gone through several therapists before I found the right one. How do you know what's going on unless you hear the info being exchanged?

Also, I guess I don't understand the *cost* of a parent listening in (like a fly on the wall) until a kid is a tween/teen. So why not?

Because he is a tween. This will work best if your kid and the therapist have a relationship that doesn’t go through you. It will also work best if your kid manages his own speech practice - maybe with your reminder, but he needs to take ownership of this.

[Anonymous]

But I *am* judging the therapist...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Oh wow. I've weeded out so many not so productive therapies by sitting in these sessions.

I've sat in since my son was 3 and needed a lot of assistance with articulation.

Super surprised people aren't sitting in more frequently. It's interesting.

I myself have gone through several therapists before I found the right one. How do you know what's going on unless you hear the info being exchanged?

Also, I guess I don't understand the *cost* of a parent listening in (like a fly on the wall) until a kid is a tween/teen. So why not?

I absolutely loved our therapist. At the end of the lesson she would update me on what they did and give me things to practice at home.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t sit in with my 3-4 year old and neither did the other parents in the waiting room. It’s not a parent thing as far as I am aware.

Wow. I'm surprised. This is not typical where I'm from.

Aren't parents on this board often complaining about lack of progress and the like? You'll make so much more progress if you understand what's happening. And I think that's your right...

I realize I'm a bit opinionated about this, but oh well. It's interesting to see the diversity of opinions.

I recently talked to one provider that was like, "oh sure! we want families to sit in because that's how kids learn faster and at home."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I didn’t sit in with my 3-4 year old and neither did the other parents in the waiting room. It’s not a parent thing as far as I am aware.

We always went in. The SLP would give us tips for practicing at home throughout the session.