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This month we are featuring a speech-language pathologist who is using Gemiini in the private clinic setting! Please welcome Andrzej Lewandowski, MHS, MA, CCC-SLP/L, PEL, Polskojęzyczny Logopeda w Chicago® Bilingual (Polish and English-speaking) speech therapist, Dempster Therapeutic Services. Andrzej is an Illinois Early Intervention credentialed speech therapy provider and a certified member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and has worked in multiple environments ranging from schools to private practices. All therapists at Dempster work closely with families to help children find the best treatment plan for their needs at their own home.

Happy New Year from the Content and Film departments at Gemiini! We’ve uploaded several new projects this month and we hope that you and your learner will be half as excited as we are for them!

The Core Word Corner can be used with both verbal speech and AAC devices. Use the Core Word Corner to find high-use vocabulary words that you can target both in and out of your Gemiini sessions!

As if having a family member with special needs is not challenging enough, the COVID-19 health crisis continues to add unwelcome layers of worry. Parents must consider navigating contacts with playmates, making vaccine decisions, dealing with the donning of masks, and assessing how to effectively protect the health of family members, including aging grandparents. Parents and family members of children with developmental exceptionalities experience more complicated dimensions of these and other challenges as compared to raising children who are typically developing.

While the holiday season can be a magical time, it can also bring additional stress to families. The holidays bring significant upheaval to your routine. New people will be coming in and out of the house, new foods will be served for dinner, and new activities like exchanging gifts will take place. All of this unpredictable activity and change in routine may make children distressed and anxious.

Toy selection on its own can be an overwhelming decision and only gets more complicated when considering a child with special needs. Without proper consideration, the well-meaning heap of toys in your home go unused, improperly used, or don’t promote purposeful play. Purposeful play is essential to promote joyful intellectual and social development through exploring, problem-solving, and creating. The following tips offer some guidance when considering your next set of toy purchases