Sammy speakwell DVD (for oral motor excercises) - has anyone seen or got? And teachmetotalk dvd?

[Gilliana1]

Has anyone ever seen a dvd called Sammy Speakwell which is a USA dvd with oral motor exercises for children with dyspraxia. I've watched the youtube snapshot of it and was trying to decide whether to order it, but it is shockingly expensive and pennies are tight with us so any feedback would be fabulous.

I've also noticed a dvd called 'Teach me to talk - Apraxia'. Again, rather pricey so anyone ever seen this and got any views?

Thanks so much,

[janpa]

Are you seeing a speech therapist as they should be able to give you exercises. We listened to Jolly Phonics CD all the time in the car which helped by osmosis! A good read is 'The Late Talker' by Agin, Geng & Nicholl & available on Amazon. x

[Gilliana1]

Thanks for the book recommendation, I will look it up. Yes, we just started seeing a speech therapist. My ds1 LOVES the television and is a BIG copier so I was wondering whether the dvds may be helpful.

I just bought the jolly phonics cd.. really glad you have recommended. The one I have has gaps between each phonic sound, is that the one you have? Time to have it on in the car and to learn the words myself! ;-))

[Benny1]

I've purchased the Sammy Speakwell oral motor DVD for my son and it's been working great (about 3 weeks). Even though he gets speech therapy in school it's only twice a week, plus I found it hard to do the exercises with my son only reading them from a written homework sheet. Having them performed live on TV (or computer) works extremely well. He loves following along with the exercises while they're being shown as close-ups. I think it's a great idea and I'm very happy with the DVD. My wife and I are seeing improvements in his tongue control.

As far as the price goes, I personally thought it was inexpensive. When you take into consideration the cost of speech therapy, for $50 I'll get months of speech therapy that my son can practice everyday. In my opinion, I see it as a great investment.

[AMRS]

Just a warning to anyone else looking to use the Sammy Speakwell videos.. You should think twice. The exercises they use are designed to help with swallowing disorders, NOT speech disorders. The slow movements they do to strengthen your tongue and other articulators DO NOT translate to helping with effective speech. All of the academic reach about NSOMEs (the 'non-speech oral motor exercises') used in Sammy Speakwell has no research to back it up, just the opposite in fact.