When booking the event remember to put the email of the person attending, so they can receive all relevant info.

Description

When children do not speak to certain people it is commonly mistaken for shyness, stubbornness, rudeness or attention seeking. Despite talking freely in other situations, we cannot assume they are choosing not to speak or lack the motivation to engage.

Consistent inability to speak in certain situations is usually linked to a specific phobia of talking which, if mishandled, can become increasingly entrenched and difficult to overcome.

It is important to understand the difference between shyness, refusal or inability to speak. Above all teachers, parents and carers need to know how to handle the silence appropriately.

Facilitating participation, engagement and verbal interaction are fundamental, however, sometimes adults do not realize that their behavior can be anxiety provoking and at school students with Selective Mutism fall deeper into withdrawal, isolation, and avoidance.

We will discuss how staff and parents can recognize the difference between shyness and ‘selective mutism’ and work together to help children and teens break their silence.

This training will also equip concerned parents with a toolbox of effective skills and strategies that they can use to help their anxious child feel reassured and develop the confidence to overcome their anxious emotions.

This is a very practical workshop looking at all the stages of confident speaking and activities and strategies and techniques.

Speaker

Anna Biavati-Smith is a Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, who supports children with many different speech and language disorders, unusual bilingual acquisition and selective mutism. She is a joint founder and a committee member of the National Selective Mutism CEN (clinical excellence network) and offers specialist training in Scotland, UK and overseas. She has supported many families and schools in the last 10 years mainly on Selective Mutism (SM). “I am very passionate about Selective Mutism and I would like people to recognize it and know where to get support and apply strategies”.

Other Information

Tea, coffees, refreshments, will be provided.

LUNCH is included

For any specific information or queries, please contact Anna Biavati-Smith wordstepsslt@gmail.com

Another way to pay:

Payment can be made in several different ways:

• By cheque: Payable to Anna Biavati-Smith (contact me to get the address)
• By Bank Transfer
• Or I can go on your suppliers' list (that is what I have done for other schools)

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact Anna Biavati-Smith at wordstepsslt@gmail.com