Apraxia Therapy Materials: Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book

Therapy Materials Review: Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book

This is a review of the Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book. The book was developed by Nancy Kaufman, MA, CCC-SLP. Nancy Kaufman is a nationally acclaimed expert in apraxia who has developed assessment and treatment materials in the area of apraxia. The book is 127 pages and is a 9" x 13" spiral-bound hardcover book. This book contains 16 different motor-speech "workouts" and some great resource pages in the beginning of the book on a variety of useful topics. Just like with the Kaufman Kit Level 1, the Workout Book focuses primarily on the consonants /m, p, b, t, d, n, and h/.

Target Audience

The target audience for the Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book will usually be children between the ages of two and six. The pictures in the book were designed with those ages in mind. The book will be most useful for children who are struggling with producing simple syllable shapes and need to focus on the early emerging consonants /p, b, m, t, d, n, h/.

Description of the Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book

This is a 9" by 13" spiral-bound hard back book with 127 pages. The book begins with resource pages on a variety of topics followed by 16 different types of activity pages. An SLP could pick up this book and use it with clients with very little advance preparation. I believe this book would also be useful to parents for home practice.

• Introductory Pages and Resources
  The book begins with some great explanations and resources:
  
  • Description of the Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol
  • Treatment Tips for Establishing First Words
  • Introduction to the Mutt Family (characters used both in the workout book and the treatment kit)
  • Explanation of Word Approximations
  • Discussion of Vowels
  • Pictorial Guide to Hand Signal Cues for Vowels
  • Vowel Workout
  • Pictorial Guide to Hand Signal Cues for Consonants
  • Discussion of Other Cueing Techniques
  These resource pages are very well done and are written in a way that is easy to understand and very useful. These first 26 pages add significant value to the person trying to use this book to help children with severe speech delays.
  
  Here is an example of one of the resource pages:
  
  
  
  
• Workouts
  The next section of the book consists of 16 "workouts". These workouts are exercises designed to easily elicit many practice productions of specific motor-speech combinations. Each workout begins with an explanation of the targeted skill (for the SLP) and is followed by activity pages that are well designed and engaging even for very young children. The workouts address the following topics:
  
  • Reduplication (CVCV)
  • Consonant Vowel (CV)
  • Same Initial Consonant Pivot Phrases with CV
  • Pivot Phrase "Open"
  • Naming Function: Noun-Verb-Object
  • "I Want" Pivot Phrases to Request Objects
  • "I Want To (Verb)" to Request Actions
  • Final Consonant Inclusion of /p, t, k/
  • Simple Bisyllabics (C1V1C2V2) plus CVC
  • Naming Action: Noun-Verb-Object
  • Sequence Stories: Noun-Verb-Object
  • Present Progressive Structure
  • Short Stories
  • Scripting Functional Language
  • Click here to see sample pages. (You may have to reload page after it opens.)

How to Use the Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book

This book is a wonderful resource for any SLP. The early workouts are perfect for beginning work with children with severe speech delays. The later workouts are great for generalization of speech skills and are also great for working on expressive language skills as well. The book is compact, portable, and reproducible. It is a great investment.

Pros and Cons of the Kaufman Speech to Language Protocol Workout Book

• Pros:
  This book is sturdy, has great reference information, and has 16+ ready-to-go activities that are appealing and useful for a wide variety of speech and language students. The book takes you from eliciting single consonants and vowels to generalizing early emerging sounds in phrases and short sentences.
• Cons: The book is expensive. It only addresses early emerging consonants.

Bottom Line:

This is a great investment. The cost is high, but not completely inaccessible and worth every penny. You get a product that is educational for you, includes ready-to-go activities, is appealing to children, and is useful for a fairly wide variety of clients. It is also accessible and useful for parents that want to do extra practice at home for children with severe speech delays or expressive language delays.

You might also be interested in the following articles:

Apraxia Therapy Materials: Kaufman Speech Praxis Kit 1 (Basic Level)

Apraxia Therapy Materials: The Big Book of Exclamations

Apraxia Therapy Materials: Webber Jumbo Articulation Drill Book