58. Should Preschool SLPs Teach Letters? Rethinking Early Literacy, and Language Development

Should speech-language pathologists care about teaching letters at the preschool level? Some professionals argue no, prioritizing play, pragmatics, or comprehension instead. But research shows this doesn’t have to be an either/or decision. In this episode, I dive into: ✅ Why letter knowledge and sound-symbol correspondence matter for long-term reading comprehension ✅ How Scarborough’s Reading Rope expands when we add a third strand—executive function ✅ The three executive function skills that directly impact reading success ✅ Research from Hannah Hjetland’s longitudinal and experimental studies on early literacy ✅ How to integrate letters meaningfully into therapy without sacrificing language, play, or social communication You’ll leave with evidence-based strategies to embed print into therapy in ways that strengthen all domains—code, comprehension, and executive function—simultaneously. 👉 Want ready-to-use, empirically-based weekly activities that integrate movement, literacy, and executive function? Join the SIS Membership today: https://www.kellyvess.com/sis