Creating therapy materials to serve your caseload and build a business (with Hallie Sherman)

In episode 95 of the “De Facto Leaders” podcast I sat down with Hallie Sherman, a school speech-language pathologist, blogger, and business owner from SpeechTimeFun (https://speechtimefun.com/). When Hallie started working as a school SLP, she had a difficult time finding materials for middle school and high school students. After a lot of trial and error, she managed to create her own tools to serve her students. In 2012, she decided to start a blog and start sharing some of these resources with others; thinking that no one would ever read it. Fast forward to the present day; and Hallie’s created a successful Teachers Pay Teachers store which led to her building a membership site for school clinicians called SLP Elevate. In this conversation, we dive in to topics such as: ✅How and why she started selling materials for SLPs, and why she originally started her blog under an alias (Miss Speechie). ✅The thought process and strategy behind the materials she creates; and why they help clinicians keep therapy aligned with the curriculum. ✅How therapists can educate others about what they do (and some hidden benefits of people NOT fully understanding your role). ✅How to get over your fear about sharing your clinical knowledge online. To connect with Hallie, you can find her blog here (https://speechtimefun.com/), connect with her on Instagram here (https://www.instagram.com/speechtimefun/), or on Facebook here (https://www.facebook.com/SpeechTimeFun ). You can learn more about her program for SLPS, SLP Elevate, here (https://www.speechtimefunpd.com/slp-elevate-aug). In this episode, I mentioned my “30 Skills and Tools to Foster Generalization” guide that walks through assets you can build to ensure clients get support outside your sessions. You can download this free resource here (https://drkarendudekbrannan.com/generalization). Learn more about today's sponsors, Playworks, IXL and Renaissance:Learn more about Renaissance:As a global leader in education technology operating in more than 110 countries, Renaissance is committed to providing educators with insights and resources to accelerate growth and help all students build a strong foundation for success. We believe that technology can unlock a more effective learning experience, ensure that students get the personalized teaching they need to thrive, and help educators and administrators to truly, fully, See Every Student. Learn more at renaissance.com.We’re proud to be sponsored by Playworks, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with evidence-based practices that help schools improve the health and well-being of children by increasing opportunities for physical activity and safe, meaningful play.If you’re a school or district leader struggling with the challenge of chronic absenteeism, as so many are across the U.S., you may not realize that structured recess is a research-backed approach to keep kids in school. In fact, a UC Berkeley study of Title I schools found that those partnering with Playworks had significantly lower chronic absenteeism rates. Further, Mathematica research demonstrated that Playworks schools spent 27% less time transitioning from recess back to learning, saving teachers valuable instructional time. These results are possible for your students, too. Learn how Playworks can help you improve student-educator relationships, belonging, and attendance by signing up for a quick no-obligation conversation. We’re also thrilled to be sponsored by IXL. IXL’s comprehensive teaching and learning platform for math, language arts, science, and social studies is accelerating achievement in 95 of the top 100 U.S. school districts. Loved by teachers and backed by independent research from Johns Hopkins University, IXL can help you do the following and more:Simplify and streamline technologySave teachers’ timeReliably meet Tier 1 standardsImprove student performance on state assessments🚀 Ready to see why leading districts trust IXL for their educational needs? Visit IXL.com/BE today to learn more about how IXL can elevate your school or district.