effective communication for all children

JOHN – 9 years old on referral

John was having problems with his behaviour both at home and with his peers at school. He would get upset and angry very easily. He was also struggling to focus on his schoolwork and homework, often taking a lot longer than necessary to complete the task.  He found it difficult to interact when faced with larger groups, especially when complex situations developed.

John was introduced to Not Just Talking. The results were noticeable even after the first session. John has learned to develop his non-verbal skills to a very high level. He now has a much better understanding of how to interact with his peers and people of all ages. He no longer struggles with his homework. He stays on task and on time.

The transformation has been quite remarkable and we are delighted that with the help of Not Just Talking, John is developing and mastering these essential social skills.

FREDDY

My 9 year old son Freddy had very poor attention and behaviour problems since starting his school reception year.  He was often demanding and stubborn, yet he was also very charming when things were going ‘his way’.

Very quickly his school identified his learning difficulties in year 1 which was made worse by his attitude and complete refusal to try and anything unless it was something he wanted to do.

Despite using all the usual channels through the school (Educational Psychology, CAHMS, Speech &Language Therapy) nothing changed in his behaviour. During this time Freddy was becoming more frustrated at school. His behaviour was deteriorating and he totally shut-down his learning and the gap in his learning and maturity from his peers was widening. The school began to talk about removing him to a school for children with behaviour difficulties.

I then found out about Not Just Talking through the web and spoke to Sioban on the telephone and she immediately put me at ease. She scheduled Freddy in for intervention lessons and the change in him since her intervention began have been very noticeable – He was ‘Star of the week’ at school last week! 

Here are some of the changes that we have noticed: 

1. 1.Freddy is more considerate of his brother and can share, take turns and play together without any ‘hiccups’ for hours
   

2. 2.He no longer flees from situations or stomps off saying ‘I’m not playing’ when playing with one or two friends
   

3. 3.His behaviour is becoming more appropriate (not yet perfect) and he is able to discuss how he is feeling and calm down much quicker when something has not gone ‘his’ way
   

4. 4.He is behaving more acceptably during play time
   

5. 5.He is a great deal happier in school and at home, much more talkative and is giving more information than previously
   

6. 6.He is more motivated and wants to go out more. (Before Sioban’s intervention it was often a battle to get him out of the house  to go to the park or for a walk)
   

7. 7.He is more understanding of his emotions and others. When another child called him a name during a play in the park, he said he ‘forgave’ the other child and just carried on playing without any sulking or issues, even though he was quite annoyed to begin with
   

8. 8.He is trying harder at school – although he has a lot of catching up to do.
   

I am confident that every child displaying behavioural problems would benefit from the Not Just Talking intervention.

There are many more parent testimonials this is just a small selection.

But they all tell the same story, i.e. no change before Not Just Talking’s intervention followed by almost immediate positive change in behaviour, socialisation, emotional understanding and educational progress.