Where to Find Target Words for the STRIVE Framework

Full transcript

Hi, it's Nicole coming in from the NYU Motor Speech Lab, talking target selection. Hopefully by now you've downloaded our STRIVE framework for target selection in CAS. If you haven't, it's here on Instagram, pinned to the top of the grid. One of the main questions we get all the time is: where are we actually getting the words to populate the STRIVE framework? It's a great question.

So where do we get our target words? My two favorite places are, first, conversation with the family. I always ask: What's important at home? What would you like the child to say? Where is he or she most frustrated? Where should we work to get clarity? Then I plug those words into the framework and make sure they match what I'm looking to target.

Many times I'm asking about the child's name or a beloved pet's name. You could also use the name with "I'm" to make a short phrase, which is so important. If the name is Nicole, the target phrase might be "I'm Nicole." You'd be surprised how complicated pets' names can be. One of the kids who came through the research had a cat named Mugsy. That articulatory transition from the velar "g" forward to the alveolar "z" was challenging, and we were working on difficult articulatory transitions, so it was such a great word. And it was so important to her to get that word right. I was really glad I asked.

The other place we pull target words from is the DEMSS, the Dynamic Evaluation of Motor Speech Skill, developed by Dr. Edythe Strand, the only dynamic assessment on the market. It really gives us clues as clinicians about what would be a good target, because we're sitting there working with the child with multisensory cueing to see where their breakdowns are, what's challenging for them, and what's attainable. In many instances, I'll be doing that assessment and I'll think, "Okay, 'puppy' is a really good target word. They have a dog at home. This word fits what I'm looking to target." "Mom" is a good one. There are many words on the DEMSS that are really helpful and could have a high impact while also targeting the motor goals you have. Another one I'm thinking of is "video," a nice three-syllable word that's a little more complicated, with a continuant at the beginning.

So, the two places that are a wonderful place to start: conversation with the family, as always with speech sound disorders, and the words on the dynamic assessment. I hope that's helpful.