Telepractice is rapidly transforming how speech-language services are delivered in schools, offering school-based SLPs new opportunities to embrace innovation and adapt to changing demands.
With growing caseloads becoming a common reality, telepractice providers are finding creative and effective ways to meet the needs of their students while maximizing the benefits of this evolving approach.
Managing multiple students in a telepractice setting requires strategic planning to ensure each participant receives the necessary support. Thoughtfully structured group therapy sessions allow therapists to monitor engagement, provide tailored feedback, and adapt activities to meet each student’s needs. Even when groups cannot be perfectly aligned based on shared goals, turn-taking and cooperative activities ensure every student makes
Aligning Telepractice with IEP Goals
Speech-language therapy services in schools are mandated by a child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP). Peer interaction plays a significant role in the educational experience, making small group sessions a valuable tool. While one-on-one sessions may be necessary for some students, evidence-based data should guide decisions about individualized versus group therapy. When grouping students, consider primary needs such as articulation, phonological disorders, or language delays. If scheduling constraints arise, mixed-group sessions can still be effective with strategic activity planning.
One way to address caseloads is by thoughtfully organizing group therapy sessions. In group activities, therapists can monitor each student’s participation, provide tailored feedback, and adapt activities to meet individual needs—all of which are essential for keeping learners engaged. Even if groups cannot always be neatly arranged to address a specific skill or need shared by all participants, it’s nearly always possible to devise turn-taking and cooperative activities that allow the provider to give each student the attention they need and help them make meaningful progress toward their individualized goals.
Start by attempting to group classmates by category of need: students with articulation and phonological disorders, and students with language delays and disorders will likely be the two most prominent categories. It’s ok to mix categories in a session if scheduling gets tricky. The popular site UltimateSLP.com features activities that can easily be customized for exactly this purpose, and the strategy can be applied to many activities you create yourself. Whether your activity employs slides, a whiteboard, or just two cameras, embed prompts into your activity that target the goals of each participating student. It requires some planning and creating in advance, just as it does for on-site school-based SLPs.
Preparing for Successful Telepractice Sessions
Delivering engaging and effective speech therapy through telepractice requires more than just logging into a video call and pulling up a colorful website. Success begins with thoughtful planning that prioritizes each student’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals while also getting the most out of the seemingly endless resources available to the online provider. The Stepping Stones Group telepractice model was built on the premise that telepractice is not effective just because it is computer driven. The success and effectiveness of telepractice has much more to do with the provider’s ability to help students accomplish their goals and objectives using evidence-based practices and methodologies.
Every session should be purposefully designed to address the specific goals outlined in a student’s IEP. You can easily be drawn to interactive online activities with pre-packaged, ready-to-play activities, but the resources you choose must directly support the skills the student is working to develop. Game-based activities are fun and valuable, but they must also be functional. In both telepractice and on-site sessions, group activity must be carefully planned to align with the individualized goals outlined in students’ IEPs. Curate activities that target specific speech or language skills, ensuring that every exercise—whether it's an interactive game, a role-playing scenario, or a structured conversation—serves a clear educational intervention purpose. This alignment guarantees that the sessions are not merely engaging but are also functionally effective in promoting each student's progress.
By keeping IEP goals at the forefront, therapists ensure that each session is not only engaging but also meaningful and productive. Effective telepractice is never defined by pre-packaged website game. Those fun resources merely enhance the telepractice session and typically increase engagement.
Here’s an engagement strategy that can be effective at helping students focus on the interactions taking place while other students are responding or taking their turn. After a student replies or takes a turn, offer the next student a bonus point, extra turn, or whatever bonus fits well within your activity, if they can recall out loud the response that was given by the other student. For example, if Student 1 just named three items that are red, ask Student 2 if she or he can remember the three items that Student 1 just named. It’s a fun way to keep students interested in the activity, and it also provides reinforcement in the form of repetition during the lesson.
Boosting Engagement in Telepractice Sessions
Engagement is crucial for maintaining student participation in telepractice. Structuring and reinforcement strategies help students stay focused, even when waiting for their turn. For instance, after a student provides a response, ask the next participant to recall their answer for bonus points or an extra turn. This method reinforces learning through repetition and enhances focus during group activities.
An example of a structured session might include:
Preparing for the Unexpected
Even the most well-planned sessions can encounter roadblocks. Students may lose interest in an activity. Technology glitches might render a resource unusable. This is why it’s crucial for telepractice providers to have a variety of strategies and resources at their fingertips—and always be ready with a “Plan B.” Being familiar with a wide range of online tools and activities allows therapists to pivot seamlessly when needed.
For example:
If a student disengages during a reading-based activity, switching to a more interactive game or movement-based task can recapture their attention.
If a favorite website is down, having printable resources or alternative platforms ready ensures the session stays on track. You must discuss what options are available for printing and copying with your facilitator/paraprofessional early in the game, and you must be prepared to be crafty and resourceful with blank sheets of paper if printing is not an option.
Try re-purposing printed worksheets into a PowerPoint or Google Slides deck. Put each prompt, question or section on its own slide. This format is much more engaging and a better way to present stimulus items in a teletherapy setting. Visual stimuli and interactive processes are much better at capturing and holding attention than printed worksheets.
Incorporating physical movement breaks up screen time, keeps students energized, and appeals to different learning styles. You can make movement a part of any activity either through scheduled movement breaks or integrating movement into the activity. Delivering information to another individual in the room, searching for specific items in a room, and requiring fine motor movements to complete a task such as placing items in appropriate containers are just a few general examples of how this can be achieved.
Careful preparation is an investment that pays off in more focused and successful sessions. SLPs should dedicate time to preview activities by exploring websites, games, or digital tools before the session to ensure they align with goals and are easy for students to use.
Here’s a summary of preparation and planning strategies that have been used effectively by The Stepping Stones Group Telepractice providers:
Leveraging Support and Resources
Any SSG provider who is struggling with groups on their schedule should contact their clinical manager for support. An immediate fix may not always be instantly available, but consulting with experienced providers will very likely lead to a new approach that makes caseload management easier, more enjoyable and more effective.
Group therapy sessions in telepractice follow the same evidence-based principles as in-person sessions, with necessary digital adaptations. By focusing on direct instruction, immediate feedback, and structured activities, telepractice providers can create meaningful and productive group sessions that drive student progress. Our talented team of telepractice providers is proving this to be true in schools across the country every day.
Author: Joe Comeau, M.S.Ed, CCC-SLP