The Teaching of Talking: Learn to Do Expert Speech Therapy at Home With Children and Adults

If you are a caregiver of a PWA (Person With Aphasia) who has moderate to severe aphasia, this book should be extremely helpful if you want to maximize their progress. Ittleman indicates if a PWA can imitate even single words and understands what you are saying, his method should be effective. This is true even if a person also has apraxia, though profound apraxia will probably first require other methods. Although a chapter is devoted to working on mild aphasia, and it's a good chapter, the rest of the book is more appropriate for more significant aphasia issues.

What I've Gotten Out of this Book:

1. Stimulate speech whenever you are together during the day. (My own Caveat: amount and timing need to be finessed so it's enough but

not too much for you both.)

2. Relax. Have fun. Use humor.

3. If your PWA is willing to work, they'll improve.

4. Be conscious of what you're stimulating for in terms of lengths of sentences.

5. Be aware of the need to slow down and enunciate slowly, especially words with more syllables.

6. Start easy. Work step by step for success at each step before making things more difficult.

7. Learn what mistakes to ignore.

8. Give your PWA positive feedback. If there are errors, rather than draw attention to them, suggest they try again.

This book is all practical. It's written so anyone should be able to understand. There is really no theory to get bogged down with. There are a lot of examples that anyone should be able to relate to. In addition, you're encouraged to work with relevant content, and especially in the beginning, words, phrases, or sentences that refer to your immediate environment.

If you are working with a therapist, hopefully, they've read this book and can help you put it into practice. If you aren't working with a therapist, you should probably be able to do much of what is suggested simply by reading the book. If this seems too much of a challenge, Ittleman's website, should be helpful including his videos. And he's also willing to either consult on-line with you or even answer your emailed queries. He's dedicated to spreading the work of how to do successful work on aphasia in your own home.

I wish this book had been available three years ago when my husband had his stroke and could hardly say anything. He has had lots of speech therapy, including an intensive program, and all have been helpful. But Ittleman's methods have truly seemed to make the most difference. We have chosen to also do some consulting time with him. For us, this works well, and his charges are reasonable, especially given the time and effort he puts into lesson planning, notes to you, and answers to emails. But for those of you who do well with applying material straight from a book, the book, with perhaps some emailed inquiries and looking at his site, should be enormously helpful.

Finally, this book doesn't address reading and writing issues. It focuses entirely on speech. If your PWA is like my husband and having difficulties with all three, it's probably better for quality of life for both of you to focus on speech. I guess exceptions would be if they seem to have more potential or interest in writing or reading than in speaking.

The Teaching of Talking by Mark Ittleman, M.S., CCC, Speech Language Pathologist is the ultimate guide for caregivers, loved ones and therapists of individuals who have speaking difficulties. This book is the perfect combination of principles and therapeutic methods for improving language learning, re-learning and production. Each chapter has a very specific purpose, ranging from theory and principles, evaluation/screening, therapy techniques with detailed examples, and the author's occasional humor.

In the The Teaching of Talking, Mark Ittleman introduces his readers to a unique, practical, fun and easy method that can be used by anyone to encourage language comprehension and the ability to speak. In the book he refers to a person who has a speaking difficulty as a (PSD).

I am a Speech Language Pathologist who works with individuals with speaking problems as a result of strokes, brain injury, birth defects, developmental delay, cancer, etc. I have had an opportunity to personally be mentored by Mark for over 2 years. His passion is reflected in his extensive work with patients with aphasia, apraxia, dysarthria and various voice disorders as a Speech Language Pathologist. His work as an SLP for 40 years has brought him to develop ¬¬this extraordinary and revolutionary method to stimulate language in "real-life" activities, which promote speaking practice, using the actual act of speaking. The methods in the Teaching of Talking encourage speaking with a person who has a communication difficulty (PCD) about their interests, likes, dislikes, preferences, and anything else they would like to converse about, and is empowering. The methods in The Teaching of Talking involve the therapist, loved ones, caregivers and patients as a "team" by allowing them to be "present" and participating in the conversation, even when the PCD may not be "communicating" at a level like they did before.

The Teaching of Talking inspires you to look beyond traditional therapy, to the stimulation of talking at the PCD's level, whether it is single words, phrases or sentences and to improve language understanding and use in a gradual step by step fashion. In The Teaching of Talking, Mark provides a screening tool and information about the "tools of the trade" with very detailed and specific examples for every single technique, which made it easy for a novice therapist like me to learn. A loved one, family member, or caregiver can also readily learn them. Experienced speech pathologists would also benefit from The Teaching of Talking, as it can give their therapy a whole new dimension of fun and simplicity.

Anyone who is interested in helping one speak again can master the Teaching of Talking methods with this book and Mark's mentorship. It is apparent that the goal of this book is to form a group of individuals to master the art of stimulating clarity of speech and language in a simple, functional and meaningful context of daily living activities.

The beauty of these techniques is that ¬¬¬¬¬they are very easy, and can be done all day long, without a structured "homework" time. I have learned that caregiver and families are very compliant with the home program when it does not involve adding to their busy schedules in the burden of caring for their loved one. What a relief it was when I found myself actually enjoying therapy in a positive and encouraging environment, having fun, laughing, joking, and all the while stimulating language and having them speak back to me in single words, phrases and sentences, when weeks before only withdrawn silence.

Imagine the relief when you can tell your patient's spouse that he or she can help their loved one speak again while eating, showering, going to bed, getting, dressed, shopping, and all the fun activities they share daily! ¬¬¬¬The technique utilizes a model of errorless learning and positive reinforcement to modify the speech of the PSD to make it more accurate with each question and answer.

The Teaching of Talking and mentorship program will teach anyone to be as good as any speech therapist in stimulating language at home, at the grocery store, or anywhere else you can think of! I have recommended this book to several of my patients' families and will definitely continue to use this method in my practice. This book is hands-down the best resource for anyone working with a person who has a speech or language difficulty such as children with delayed speech and language development, or those with stroke, head injury and aphasia.

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I wish I had read this book over 2 yrs ago when our daughter came home after a stroke and a 2 month coma.....she's had almost three years of traditional speech therapy, but as this book explains the magic happens at home with loved ones seven days a week. The book has so many tips from the very beginning of the process to progressively improving one's speech and understanding by drawing the subject out and helping them want and feel able to communicate with the outside world.....it ALL happens in everyday life with parents and loved ones....not an hour a week in "speech therapy" doing excercises from third grade workbooks (sorry therapists, you do help too but you can't achieve much in an hour or two a week.....we still love you!).

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This book is basically for the ones who lost voice/speaking-ability post-stroke or such scenarios, and is NOT for the ones who want to improve upon their speaking abilities or techniques or the articulation.

Somehow no review (at least the ones, I had gone thru), neither the ToC could help me identify this. So this was definitely a wrong investment for me.

BTW, for the ones who lost ability to speak post-stroke, this book might help.

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Upon returning to the field of Speech Pathology after happily staying home to raise my children, I can honestly say that the "Teaching of Talking" is a groundbreaking book for therapists and families who have been impacted by TBI or stroke. It is a logical and simplistic system that will help therapists train caregivers, so that once therapy time is over these individuals will continue to make progress. With the possibility of major changes to healthcare we cannot look to the therapists, as people who will magically be able to make loved ones talk. It is unrealistic and Mark's book is the first realistic approach to making major gains in the speed of recovery from brain injury. Well written, organized and concise. He is an inspiration!

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The 36-Hour Day : A Family Guide to Caring for Persons With Alzheimer Disease, Related Dementing Ill

Anyone caring for someone with Alzheimer's Disease, other diseases of dementia, or severe memory loss disorders, know just how difficult and consuming it is to care for someone you love. Whether you're a family member, caring for a loved one, or any of a number of healthcare providers, "The 36-Hour Day" is an absolute must-read for all. Put simply, it is a true necessity for anyone involved in the care giving process of dementia-type disorders.

My 73 year old Father was diagnosed, about 8 years ago, with a "memory problem", by his family practitioner in New York. It was far more than simple memory loss, not unusual for someone his age, and the past 4 years of my life have been dedicated to his total care. As much as I love my Father, the demands of caring for someone with Alzheimer's Disease has literally taken over my entire life and in every imaginable way. It is exhausting, depressing, frustrating, demanding and progressively gets worse. And, yes, there have been many special moments that I will treasure forever. I saw a side of my Dad, at times, that was much more loving and compassionate than I ever knew him to be. We played music, talked about old times, watched old movies and tried to harness ourselves into anything and everything that would build his confidence.

The bottom line, however, is that Alzheimer's is a disease that affects the entire family unit. And it's not uncommon for a caregiver to place his/her needs on the back burner, often to a point where they neglect themselves so badly that they become too ill to provide care for their loved on. Families have been torn apart, marriages have ended and friendships neglected that they dissolved. I've also seen people come together in ways that were miraculous. It is so necessary to take care of the caregivers, to offer them respite and to educate family members so they will have the tools to make it through the toughest of times. And, finally, one book does it all.

I believe that reading "The 36-Hour Day" is the first step in understanding Alzheimer's Disease, along with other dementia-type illnesses, and one of the most important and necessary steps a caregiver can take to prepare themselves for the very long road ahead. My friends who are reading this review, this is a very long journey that will require so much of your time, energy, compassion, passion and love. The best advice I can give you is to provide a pathway that will allow you to better understand what lies before you. There is no need to go this road alone. Support is necessary and so is reading literature and books that help you in order that you may help someone else. "The 36-Hour Day" is outstanding and comprehensive in every respect. If I were a wealthy person, I'd supply a copy to anyone who needed one.

Even though I am with him 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and provide all of his care, just this morning he asked me who I was. I reassured him, as I always do, and told him that I was his child, that my name is Peter and that he need not ever worry or get frustrated over trying to remember me or anyone else. Although it kills me inside, to hear this day after day and to see him continually get worse, my job is to remain strong and not take anything personal. None of this is his fault and nowhere, other than in this book, will you ever find the sort of comprehensive guide to caring for someone like my Dad. These memory disorders are far more devastating than the public and the healthcare world can comprehend.

Alzheimer's Disease is not merely forgetting where the car keys were placed or forgetting the name of a neighbor that you might see twice a year. Alzheimer's dementia is about losing everything it is that ever made you who you are. It is about having your rights to drive, and other similar freedoms, taken away. It is about losing your total privacy and needing the assistance of a caregiver to help with cooking or paying bills. Safety becomes the main concern of those who love and care for someone with dementia. It is more than just forgetting ingredients to recipes or the names of famous baseball players. Eventually, it will become more difficult and painful for the caregivers than the suffering patient. And my deep concern is for the caregivers who are still living and have a good life ahead. If our loved ones could speak, they would thank us for everything we have done and ask that we move forward with our lives.

I hope this has helped, even just a little bit. Bless all of you for taking the time to read this. You have my contact information below and feel free to contact me if you would like to discuss this book or even if you just need someone to chat with. The book will teach you the importance of reaching out to others. My hand is waiting to grasp onto yours.

My Sincere Warmth and Regards

Peter V. Cannice

of Scottsdale, Arizona

Email: Horsepete@aol.com

A truly remarkable book. It is well written, and very easy to read and follow, providing a background in this disease and what can/will happen to those afflicted. Providing extremely helpful insights and strategies for those of us who are caregivers, spouses, sons, daughters, and other family and friends. Personally, this book helped me to understand what was happening to my mother, helped me to be more understanding and less frustrated and annoyed with her. This book provides a great deal of insight and allows the reader to get a "feel" for the current situation and possible future situations. I have recommended this book to my personal physician to pass along to her other patients who may be in the same position as I am.

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My Mom has alzeheimers, I didn't think anyone was going through what I was until I read this book, It made me feel like I wasnt alone in this... Alzeheimers is a horrible disease, taking care of someone who has it rips your heart out... This book will help you deal with the everday's of taking care of someone... I recommend it to anyone who is going through this...

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this book was published about 5 years ago. at that time, it was up to date. while much of the neuroimagining and neuroscience has changed during that time, frankly, little has changed in how we protect, communicate with, comfort, love our loved ones or how we take care of ourselves. this book is longer than most. i like that. it gives background information, discusses alternatives with pros and cons, whereas some of the shorter alzheimer books are written more like a physician's pocket resource guide. this is an excellent book. it is one that i have recommended and loaned out to patients' families dozens of times. i always hear the same thing the book is an invaluable resource. my hope is that nancy mace updates it again soon! this book is well worth the price, new, and perhaps more (did i really say that?)

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This review is not about the quatity of the book. So far I find it to be full of excellent advise and information.

THIS IS AN OLD EDITION! I was shocked to discover a third edition in a book store last night. The latest edition contains updated information about current treatments, the latest financial information and nursing home legislation.

So buy the book but get the third edition. It is paperback and has different cover.

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Men's Fashion Illustrations from the Turn of the Century (Dover Fashion and Costumes)

This must be one of the most extraordinary publications on men's dress history available even if it only covers the Edwardian period in American. The sheer imaginative depth displayed in the subtle details is quite stunning. The illustrations were intended for use by customers to show to his tailor to draught a pattern off them. As a result, details of construction are shown, usually from front and back.

Sack Suits: Differing from the British lounge suits by the lack of a dart in the coat, they were starting to gain widespread acceptance as business wear in this period. The rather conservative illustrators takes pains to show them being worn only at the seaside and country resort. Striking variations in the cut are shown, often much more daring and tastefully imaginative than anything seen today.

Cutaway Coats: Every conceivable variation of them is shown as a more stylish town wear, although it was still being worn as a more informal alternative to frock coats which were the standard form of daytime 'full dress' for the period.

Full Dress: in the form of evening dress coats as well as frock coats for daytime wear are all displayed. Fascinating variations such as casual frock coats with check/plaid fabrics are on display along with tail coats with shawl lapels fascinating if you know anything about men's dress.

Overcoats: Some of the cuts shown are truly stunning to behold for sporty day wear, day time full dress and evening full dress. The most fascinating thing is the profusion of overcoats cut with a waist seam including overfrocks, as well as variations on the Ulster overcoat and Inverness cape.

Footwear: even this is shown in some detail. Button boots are ubiquitous as are the occasional pair of Oxford boot, and riding boots in the country equestrian scenes.

Accessories: cravat, ties, cravat pins, hats, riding accessories, as well as walking sticks are all shown each example a shining example of how a well presented Edwardian dandy would dress.

This is a treasure trove for anyone with an interest in dress history or Edwardian/ late Victorian period costume, but it is more than that for the dashing cuts of many coats make the cuts of modern menswear seem dreadfully uninspired and mass-produced by comparison. Any tailor will tell you that the level of skill required to realise some of the more difficult styles is extremely high.

Anyone who does costuming knows that there are plenty of pictorial resources for women, primarily drawn form Harper's Bazaar. What has been lacking is a comparable resource for men. This book fills that need nicely.

Since these are period illustrations, they show not only the main articles of clothing, but also good detail of accessories, such as shoes, stickpins, collars and cuffs, hats and canes. The style is fairly realistic, with a wide variety of clothing types, from formal to casual. Since the poses are intended to be natural, they are more useful that period photos, which are frequently only of formal wear, and always stifly posed.

The only thing that keeps this from being a perfect resource is that these are drawings, and may not exactly reflect actual colors and clothing details (showing construction and finish). They do an admirable job of showing fabric patterns and finishes, however, and is the most useful refernce work for this subject that I've found.

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Men's Fashion Illustrations from the Turn of the Century (Dover Pictorial Archive Series) has a prominent place beside my computer. I am writing about the first decade of the twentieth century. The pictures in this book are an excellent study of not only the clothing of the period but also the mannerisms of the time. The book gives a good idea of the attitudes of men over one hundred years ago.

I was disappointed that the book had a limited amount of descriptions of the clothing. This problem was not the fault of Dover Pictorial Archives. Instead I should have paid more attention to the description of the book. The introduction by Jane L. Druesedow offers some valuable information, but I still need to look farther into information about men's fashions at the that time in other sources as I write.

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There are many out there like myself who quickly scan the description of an item and fail to gather the facts. In this case I didn't take into account the title clearly indicates coverage STARTS with the year 1900. I was looking for U.S. mens fashions of the 1890's.

There is one page of text, no information of what changed fashion-wise from the 1890's and 1900. The widely accepted idea that mens fashions did not change "much" betwwen 1880 and 1920 is FALSE. Details such as spats, sloped/non sloped welting on the pockets, creased vs uncreased trousers can make or break your 1890's "re-enactment garb".

If you want coverage of mens fashions of the 1890's then this is not the book you seek...

However, this publication isn't that costly and therefore serves as an affordable research source (i.e. "What is not 1890's" in this case) worth having.

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I used this for research for the Play OUR TOWN. It is wonderful for understanding the styles of this period.

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Workin' It!: RuPaul's Guide to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Style

I loved this book. Miss RuPaul is workin it and has got it goin on!

A little more seriously, RuPaul should be commended for styling a self improvement book that works from the inside out (of a person). I was thoroughly impressed with the spiritual side of RuPaul as presented. He has walked a very rocky road and is here to offer his experience, strengh, and hope (as they say in 12 step meetings) so that others may graciously learn the "ropes" rather than having to experience them. Actually, this book is considerably(!) more provocative than expected. I stupidly assumed it would be full of frolic and whimsy--and it has those moments--however, the bulk of it is dedicated to telling his sobering story and sharing the wisdom he has accrued through the years. It's very much, ultimately, a "feel good" story. I originally bought the Kindle edition but was so impressed with what he had to say that I subsequently purchased the hardback so I could highlight and have ready access to many of his philosphical offerings. Four and a half stars. Highly recommended.

By the way, to me, this is not a gay or straight book. It's a person book noting the things he has learned through years of drag and other life experiences.

I bought this mainly because I'm a RuPaul fan but was pleasantly surprised that it was packed full of great positive advice and life lessons. There are tons of photos of Ru that are fun to see as he's in all sorts of different looks. You'll learn a lot about Ru himself and some of his ups and downs in his life and how doing the right thing, positive attitude and networking can bring you great things in life. Of course there's plenty of style tips for both men and women so there's something for everyone in this book. Its a fun read that just gives you a great positive feeling and these days we all can use some good energy and feel good. I really enjoyed it!

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I bought this book because I am a long time fan of Rupaul's work! I'm even hooked on "Rupaul's Drag Race"....the only reality TV show I watch; it's just TOO entertaining!

Too bad this book doesn't live up to all of Ru's former success. I had a much more thorough review written until it got deleted by accident (sadface) so I will just summarize here:

Pros:

Beautiful full color photos litter every other page of this book...some very fabulous shos of Ru in all her glamorous glory!

Insights into the workday schedule Ru had for filming her new show. We see just how hard a worker she has to be and how much effort goes into getting all dolled up in drag.

Ru's ebulient personality shines, especially in the introduction. The best advice the book gives is to always have positive energy and to let go of drama (if you are already someone who believes in "getting what you give" then you can probably go spend your 20 dollars elsewhere)

Cons:

20 dollars for a thin little paperback book?! (the glossy photos must account for this! Glad I got a good deal for it here on Ebay!)

Can be read in less than an hour.

-Very little information of actual substance (Do we really care about the fact that you don't eat fruit in tandem with any other foods s if it were a miracle diet solution? Do we really want to hear all about how you had a colonoscopy in full detail so that you could get a "Rooty Tooty Fresh and Fruity Booty!"?)

This book is advertised as a guide to style and to life, but the information is very brief and very general. Don't expect to be having a full makeover just from reading this book

Very little of Ru's story is revealed (anything about his history mentioned briefly in this book can be found mentioned in greater detail in his previous book, the autobiography, "Letting it all Hang out")

I was rather disapointed overall with this book, being such of fan of this Queen's work. It just didn't satisfy me...though some of the photos were fun to look at, I was hoping for more in depth information.

If you want to know more about Ru I recommend getting his autobiography, "Letting it All Hang Out" instead of this one. But if you are a diehard Ru fan, or are in the market for a fashion photobook then this book could be worth the $20 price tag.

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I'm glad that I just checked this book out from the library because it is super short. There are many beautiful pictures of Rupaul in his glory, but apart from that the book doesn't have much substance. It does go into great detail about applying a wig, but since I don't wear wigs that info wasn't applicable to me.

I'm a huge Rupaul fan and I listen to his music all the time when I work out at the gym. (The best work-out song is the remix of Looking Good Feeling Gorgeous called High Heel Steppin.) I have previously read his autobiography which was called "Letting it All Hang Out".... and there was quite a bit of overlap from that book to this book.

I like the down-to-earth style of this book, but it was just so short! The advice to let go of the drama, be kind, love yourself... well, it's good advice, but it's pretty basic. The fashion advice to pack lightly for a trip by packing neutral basics was okay, but didn't rock my world.

I wish he would have gone more into detail about which make-up brands he uses and trusts... also more details about his favorite fashions, styles, color mixing, textures, etc. I guess, there is still plenty more to write for a third book!

Overall, I recommend this book based on the pictures, but don't expect too much.

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RuPaul's latest book is a self help book, but one for both the inner and outer you. It's as funny and frivolous as his TV show RuPaul's Drag Race, but also like the TV show, has moments of insight and honest revelation.

There are of course, many beauty tips for women but also a nice helping of clothing tips for men. You'll learn a bit about RuPaul's history and how he came to be a world-renowned star and also find out some of the life lessons he's learned along the way.

The book starts off quite serious laying out RuPaul's basic tenants of living a full and happy life. I suspect RuPaul has read some Eckhart Tolle as I heard a lot of his ideas echoed in the Introduction.

I would have liked a slightly more in-depth book, but enjoyed the many and varied photos of RuPaul throughout. Maybe a photo book should be next on his list of things to do.

Positive, uplifting, inspiring, funny and even candid, Workin' It has something for everyone to enjoy.

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