Testimonials

Parents' Testimonials

J.S.Speech Bananas' Parent

When our son was born extremely premature, we knew he would likely face developmental challenges. So when his speech delay became apparent, we searched high and low for a qualified yet sensitive professional to address it. We are so glad we found Speech Bananas! At Speech Bananas, a friendly receptionist in a bright, cheerful atmosphere greeted us. His therapist sat down with us, took a detailed history, formally assessed his speech skills, and quickly customized a plan and set goals for him. Each week, when it’s time for his speech appointment, he eagerly bursts through the office door. He thinks he’s just there to play with fun toys, listen to stories, and sing songs, but we know each activity has been specially tailored to support and foster his emerging verbal skills. Additionally, we have been surprised by how much we, the parents, learned from the therapists about how to carry those lessons into our everyday lives and continue challenging our son outside of his office visits.When we started at Speech Bananas our son could only consistently say five words, now our home is filled his sweet voice singing songs and having imaginary conversations with his toys.”

T.A.Speech Bananas' Parent

Our son is profoundly deaf and received cochlear implants at 17 months. When we moved to California from New York three years ago, I asked doctors and teachers to recommend a great speech and language therapist. Jenny Reeder’s name came up repeatedly. Speech Bananas is an extraordinary place. Jenny and her team have exceptional training and experience working with children with hearing loss. Unlike some facilities that have a rigid, set approach to every child, I have found therapy at Speech Bananas to be strategic, expertly targeted and creative. The therapists are particularly skilled at mapping out a plan of action: assessing current skills, setting short term and long term goals, methodically implementing therapeutic techniques, carefully tracking progress and switching tactics as necessary. Our son has oral-motor and motor planning difficulties in addition to hearing loss. Learning to speak has been an enormous challenge and victories are hard won. Jenny and Chelsea have never lost patience or given up. Instead, they persevere and celebrate each step in the right direction. They build on our son’s strengths and push him just enough to help him grow. Speech Bananas has been an essential partner in our son’s progress. They’ve empowered us to support our son’s learning and effectively collaborated with his teachers and IEP team.

N.C.Speech Bananas' Parent

Speech Bananas has been instrumental in not only helping our son develop his listening skills and his speech and language, they have also educated us as a family on how best to support him and continue to help him progress. Through AVT, they have shaped the way we help our son communicate and further develop his speech. Our therapists have been great teachers, therapists and great supporters of our son.The Speech Bananas team through their extensive knowledge of AVT, their dedication to their clients and their professionalism create a great learning environment for the whole family where we can help our son learn, grow and thrive. As a parent, taking part in the therapy session and learning alongside with our son has also helped me learn how to best advocate for my son’s education and his communication needs. Speech Bananas was the true game changer for our family and we are truly grateful for all the education and support our son has received. What I truly want to say is “Speech Bananas is the best! We love them!! They changed our lives!!”

L.C.Speech Bananas' Parent

My family and I began attending Speech Bananas when my son was 3 years old and newly diagnosed as hard of hearing. Jenny quickly put me at ease with her kindness and positivity, and every therapist we worked with provided excellent therapy that was also fun for my son. Each session engaged my son in activities that were more like play than work, and yet simultaneously pushed him and helped him gain new skills. Our sessions involved the whole family and taught us techniques to integrate into our daily life, which was so helpful. The therapists we worked with were clearly given specialized training and were very knowledgeable, but were approachable and kind at the same time. The entire staff was always there to support us by answering questions, being extremely easy to work with, offering flexibility in scheduling and doing their best to accommodate our needs. My son and I both learned so much and his growth while attending therapy sessions at Speech Bananas was astounding. I can, without a doubt, say that he would not be where he is today without all of the help that they provided.

L.L.Speech Bananas' Parent

I would highly recommend Speech Bananas! Both of my kids went here for AVT. Everyone wants the best for their kids and that’s why I chose Speech Bananas! The therapists were always at the top of their game and proved to be a wealth of knowledge for my children and I. They were very easy to schedule appointments with even with my busy schedule. Being a teacher myself, I was super impressed with the fun, exciting and educational games and activities that they provided during my kids’ therapy sessions while teaching me how to help them at home. We were very lucky to get the chance to have Speech Bananas as our AVT providers because they constantly proved that they provided the highest quality of therapy in the area. Thank you Speech Bananas for providing us with such fond memories!

M.C.Speech Bananas' Parent

“So glad we found Speech Bananas! I’ve felt like a valued client since day 1 with them. We have a challenging schedule and Speech Bananas always fits us right in. We also have awesome therapists who always make me feel like they care about my daughters success. They always adjust her curriculum to stay ahead of her progress, fine tuning things whenever they see an opportunity for more growth. The amount of progress in her speech and communication in the last few months has been almost immeasurable. We went from a few intelligible words to hundreds of words and all kinds of spontaneous speech. I would definitely recommend them and I actually have.”

C.W.Speech Bananas' Parent

“We are beyond grateful for our experience at Speech Bananas. I don’t know what we would do without this resource. Our daughter has made incredible progress with her receptive and expressive language, thanks to her Auditory-Verbal Therapist (AVT). Our daughter’s AVT is very patient and looks for creative ways to motivate her to stay on task. Also, the front office is very friendly and easy to work with.”

Cuando Itzhary fue referida a Speech Bananas a su corta edad de 1 año, no estaba al tanto de que trataba la terapía, todo era nuevo para mi.

Estuvimos en una lista de espera y mientras esperabamos la llamada, varias veces pensaba “ Esta cliníca DEBE SER muy Buena”, por tener lista de espera. Varia gente me recomendo este lugar del cual yo no sabia nada. El dia llego, finalmente la llamada tan esperada. Jenny nos llamó para hacernos saber que ya teniamos cita , al momento me sentí aturdida, abrumada y confundida de ir y ver de que trataba este lugar.

El primer dia estaba nerviosisima, no sabia que hiba a pasar, como todo hiba acabar, que hiban a enseñar? O como hiban a ayudar una de 1 año de edad. Muchas cosas pasaron por mi mente, pero en el momento que entre, se transmitía una tranquilidad y serenidad, era una lugar bonito con mucha paz que lleno mi mente y mi corazón de esperanza. La terapista y todas alrededor te hacen sentir como en casa, como si ya te conocieran desde hace mucho tiempo, estaba azombrada de su conocimiento, paciencia, y su comprehensión en como trabajar con niños, sin importar de donde vienen o que edad tienen. Como mencione anteriormente, Itzy comenzó en una edad muy joven, recuerdo que apenas comenzaba a gatear. Era una niña inquieta, y yo estaba asombrada de ver como de tan pequeña y poco a poco se fue comprometiendo con la terapista y de ver el modo de trabajar con ella. Mientras los niños son enseñados, los padres aprenden muy bien, yo aprendí como implenmentar el aprendizaje de Itzy con la terapista en casa, como pronunciar palabras, formar oraciones, cosa que como padre necesita uno saber especialmente al ser nuevo en entender que es AVT ( Terapia Auditiva y Verbal).

Varios años pasaron sobre Itzy, ahora ella tiene 7 años, lo unico que puedo decir es MUCHAS GRACIAS SPEECH BANANAS, por bendecir a Itzy y a mi en todo lo que hemos aprendido y vivido.

Lo se por echo que sin sus terapias Itzy no habría sido capaz de lograr muchos de sus logros, su modo de hablar y sus actividades diarias, ella aprendío a reconocer desde un toquido de puerta, deletreo, y formar oraciones. Speech Bananas le dío la oportunidad de llenar vacíos que a ella le faltaban en su vida, ella perdío bastante cuando nacío, sin poder escuchar, pero realmente han marcado una gran diferencia en su vida.

Yo nunca tuve problemas en programar citas con Speech Bananas, siempre tuve una gran comunicación con ellos y siempre fueron muy comprensivos. Mi traslado era lejos desde Riverside, Ca. a Long Beach,Ca. y nunca fuimos canceladas o reprogramadas. Debo de darle credito a Sara, ella era la encargada de programar mis citas, ella siempre fue muy comprhensiva sobre nuestras necesidades y a la vez amigable. Siempre tuve una gran comunicación con Speech Bananas, ellos nos ayudaron a navegar en lo desconosido de lo que estabamos enfrentando y ellos nos enseñaron a como abordar las diferentes situaciones que enfretabamos en la escuela. Un gran gracias a ellos por habernos dado la confianza para enfrentar nuestra situación y por la paciencia proveída hacia nosotros cuando nos explicaban nuestras dudas y preocupaciones.

Tuve una maravillosa experiencía, estoy muy agradecida por toda la ayuda proveída hacia nosotros y por ayudarme en entender como manejar mi situación. Igualmente tengo que sobresaltar que son muy buenas en organizar cada año su barbeque, trayendo y juntando gente de todos los caminos de la vida, enfrentando la misma situación, sabiendo que hay otros como yo alla afuera y que al interactuar con ellos te permite sentirte agusto y asi mismo no sentirte solo, somos una gran familia haciendo el mismo viaje.

Muchas gracias Speech Bananas, son una bendicíon!!!

J.A. - Speech Bananas' Parent

More Speech Bananas' Testimonials

Dear Jenny,
Let me begin with a thank you for all that Speech Bananas has done for my daughter. Initially, I figured she would make up any lags in her speech that were occurring and that two-years old was too early to worry about it. My wife felt otherwise and I am so glad she pushed the issue. In my mind, I didn’t see what could really be accomplished at such an early age.

From the beginning, working with Speech Bananas has been a great experience. They quickly found a schedule that worked for us, not the easiest thing for a couple who both work and have twins. Working with my daughter was even more amazing, while it was a work in progress, I saw some immediate changes from the first appointment. My daughter is usually very shy and Morgan had her out of her shell and working on her speech that first day. Using a variety of strategies, my daughter has stayed engaged throughout her entire time (almost a year now) with Speech Bananas. When I tell her it’s time for school and she can’t get her shoes on fast enough get to her session.

Over the course of this almost year, her speech therapists have made sure to reinforce previous lessons as well as going further in her speaking skills, vocabulary development and language concepts. She recently turned three and people are amazed that she’s that young, considering the way she talks. A side effect I never expected was that it helped her twin sister to do better as their interaction has improved. The staff of Speech Bananas has also been extremely accommodating during the times we have needed to alter our schedule as well as giving us outside assignments to help our daughter.

The ability to communicate with my daughter on the level we can is amazing to my wife and I. We can’t believe her growth in less than a year. When I reflect over this year and her development, I can’t believe how much they’ve done with someone so young and am excited when I realize these are skills and abilities she will be building on for the rest of her life, once a position of weakness, she is now operating form an area of strength.
R.U.Speech Bananas' Parent
We have been going to Speech Bananas since 2011 when my son was 5 years old. Everyone at Speech Bananas who has come alongside us in our journey to help our son grow into the amazing young man he is today has helped us immensely. We honestly don’t know where we would be as a family, or how well our son would handle being in a mainstream class were it not for the professional and caring people at Speech Bananas.
They have always been considerate of our scheduling needs as a family, accommodating as possible for caring and helping our son, and us as a family. As parents, we have been equipped by Speech Bananas with the skills necessary for us to continue helping our son at home. Everyone has worked openly with our school district and the professionals at our son’s school to help him be a successful student. We absolutely love Speech Bananas!
S.R.Speech Bananas' Parent
My wife and I first met Jenny in 2008. At the time, our son was completely non-verbal with little to no vocabulary. He was a very frustrated kid, as were we as loving parents who didn’t know where to turn. Of course, we were very nervous and uncertain of where his journey would take him. To be honest, I could not imagine him ever being able to talk at all, let alone with proper annunciation and clarity—the thought of him mainstreaming into a traditional elementary school alongside typical hearing children was literally a far-fetched “dream.” We were hopeful, but if I must be brutally honest, more doubtful. It just seemed so impossible at that time. It was a scary time with lots of questions and no clear answers. With the help of Jenny, the other professionals, and a lot of work on our part, our son made huge strides. When Jenny started her own business, Speech Bananas, we followed! We were one of her very first clients. She was operating Speech Bananas out of a guest bedroom in her home and completing all of her AVT by herself. Boy were we lucky! She was a part of our Individual Education Plan (IEP) meetings and we were able to contract her AVT services through our school district. Jenny and her staff have worked with us since then, including during a brief stint in Hawaii via tele-practice and working closely with a Speech and Language Pathologist on Island. She supported us with a curriculum as well as guidance throughout our stay. Upon our return to Southern California in 2015, we picked up where we left of and while we have reduced the services significantly (thanks to Jenny’s team!), our son still visits for 1 hour a week to this day. Our family is truly blessed. Our son bridged the gap between him and his typical hearing peers by Kindergarten, and is now a very happy and successful 5^th grader. Academically, he earns superb grades, and athletically he participates in soccer, flag football, and baseball. He speaks beautifully with no noticeable impairment, and lives the life of a typical kiddo! Sometimes we forget that he was born deaf! Our son’s vocabulary is above the standard for his age and grade, yet I honestly don’t think he even knows the word “handicapped,” because it has never been mentioned in our household—there has never been a reason to. While it has taken a monumental amount of time and work to get to this point, it would have literally been impossible without the help of Jenny. She is without a doubt the single most influential factor in our son’s success story. From direct AVT, help with IEP preparation, and general guidance and support along this incredible journey, Jenny and her team have been a true blessing for our family. Speech Bananas gave our son the greatest gift he could ever receive, the gift of communication and the gift of a life with no limitations. We will never be able to thank Jenny enough for her expertise, mentorship, guidance, and friendship. Thanks to Speech Bananas our family’s dream has come true!
D.S.Speech Bananas' Parent