Happy Talk

The “Happy Talk” project is a Family Learning initiative and approach which is utilised by schools in Cork in order to work towards improvements in language and learning, particularly in disadvantaged areas. A core element of the project involves speech and language therapists who work with schools and parents to develop positive relationships to create a language rich environment.
Of notable interest for the project is the range of stakeholders which the project involves for family learning purposes.
Some of the approaches the project utilises towards parental involvement include:
– Attending “parents sessions” to get ideas to support their child’s language skills
– Coaching by the Happy Talk Speech and Language Therapist as they work with their child in preschools and junior infant classes
– Practicing language development strategies with their child at home
– Sharing books at home from the Borrow-A-Book scheme
In the links below a useful visual summary of the project and a newsletter showing some of the approaches and activities are available.