Sydspeak, Inc. Releases Talk to Me 100® iPad Application to Help Parents, Therapists Teach Children to Speak

WINTER SPRINGS, Fla. --- Sydspeak, Inc. based in Winter Springs has released its Talk to Me 100® iPad application to help parents, teachers and therapists help young children master language skills.

The iPad App is now available from the iTunes Store, said veteran speech and language pathologist Sydney Birr, MA, CCC, president of Sydspeak, Inc., who co-developed Talk To Me 100® with her son, Andrew Birr, who serves as vice president of Sydspeak.

As a speech and language pathologist, Birr saw a need to provide an affordable and simple way to give autistic and developmentally disabled children a voice. So she and her son, contacted NerdsGeeksGurus, LLC to build their own application to replicate their existing device, Talk To Me 100®.

“This iPad app is a digital replica and companion to the original “child friendly” Talk To Me 100® available at www.sydspeak.com,” she explained. “Talk to Me 100® is an engaging interactive communications tool designed for children who are learning to talk or for those who have difficulty mastering verbal expression,” Birr said.

“Talk to Me 100® provides graphics, text and sound that allows children to see words, hear words, understand their meaning and experience the joy of communication by pressing buttons, Birr said. “The communication board can be expanded and moved around on the tablet as needed.”

Tips for successful language instruction and additional adaptations are built into the application.

“Many children struggle with developing a large core vocabulary," Birr explained. "Talk to Me 100® follows the child's lead and meets them at the point of readiness to learn,” she said.

Birr said the Talk to Me 100® focuses on 100 important words with corresponding graphic symbols that express the meaning of each word. A recorded voice demonstrates proper pronunciation.

“I recently evaluated a three-year old child who was nonverbal. His parents said he only spoke two words: “mama” and “bye”. When presented with the Talk To Me 100®, he began exploring the board, pressing the symbols and listening to the words. I began using my version on the iPad, and he immediately began imitating my words by pressing the symbols on his device. What sometimes takes months of therapy to achieve, he was imitating words within a few minutes,” Birr said.

“Talk to Me 100® was designed to help parents, teachers and therapists jumpstart verbal expression for children who are struggling to communicate,” Birr said.

Birr, who earned her M.A. Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Houston, has more than 35 years of experience as a speech and language pathologist.

Sydspeak, Inc. is a member of the University of Central Florida Business Incubation program in Winter Springs.

About the UCF Business Incubation Program:
Since its founding in 1999, the UCF Business Incubation Program has helped more than 200 emerging companies (including more than 100 current clients) create over $200 million in annual total economic output and more than 1,600 new jobs with an average salary of $59,000. With nine facilities across the Greater Orlando community, the Business Incubation Program is a collaboration in economic development between the University of Central Florida, Orange County, the City of Orlando, Seminole County, the City of Winter Springs, The City of Sanford, Lake County, the City of Leesburg, Osceola County, the City of Kissimmee, City of St. Cloud, Volusia County and the Florida High Tech Corridor Council. Please visit www.incubator.ucf.edu and UCFBIP on Facebook.