KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — With almost all education going virtual in some way, one speech pathology professor at UT wants to ditch the screens and get to work outside.
"Communication happens every day everywhere, so speech therapy can happen anywhere," said Tricia Hedinger, clinical associate professor in UT's Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology.
She's been working with Sydney Barber and her young kids Owen and Raegan for over two years.
They were both diagnosed early with developmental coordination disorder.
"[Owen] doesn't have muscle memory in his mouth so it's a lot harder for him to talk and to mimic things, but it also is a sensory processing disorder, so for my daughter she has a lot of sensory issues," said Barber.
When Hedinger started offering speech therapy outdoors at Ijams Nature Center earlier this year, the Barbers were all in.
"It's globally so much more input than just being in a room," said Barber.
That's what Hedinger was going for, making all of Ijams a classroom.
"There's so much to talk about out here, there's so much to see that's interesting, and you don't have to sit still in one little plain room," said Hedinger.
Graduate speech therapy students work with kids like Owen and Raegan through hands-on activities that get them talking.
"Normally where we might use a board game, we're bringing it out here and talking about the plants, talking about the animals," said Hedinger.
Some of those activities include scavenger hunts, nature walks and painting.
Hedinger said this outdoor therapy method will help her grad students learn new practices, and get the best results for the Barber children.
"Research shows that social skills, self esteem and confidence really get boosted as a result of outdoor education," she said.
The initial round of outdoor speech therapy appointments filled up in about eight hours, and Hedinger continues to hold the popular option at Ijams year-round, cold, rain or shine.