Testimonials
What Clients Say
We started speech therapy with Jodi when my son Casey was 2.5 years old. He had no words at that time and was making primarily “ba” and “da” sounds. During the first session, Jodi was able to get him to say “No” through prompting, and I cried tears of joy afterward. Because Children’s Hospital was hesitant to provide a formal diagnosis until my son was older than 3, Jodi was instrumental in helping me navigate the special education system within my school district so that he could get speech services during preschool.
Nicole Kelly
Client
We are so thankful we found Jodi! She has helped our son, Caleb, navigate through several speech impediments that were impacting his ability to communicate, and interact with his peers. Caleb has not only gained clearer speech, but also confidence. We are proud of Caleb’s work, and are so thankful for Jodi’s guidance and expertise. She makes speech fun, and knows exactly how to get my strong-willed child to work hard. He looks forward to his speech sessions, which is a huge comfort and win as a parent!
Rachel Osborne
Parent
The thing that I love most about working with Jodi is the joy and the confidence that she helped build within my son. When a new skill would “click” of there would be an “a-ha” moment she shared our celebrations and the pride and excitement that I could see mirrored in my son was amazing to witness. I felt that Jodi was invested in our family and was invested in my son’s success – as a parent, I’m truly thankful for that. (My son is now 7 years old and is no longer in need of additional speech therapy services at school).
Laura Feldt
Parent
Jodi is the best and has done wonders. I have seen my son make tremendous progress in such a short period. She is so knowledgeable & has so many real life experiences to share. She has been in the school setting as well which has been very helpful navigating the school system & bouncing ideas and suggestions as well as experiences. She has been a great partner & friend navigating this long journey. .
Angela Jones
Parent
"My son began speech therapy with Jodi when our insurance was unwilling to pay for therapy unless he had a new physical disability. I am so pleased they forced me to find Jodi, because Andrew received the best therapy anyone could ask for. I began seeing changes in him within the first month. He was so eager to "play" with Jodi that he did not even know he was doing "work". As he began to seek out new speech experiences and knowledge, Jodi would seek out new activities and programs to challenge him accordingly. Jodi was great at explaining to me what type of "work" was needed at home and provided me with the tools I needed to help Andrew succeed. I recommend Understanding Speech to any of my friends when they seem worried about their kids!"
Jeanne Aronoff
Parent
“Once, I could not say my R’s. At first I was scared to go to Jodi's, but once I went I was not scared anymore. We played games and before my turn I would have to say an R sound. We also made up flash cards with different R combinations on them for me to do at home. We played them as memory or go fish. After 5 weeks, I knew my R’s perfectly. I was really happy. I used to get frustrated because some people could not understand me. Now people can understand me. I'm so happy I know my R's. Thanks, Mrs. Norris!”
Katherine W. (Age 9)
Client
“Jodi was with Framingham Public Schools for seven years and is a superb Speech and Language Pathologist. As a practitioner, she served children at the preschool and elementary levels. She also served as a supervisor for clinical fellows. For the past four years, Jodi was working primarily with preschool children and became our in-house expert on working with preschool children with autism, both verbal and non-verbal. Jodi’s assessments are clear, concise, and thorough. Her performance is excellent and contributed to the successful improvement of our students.”
Pamela Kaufmann,
Director of Special Education, Framingham Public School
Educator
After only a year-and-a-half, Matthew is understood by everyone, and he can carry on phone conversations with anyone. I attribute his quick success partly to his hard work, but also to Jodi. She gave us very specific words and “homework” to do, and also provided extremely practical tips on how to incorporate his speech sounds into our everyday lives. She made Matthew’s sessions fun and enticed him with games and activities he enjoyed to keep his interest. Jodi has been flexible in allowing Matthew to direct activities whenever possible. She is always honest in reporting his progress and behavior, even when it’s not what I wanted to hear, without making me lose hope for him. Jodi has always kept very detailed and accurate notes of Matthew’s therapy sessions, and gives copies of progress notes to me on a regular basis. I would highly recommend Jodi for anyone seeking speech therapy, especially for preschoolers or elementary-aged children.”
Barbara A. Ilcin
Parent
“Jodi has been a Speech and Language Pathologist with the BLOCKS preschool for the entire time that I have served as the Special Education TEAM Coordinator. During that time, I have observed her treating students, interacting with staff, presenting at TEAM meetings, and problem solving on a one-to-one level. Jodi knows her field better than anyone that I have ever worked with and collaborates with staff to ensure that students receive the best program that is available. Jodi’s assessments and written reports are thorough, precise, and presented to parents in a way that helps them to both understand their child’s strengths, but also to target specific areas of need. She is able to respond to parent’s questions in a manner that serves to clarify any issues and is able to negotiate emotionally charged situations with understanding and honesty. We serve a very complex population of students here, and Jodi has been put into some difficult situation, which she has always handled with grace and respect."