On October 25th, the UW-Madison chapter of the National Student Speech-Language and Hearing Association held their 2nd annual Halloween Party for children who attend the UW Speech and Hearing Clinic (UWSHC), and children of faculty in the Department of Communicative Disorders. The event, organized by graduate students Elizabeth Feit and Samantha McGhee, took place between 5:00 and 6:30 pm where clients, siblings, and their parent/guardians came to Goodnight Hall dressed in costumes and participated in fun Halloween-related activities. The children had the opportunity to travel from room to room to participate in fun games, listen to stories, make Halloween arts and crafts, and get their faces painted. Even in the snack room, word searches, crossword puzzles, and Halloween jokes were provided.
The purpose of the Halloween Party was to create an opportunity for a community service/outreach event that benefited the clients of the UWSHC. During the games, graduate student volunteers were encouraged to use clinical skills or techniques they have learned to model language and create opportunities for learning in the areas of receptive language, expressive language, and vocabulary. In addition, it was a nice volunteer opportunity for undergraduate students to interact with a population they will likely work with in the future. All children who attended the event had a wonderful time! The event was a great success and we hope to continue it in future years.
