Speech and Language Therapy

Sarah Bookout

Bilingual Speech Language Pathologist at GraySpeak Therapy. 

I am from El Paso, Texas and attended the University of Texas at Austin where she received her bachelor’s degree in communication sciences and disorders and her master’s degree from the

University of Northern Colorado. She grew up speaking Spanish at school and with friends. I spent time in Costa Rica volunteering at a cleft lip and palate clinic where I refined my Spanish skills. I use Spanish with my current clients and enjoy any opportunity to speak both languages! 

Since graduating I have applied my professional skills to helping those with Down syndrome achieve speech clarity and independence. I have discovered a passion for working with teens and adults with moderate to severe speech and language disorders and use techniques to improve speech clarity that prepare my clients to use improved social skills that enable them to build relationships, pursue jobs, and establish personal interests. My clients practice functional communication and life skills by targeting executive functioning, short term/working memory, and motor planning for improved speech and expressive language use. 

She is certified in LSVT (Lee Silverman Voice Training) LOUD and uses the program with children, teens, and adults to increase speech intelligibility, sentence length, and vocal confidence through “being loud”. 

My goal is to help children, teens, and adults with Down Syndrome become independent by using their voice.

GraySpeak Therapy in Texas:

I recently moved back to Texas, in the Houston area, to continue my work with GraySpeak Therapy offering speech and language services through teletherapy and limited in-person interventions. This gives me the ability to offer speech and language services throughout the state of Texas. I offer in person services in the Houston and occasional social groups for teens and young adults (cooking classes, park days, etc.). She hopes to expand these social communication opportunities (in- person and social groups) to El Paso TX in the future.

Please contact me if you are interested in learning more about speech and language therapy for people with Down syndrome.

HowdyTexasSLP works in collaboration with GraysPeak Therapy to provide speech-language and feeding services to individuals with Down Syndrome. GraysPeak Therapy has focused on providing expert therapy to the Down Syndrome community for over 10 years while partnering with LSVT in research opportunities and presenting at the National Down Syndrome Conference. HowdyTexasSLP is now continuing these efforts in Texas with the local Down Syndrome community.

Teletherapy has proven very effective for those with additional speech and language needs outside of the educational system. Flexible scheduling accommodates shorter and more frequent sessions (as suggested by evidence-based research), making speech therapy possible for busy families.

People living with Down syndrome benefit most from visual platforms that target skills of independence such as the use of technology for digital communication and self-scheduling. 

LSVT LOUD is a speech therapy program that was first used to support adults with Parkinson's Disease. In recent research and collaboration with GraysPeak Therapy, SLPs have found that LSVT LOUD strategies show positive results for speech intelligibility, fluency, and self-confidence for children and adults with Down Syndrome. HowdyTexasSLP therapist, Sarah Bookout, is LSVT certified and has found success firsthand using the program with multiple clients. Families report noticable changes and clients love the results of having a "loud" voice!