ABOUT US
"Laura and my son have great relationship. He no longer experiences regular anxiety over reading and writing assignments and has gained confidence and skills in both of these areas. His entire outlook on school and learning has improved dramatically since he began working with Laura, she is fantastic! "
-Parent
Her approaches vary from student to student as she adapts to each of their needs. Throughout the years of working with Laura, I have watched students thrive under her guidance."
-Teacher, Grade Head,
Laura Wahl McAlpine, M.Ed. CCC-SLP
Laura Wahl McAlpine is a Speech and language Pathologist with over 38 years of experience working with students to provide contextualized speech/ language intervention programs. Her experience includes 11 years in the public school system with extensive work in language learning disability classes, high school curriculum development for speech/language-impaired learners and as a diagnostician for augmentative/alternative communication. She has been a private practitioner for the past 27 years working with the school age population in areas of speech articulation, pragmatic language, reading, and written expression. Most notably, Laura has co-facilitated and developed Act As If, which is a cutting edge social cognition and social skill development program incorporating social communication research and behavior modification concepts. Laura is certified through the American Speech Language and Hearing Association. Her coauthored book: ACT AS IF Improvisational Activities for Social Communication is now available through ACTASIFproducts.com. Current areas of professional development include intervention for clients with ADHD and Executive Functioning challenges.
Lisa Jan Sherman
Lisa Jan Sherman is an actress, improvisational acting teacher, and cognitive skills coach. After earning her BA in Theatre and Speech at University of Maryland, she began her theatrical career. She has been a member of (AFTRA) American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and (SAG) Screen Actors Guild for over 35 years, and has performed on stage, television, film and radio. Lisa is a founding member of the totally improvised, musical comedy troupe NOW THIS! It is there that she and fellow cast members make music in the moment, create customized shows, mysteries and facilitate corporate team building. Lisa has enjoyed volunteering time with the mentally disabled, mentally ill, and animals rights welfare groups. In her sidetracked past life she has also opened over a dozen restaurants. 'What was I thinking'? Lisa has been co-facilitating skills groups with children since 1995, finding that the improvisational 'piece' created a natural basis for social skill development and cognition. With Laura, Lisa is the co-developer and facilitator of the 'Act As If' program and products.