Speech, language, feeding, and occupational therapy clinic in Pocatello, Idaho dedicated to helping children Blossom!
About Us
All therapy is provided in a warm and loving environment, where a child will discover that building their skills is rewarding and fun. Our therapists are compassionate and caring individuals who strive to have your child’s communication and daily activity skills blossom.
Our therapists are familiar with numerous childhood syndromes and disorders, including but not limited to Autism Spectrum, Down Syndrome, Attention Deficit Disorder, and a variety of neurological disorders. We blend our knowledge about typical speech-language and occupational development with caregiver input, standardized test results, and physician information to implement attainable goals. We encourage caregiver participation and provide suggestions and activities for the child to work on at home to help build their confidence and generalize their skills into daily life.
Children will love to play and play to learn
Our Services
Intervention services include the following areas:
Speech & Language
Articulation - producing sounds correctly at the appropriate age
Oral Motor / Apraxia - moving and coordinating the tongue, lips, and jaw for speech
Phonological Processing - patterns of sound errors
Tongue Thrust - eliminating the tongue protruding past the front teeth during rest and while talking
Receptive Language - understanding, listening, and following directions
Expressive Language - talking and learning to put words together to make sentences
Pragmatic Language - using and recognizing social language, body language, and how we interact with others
Play - turn-taking and other fundamental skills that mirror language development
Voice - Hoarseness, pitch, and volume
Fluency (Stuttering) - a noticeable disruption in the flow of smooth speech
Hearing
Hearing Impairment - hearing loss that prevents normal sound through the ear
Cochlear Implant - a device that provides sound signals to the brain
Hearing Aids - a device that makes sound louder
Auditory Processing Disorder - hearing but not understanding or processing what you’ve heard
Feeding
Feeding - gathering food and getting ready to suck chew, or swallow it
Picky / Problem Eating - food refusals or eating the same foods over and over
Occupational Therapy
Fine Motor Skills - ability to control movements of the smaller muscles of hands, fingers, face, mouth, and feet, helping a child to play, color, write, and complete daily activities
Hand Writing - pre-writing and writing skills
Self-Care - daily skills including dressing, toileting, bathing, personal hygiene, eating, sleeping
Executive Functioning - mental tasks that help to think, act, and solve problems, including attention, organization, starting a task, keeping track of what you’re doing
Sensory Processing - difficulty processing information from the senses (touch, movement, smell, taste, vision, hearing)
Social Skills - the effective interaction and communication with others
Emotional Regulation - positive management of frustration and anger
Visual Motor Integration - eye-hand coordination necessary for coloring, cutting, glueing, writing, manipulating items
Our Team
Vanessa, COTA/L
Vanessa, COTA/L is a licensed Occupational Therapy Assistant in the state of Idaho. She has been working for SPOT Blossoms since August of 2021. Vanessa graduated from Idaho State University in May of 2021 with an AAS in Occupational Therapy Assisting and is certified in the SOS feeding approach. Vanessa is passionate about OT and enjoys working with children of all ages. In her spare time Vanessa enjoys hiking, traveling, and spending time with family.
Katie Chapman, M.S. CCC-SLP
Katie Chapman, M.S. CCC-SLP is a licensed and certified speech language pathologist. She is a native of Pocatello, and was awarded 2021 Outstanding Student Achievement from her college. She has worked here at SPOT Blossoms since 2021. Her interest working with pediatrics was sparked during her three years working as a childcare worker and preschool aide at Holy Spirit Catholic School. She finds so much joy working with children with communication disorders with special interests in speech sound disorders and fluency. Katie enjoys being a lifelong learner which extends beyond work. In her free time, she likes to listen to podcasts, hike new trails, camp, run, and spend time with her friends and family.
Delisia Montana
I grew up in a small town (Aberdeen) where my passion for working with children first began at a local Head Start program. Supporting children who needed a little extra assistance and witnessing their growth and accomplishments brought me so much joy that I knew I wanted to pursue a career focusing on their success. Since graduating, I have been fortunate to provide services in schools, including giving back to my hometown district. I love helping children build confidence in their abilities, knowing that not only are they learning and developing, but we as therapists also learn so much from them. Outside of work, I enjoy camping, traveling, baking, and spending time with my family. I especially love going on adventures with my three kids, making lasting memories together.
Sierra Clayson, MS, CF-SLP
Sierra Clayson, MS, CCC-SLP, is a licensed and certified speech-language pathologist. She has worked at SPOT Blossoms since 2023 and has diverse experience in assessing and treating speech, language, and feeding disorders. Sierra has pursued continuing education in Dynamic Temporal and Tactile Cueing (DTTC), food chaining, and oral motor and sensory feeding disorders, and she is certified in the Sequential-Oral-Sensory (SOS) feeding approach. Outside of work, Sierra enjoys reading, going to the movies, traveling, and spending time with family.
Diana Halaliku
Diana is from Salt Lake City and moved to Pocatello to get her master's degree in Speech and Language Pathology from ISU in 2022. Diana is fluent in Spanish and English. She enjoys working with bilingual children and their families. Time outside of work includes spending time with her husband and 2 children.
Elisha Lee, OTR/L
Elisha Lee, OTR/L is a licensed Occupational Therapist in the state of Idaho. She graduated from Idaho State University with a Bachelors in Health Science and a Masters of Occupational Therapy. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, biking, gardening, spending time with her family and playing with her grandchildren. She loves working with children of all ages and has a desire to help them bloom in their daily activities and self confidence.
Taylor Carson, OTR/L
Taylor Carson: Taylor Carson, OTR/L, is a Pocatello native who graduated with her Masters Degree from Idaho State University in 2020. Since then, she has split her time working in Idaho and California, specializing in the pediatric population, including infant and toddler development, sensory processing disorders, feeding disorders, preschool and school aged children. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family, being outside, and traveling.
Patty Taylor, MS, CCC-SLP
Patty Taylor, MS, CCC-SLP graduated with her master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology and Audiology form the University of South Florida. Since then, she has practiced in Florida, Iowa, Idaho, and California, specializing with the pediatric population, including Early Intervention (birth through 3 years of age), HeadStart, preschool, and school aged children. She fully believes children’s lives are changed as they become better able to express their wants and needs. She will assist children with discovering that building communication skills is rewarding and fun. Her free time is spent traveling, crafting, and exploring the great outdoors.
Keely Ankrum
Keely Ankrum has been our Office Manager since the Summer of 2022. Keely has lived in Pocatello since 2011, where she met her husband & settled down and became a mother. Keely previously was the Manager of a daycare in town, where she found her love of children, and advocating for Early Child Intervention. Keely loves listening to Taylor Swift & Ed Sheeran, anything pink, and Soda Barn. Stop by her office if you ever need a treat and a chat!
Gregg Taylor
Gregg Taylor, a vein and cardiac diagnostic medical sonographer, worked in Florida, Iowa, and Idaho, in private practice, clinics, and hospitals, from 1984 through 2020. He joined SPOT Blossoms in 2020, as Office Manager and Billing Specialist. He deeply appreciates the clients and their families and observing the progress that the clients make. Gregg enjoys the outdoors, trees, pets, traveling, and learning how to take apart and fix cars and engines.