PenguinSmart offers different intervention models for different age ranges:

• 0-6 years or their developmental equivalents: parent-centered Intervention- collaborating directly with parents to enhance their child's communication development. (Children physically older than 6 years old but developmentally in this age range can still enroll).
• 6+ years or their developmental equivalent: hybrid model - traditional teletherapy (direct sessions between SLP and the patient) with standalone parent training sessions
• Adults/Seniors: Services available for stroke recovery, brain trauma, dementia, or other condition-related aphasia. Focusing on post-discharge caregiver coaching and training.

PenguinSmart caters to a range of developmental challenges, including speech delays, language disorders, social communication difficulties, and more. This can range from a variety of conditions that present themselves when children are young, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, intellectual disability, or late language emergence.

Working with adults, we are also able to provide caregiver training services for any of the conditions listed above, as well as those recovering from stroke, apraxia as a result of brain trauma, as well as several other conditions that may present themselves later in life.

Since we provide an online service with therapists in many parts of the US and across the world who are licensed in different areas, we can work with people worldwide.

We provide services in English, Spanish and Mandarin. Our learning platform can display languages in English, Traditional and Simplified Chinese.

While it's true that every child develops at their own pace, it's usually within a range. Resources such as our age-based milestones are a good starting point to consult, but even with these resources, 70% of families still discover the issues with their child after the best window for intervention since many (if not most) issues cannot be detected simply by parental observation. Specialized tools such as PenguinSmart's CORE-Pro evaluation are needed to uncover these.

In adults, signs such as aphasia, unclear speech, or cognitive decline (for example after a stroke) are often easier to tell, but they're no less worrisome.

In either case, it's important to keep in mind that ability gaps usually do not go away on their own without intentional intervention. If you notice concerning signs or are worried that you might be missing them altogether, we recommend that you contact our team to discuss your concerns. (If we don't think your loved one needs intervention at all, we will tell you!)

1. Speak to our service consultant to see which program would be right for you
2. Get your personal service estimate
3. Accept the estimate and pay the Registration & Evaluation Fee
4. Receive the link to register for an account and get started with your evaluation. You can also send through any pre-existing assessment results /session notes /IEP reports that you would like your SLP to know.
5. Kick-off administration processes:
1. For Insurance: our admin will start the preapproval process on your behalf after you provide the following items: front/back of insurance card, Legal name & DOB of the patient, registered address
2. For CA SDP: connect us with your IF, and we will work with your IF to put together the service application package for regional center submission. We will refund your registration fee after the fees are received.
3. For FL Step-Up: Show us your order placement from My ScholarShop marketplace and receive the registration refund
6. Our program assistant will help you schedule 2 online sessions - intake interview/onboarding (no need for your loved one to join) & first SLP consultation (no need for your loved one to join, unless requested by the SLP after reviewing your Evaluation)

• INSURANCE: PenguinSmart services may be insurance reimbursable as out-of-network services, typically 30–70% coverage depending on the plan.
• We are licensed in the following U.S. states: Arizona, California, Florida, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Washington.
• GOV PROGRAM: We also participate in California's Self-Determination Program (SDP) and Florida's Step Up For Students program (FES-UA).
• You may also use FSA/HSA funds to cover program fees.

• We offer both online credit card and Zelle/bank transfer options.
• For FSA/HSA, we recommend you check out directly with the associated debit card for less reimbursement hassle.
• If you qualify for insurance reimbursement, it would be pay first, reimburse later. We provide the standard therapy reimbursement paperwork used by SLP clinics nationwide to assist you in your reimbursement process (superbill).

Bottom line, we want you to know that you're not on a long wait list. Our self-initiated program ensures you can get evaluated immediately and can get in front of an SLP in as little as one week after your initiation.

Once you sign up with us, you will receive a link to start the at-home self-administered evaluation. Our team will also follow up with the service onboarding process, including scheduling with you the initial intake interview/ tutorial and your first SLP consultation. If you can complete your evaluation in a timely manner, you will be able to schedule the first SLP consult in as little as 5 days after your evaluation submission.

We understand this is an important question! This is how our speech therapists get to know your loved ones:

Getting started: You'll share videos and fill out our CORE-Pro evaluation showing how you communicate at home - the real, everyday moments (even the tough ones!). That way, your therapist can review everything before you meet, so they have a better understanding of your family's unique situation.

Parent<-->Caregiver Coach Communication: Between sessions, you'll be asked to capture specific moments at home. This helps us see the wonderful progress happening in your loved one's natural environment, beyond what we can discuss during our sessions.

Holistic Review: Your therapist pays close attention to your check-ins, any videos or questions you share, and even how your loved one responds during our online sessions together.

This gives us a complete picture of your child's world and helps us celebrate every step of their communication journey with you.

We see the progress of the person receiving care primarily through assessment and retesting. Our caregiver-patient interaction assessment can generally be retested every few sessions. If there is obvious progress and you want to judge the area of improvement, you can retest to see the changes in specific skill analysis. Comparing the skill analysis results of the two assessments can objectively provide a reference for the patient's progress.

Having seen how effective our service has been in the lives of our patients, we stand by our service and are confident that if you follow the plan completely and fully participate, you WILL see some progress by your third session.

Suppose by the third session, after fully participating in the program and following all program instructions (defined as participating in all sessions, fully completing assignments, and checking-in for at least 90% of assigned activity practices), you don't see progress. In that case, we're willing to offer a 100% refund on all your program fees minus processing costs. That's not something that you often see in this field!

Each 30-minute online coaching session with the licensed SLP or a caregiver coach will be dedicated to talking about the patient's progress, adjustment to the program, and updating the current customized plan to better suit the patient and caregiver's learning and teaching style.

The SLP will give you the bigger goals for the patient, and the caregiver coach will show you how to implement certain strategies and exercises into daily life. They may ask for homework, and can be contacted during and outside sessions, but following each session, the SLPs will tweak the personalized training plan based on progress.

If needed, the child/patient may join, but typically, their presence is unnecessary.

Each family's program is customized for their individual schedule and needs, so session frequency can vary between 1-4 times a month - whatever works with their particular situation. Most families have two sessions per month over the course of 4-6 months with either their SLP or caregiver coach.

One program cycle runs between 4-6 months (depending on the frequency of the sessions). While each family's situation is unique, families often see significant improvement and progress over the course of a program cycle As a result, our families tend to spend 1-2 program cycles on meeting significant communication milestones before continuing onto focus on other areas such as child psychology or behavioral training, which our team supports as well.

The answer is "it depends," but usually they do not unless PenguinSmart is providing direct teletherapy or if your insurer requires it. This will be decided among you, your SLP, and your caregiver coach. At times, it might be necessary to have your child or loved one present, but ultimately, it is up to the discretion of the caregiver and provider. That's good news for families who cannot afford to take time off of work, arrange special pickup times, or add yet another class to their child's schedule.

For your reference: here are sample schedules for the 10-session program scheduleand 12-session program schedule

• The 10-session program schedule is recommended for families where they do no foresee pure direct teletherapy session with the patient is feasible, and the sessions would be mainly for the caregiver to discuss both the SLT strategies with SLPs, and implementation challenges with the caregiver coaches. This is often the case for early intervention cases, severe global aphasia, non-verbal cases, social communication issue cases.
• The 12-session program schedule is recommended for families with higher functioning patients, where a hybrid model of teletherapy + caregiver coaching model is recommended, such as speech & articulation impediment, stuttering, learning disability, AAC training.

The attractive thing about PenguinSmart’s online speech therapy caregiving model is that YOU get results without having to change your schedule. Not only are we fully online, meaning all you need to access our program resources is a device and internet connection, but because our program is family-focused, program activities and exercises can be implemented everywhere: at mealtimes, in the car, and in line at the grocery store - anywhere and everywhere you choose.

PenguinSmart’s family-centered approach is especially appropriate for young children since it actively involves parents in the process, empowering them to support their child’s progress between sessions. This means that the youngest children won't even need to be on the sessions! This model has been shown to 2x progress compared to relying on therapy sessions alone, making it not only more convenient but also more effective.

For older children engaging in direct teletherapy, we have found that children tend to love online speech therapy, especially when it’s fun, interactive, and happens right at home (which may relax the child). With engaging games and playful exercises, therapists can capture a child’s attention and turn learning into an enjoyable experience. Parents are still advised to remain nearby to provide support.

If you need help or have further inquiries, please shoot us an email at support@mypenguinsmart.com, give us a text or call, or chat with us on LINE, Facebook Messenger, WeChat, or Whatsapp.

A smartphone, tablet, or computer will do! PenguinSmart aims to be easy to use, so any device that has internet access and a browser will be suitable. Our learning platform is a secure web app so parents can securely log in from any browser. The platform is also fully mobile responsive, so many of our families just use their smartphones. For video sessions with an SLP or caregiver coach, clients will need a device with a working camera and microphone for the best experience.

No tools or materials are needed other than an internet-connected device (preferably a laptop so that the SLP and the patient will be able to see, mirror, and or demonstrate full attention and body language). That's the beauty of our online-first model: accessible, personalized, and doesn't require much of you!

Since our program cycle follows a fixed rhythm, each individual training plan will be constantly updated and tweaked based on actual progress. Manual supervision and plan updates will end when the program cycle concludes. However, in order to give clients a chance to review, they will retain platform access for an additional 1 month after the conclusion of the program cycle, allowing them to review online courses, the last updated training plan, past 1:1 supervision notes, and other resources.

If you need help or have further inquiries, please shoot us an email at support@mypenguinsmart.com, give us a text or call, or chat with us on LINE, Facebook Messenger, WeChat, or Whatsapp.

PenguinSmart prides itself on taking privacy seriously. We prioritize the secure handling of all Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Protected Health Information (PHI) through:

• Physical, electronic, and administrative safeguards
• SSL encryption for secure data transmission
• Password-protected accounts

For external-facing publications, client stories are deidentified and anonymized with fake names for privacy reasons, and direct consent from individual clients would be acquired first if there is any direct usage of client-provided videos or imagery. For further information, please refer to our privacy policy.

We understand that things come up, but we try to work these out on a case-by-case basis. If unexpected circumstances arise, it's up to the discretion of the team to decide if we can explore possible adjustments or temporary pauses.

Our standard program allows you to reschedule one session at least 36 hours before. For each session, after a 10-minute wait, either party may end the session, and the other is considered a no-show. After the first no-show, a session would be deducted for every no-show.

Pauses over 4 months may require repurchasing and completing a new evaluation to restart, and may result in coach reassignment.

We only offer refunds for our longer-term coaching program via our 100% Efficacy Money-Back Guarantee, which is detailed in the "How Do I Know It Works" section. If after fully following our program, you do not see progress by your 3rd session, we will refund your program fee minus processing costs (registration & evaluation fee and rebates excluded).

Should you decide to not move forward after receiving pre-approval results, you have two options:

1. Convert to 1-time evaluation consult - complete online evaluation and schedule a 30-minute SLP consultation for results discussion (No additional payment. Default option)
2. Request a refund - receive a refund minus $45 administration cost. (Request needs to be made within 3 days of receiving the result)

The money-back guarantee policy does not apply to government-funded programs such as Florida's Step Up for Students (FES-UA) or California's Self-Determination Program (SDP).

Yes, we are Health Savings Account and Flexible Spending Account eligible. We also have flexible payment structures for different preferences. For the longer-term coaching programs, you can pay for each program either in installments + reservation fee, or pay-in-full for an additional discount.

You will receive an e-invoice where you can choose to pay via credit card, Zelle or bank transfer.

Talk to our service specialist to learn more.