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A toddler is sitting at the table at home and eating his lunch.

Candy Almquist

Clinic Director | Speech-Language Pathologist
Licensed Speech-Language Pathologist, Certified Orofacial Myologist, MA/CCC-SLP, COM

Bio

Candy is the founder of Kid Talk. She received her Masters Degree in Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Minnesota in 1995 and has been working in pediatrics for the past 25 years. She has had extensive experience providing feeding, speech and oral motor therapy to children with a wide variety of diagnoses and ages. She is a Level 3 Trained Talk Tools therapist and has completed rigorous training to become a Certified Orofacial Myologist, the fifth in Minnesota! She feels that this certification has positively impacted her professional skills like no other course she has taken in the 29 years she has been practicing! Candy has taken additional training required to be listed on the Apraxia-Kids directory as a highly trained provider in Minnesota. With her years of experience and special skill set she is able to provide a unique approach to therapy for children with feeding, speech, oral motor, myofunctional disorders and Childhood Apraxia of Speech. She feels that she is at her best when she is working with children with severe speech and feeding disorders due oral motor deficits and/or Childhood Apraxia of Speech. The more challenging a child’s speech disorder, the better! She enjoys the clinical process of honing in on exactly what a child needs to progress in order to reach the best version of themself. She loves to empower parents by educating and teaching them how to help their child develop the skills they need to succeed. Parents are the special ingredient in the recipe for any child’s success! Therapy is a team effort! Candy gets the most satisfaction out of her work as a speech-language pathologist from watching her patients grow and overcome their challenges.

Continuing Education

  • Differential Diagnosis and Treatment of Childhood Apraxia of Speech (2003)
  • Pediatric Dysphagia Evaluation and Therapy Protocol (2003)
  • Evaluation and Treatment of Oral Feeding Skills with Emphasis on Oral Motor Function (2003)
  • Developing Oral Motor and Feeding Skills in Down Syndrome Population (2005)
  • Enhancing Phonological and Metaphonological Skills of Children with Highly Unintelligible Speech (2005)
  • Diagnosis and Program Planning for Clients with Oral Motor Based Communication Disorders (2005)
  • Childhood Apraxia of Speech: Assessment/Treatment for the School Aged Child (2006)
  • The SCERTS Model“: A comprehensive Educational Approach (2007)
  • Autism Subtypes, Feeding Issues and Nutrition (2008)
  • Understanding, Diagnosing and Treating ADHD (2008)
  • Practical Therapy Techniques for Persistent Articulation Errors (2009)
  • Fast ForWord Trained Clinician (2009)
  • Working with Preschoolers Who Stutter (2009)
  • Assessing and Treating Narrative Language in Children with Language Impairments (2009)
  • Nutrition Therapy Feeding Intervention for Austism, Asperger’s and ADHD (2010)
  • Feeding Therapy: A Sensory-Motor Approach by Lori Overland (2011)
  • The Sequential Oral Sensory (S.O.S.) Approach to Feeding Basic (2011)
  • Advanced Training in Sequential Oral Sensory Approach to Feeding (2011)
  • Assessment and Treatment of the Jaw-Putting it all Together: Sensory, Feeding and Speech (2012)
  • AAC Developments for Individuals with Stroke or Brain Injury (2013)
  • Dealing with Dysarthria and Childhood Apraxia of Speech (2013)
  • Assessing and Treating Aphasic Word-Retrieval Impairment in Discourse (2013)
  • Communication Partner Training in Aphasia (2013)
  • Introductory Course in Orofacial Myology (2014)
  • Sensory Deficits in Infants and Children (2015)
  • Level 3 Trained Talk Tools Therapist (2016)
  • Coulson Institute of Orofacial Myology (2014)
  • Orofacial Myology: From Basics to Habituation (2016)
  • Thumb Class is in Session (2017)
  • International Association of Orofacial Myology Conference, October 2017
  • International Association of Orofacial Myology Conference, October 2018
  • 3 Essential Skills to Calm Challenging Behavior, January 2019
  • M.O.R.E. Integrating the Mouth with Sensory and Postural Functions, February 2019
  • Mastering Mastication, January 2020
  • Treatment of Speech Disorders for Cleft Palate and VPD, January 2020
  • Improving Intelligibility in Apraxia and Dysarthria, January 2020
  • Understanding the Orofacial Complex, January 2020
  • Diagnosis and Management of Childhood Apraxia of Speech Using Dynamic Tactile and Temporal Cueing, December 2020
  • Mastication: Breaking it Down (2021)
  • Unraveling TOTS: Beyond the Basics (2021)
  • MyoTools 101: The Foundations of Orofacial Myology (2023)
  • MyoTools 102: Targeting the Four Myo-Domains of Airway, Structure, Feeding, and Speech (2023)
  • Etiology and Remediation of Drooling 2024
  • Prevention of Orofacial Myofunctional Disorders in 0-3 Population 2023
  • Fact and Myths about Fascia, Myofunctional Therapy and the Orofacial Complex 2024
  • Emotional Regulation, Executive Functions and OFM Therapy 2023
  • Airway, Apnea, Orthodontics and Oral Placement Therapy 2024
  • Jaw Stability and Speech Clarity 2024
  • Oral Placement Therapy to Speech 2024
  • Evaluation and Treatment of Childhood Apraxia of Speech: The Kaufman K-SLP Method 2024
  • Assessment and Intervention of Multilingual Children with Highly Unintelligible Speech 2025
  • Assessment and Treatment of Pediatric Dysarthria 2025