Virtual speech coaching for
parents of late talkers
Young brains wire language through thousands of small, everyday moments, and you're the one who's there for them. The Affinity Bridge is a 6-session coaching program where I help you turn meals, play, and bath time into rich communication practice, with honest feedback on short videos of you and your child. I'm licensed in Tennessee, Kentucky, and North Carolina and coach families anywhere in those states by secure video.
What is parent coaching for speech and language?
Parent coaching is speech-language support where I coach you, the parent or caregiver, to grow your child's communication inside the routines you already have. It isn't a lesser alternative to therapy. It's a different kind of intervention, one that puts the most important person in your child's communication world at the center. You're with your child every day. A therapist isn't.
A weekly session is 45 minutes. The rest of the week is yours: dozens of conversations, meals, and games where a small shift in how you respond can give your child one more chance to communicate.
My toddler is a late talker. What should I do?
- Check hearing first. Ask your pediatrician for a hearing test. It's quick, and it rules out a common, very fixable cause.
- Contact your state's early intervention program if your child is under three. Evaluations are publicly funded.
- Ask about a private evaluation if you want answers sooner or your child doesn't qualify.
- Start responsive strategies now. Whatever happens next, the way you talk and play with your child every day matters, and that's what coaching helps with.
When coaching isn't the right first step: if your child has lost words or skills they used to have, isn't responding to sounds or their name, or you have any hearing concerns, talk to your pediatrician about a full evaluation first.
Didn't qualify for early intervention?
Every state has a publicly funded early intervention program for children under three, and if you haven't contacted yours yet, please do: TEIS in Tennessee, the Kentucky Early Intervention System (KEIS, long known as First Steps), or the Infant-Toddler Program in North Carolina (start with your local CDSA). It's also worth asking your pediatrician for a hearing check. But these programs have eligibility cutoffs. In Tennessee, for example, a child generally needs a 40% delay in one area of development, or 25% in two, to qualify. Plenty of late talkers who are clearly behind on words fall short of that line.
If you've been told your child "doesn't qualify," you're waiting for services to start, or your child has turned three, you're often left to wait and see. You don't have to just wait and watch. Coaching gives you something practical to do right now, and it fits alongside any services your child receives later.
Who is the Affinity Bridge for?
Any parent or caregiver of a toddler or young child who wants to show up more confidently in their child's communication. Families usually come to me from one of these places:
Feeling lost at home
You want to help but don't know how
You see your child struggling to communicate and you're not sure how to respond: what to say, what not to say, or whether what you're doing is helping.
Extending therapy
You want to carry the work home
Your child is in therapy now, or has been, and you want to understand what happens in sessions well enough to support it between appointments.
Seeking an alternative
Direct therapy isn't accessible right now
Whether it's cost, availability, timing, or an early intervention "not eligible," coaching gives you evidence-informed strategies without waiting for a therapy slot to open.
Ready to go deeper
You've done the reading and want real feedback
You've researched language development and maybe tried some things. Now you want a clinician to watch what you're doing and tell you honestly what's working.
Why does coaching parents work?
The early years are when the brain is most ready to build language, and it builds through repetition: many small, responsive exchanges every day. That's neuroplasticity at work, and it's why the person who's there for those exchanges matters so much.
The research backs this up. A meta-analysis in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology found that parent-implemented language interventions had a significant, positive effect on language for children 18 months to 5 years with language delays. (Those studies' programs were often longer than 6 sessions.) A 2025 systematic review is encouraging about video: in the few studies that compared them directly, telehealth early intervention for children under three produced generally similar results to in-person care, though more research is needed. Every child is different, so I can't promise a particular result, but I can promise to give you skilled, honest coaching built on that evidence.
What does a coaching session look like?
Each 45-minute session has a clear rhythm, but what we cover is shaped by what you bring and what your video shows.
Open
0–10 min
Your week in review
We start with what you tried, what felt hard, and what surprised you. This isn't a formality. It's where the real clinical insight begins.
Core
10–35 min
Video review + strategy building
From session 2 on, we watch your video together. I point out what you're already doing well and where small adjustments could open up more communication, then we dig into why a strategy works and how to make it feel natural, not clinical.
Close
35–45 min
One strategy + your next video prompt
You leave with one specific strategy to practice and a clear prompt for what to record before next time. The homework is always simple and tied to a routine you already do.
About the video homework
Recording yourself with your child can feel awkward at first, but it's one of the most powerful parts of the program. You don't need good lighting or a steady hand. A 2–3 minute clip of mealtime or play is enough. I watch it with clinical eyes and give you feedback that's specific, honest, and grounded in what I see in your video.
How the 6 sessions build
There's a loose progression across the program, and the pace adjusts to your video feedback and where you need to go deeper.
Session 1
Your child, your concerns, your starting point
A deep conversation about what you're seeing at home. I introduce your first strategy and set up your first video prompt.
Sessions 2–3
Building the foundation
Video review begins. We focus on modeling language without pressure and spotting communication moments in everyday routines.
Sessions 4–5
Going deeper
Strategies get more tailored to what we're seeing in your videos, and you start to own the "why" behind what you're doing.
Session 6
Your sustainable home plan
We review how far you've come and build a plan you can carry forward on your own, with the confidence to keep going.
Choose your pace
Same 6 sessions, same content. You choose the schedule that fits your life.
Standard
6 weeks, 1 session per week
Space to practice between sessions and let strategies settle before building on them. Recommended for most families.
Intensive
3 weeks, 2 sessions per week
A faster jumpstart for families who want to build momentum quickly or have a specific window of time to focus.
How will I know it's working?
Success here isn't just new knowledge. It's lasting confidence that shows up in how you interact with your child every day.
- Confidently supporting language in everyday routines
- Spotting your child's communication attempts in the moment
- Responding in ways that feel natural, not clinical
- Modeling language without pressure or prompting
- A sustainable home plan you can carry forward
- Less anxiety and more clarity about your child's communication style
How much does the Affinity Bridge cost?
The Affinity Bridge is private-pay. You choose how you'd like to pay when you enroll.
Per session
$80 / session
Billed after each session. 6 sessions total = $480.
Full program upfront · Save 15%
$408 total
Pay for all 6 sessions at enrollment and save $72. If you need to pause, unused prepaid sessions stay as credit for 6 months, or can be refunded on request.
Payment is through IvyPay, a HIPAA-compliant payment platform built for healthcare. After you enroll, you'll get a text with a secure link. Insurance isn't billed for this program. A superbill is available on request, but insurers rarely reimburse parent coaching, so check with your plan first. After the program, single check-in sessions are available at $80 whenever you'd like a tune-up.
The Affinity Bridge is parent education and coaching. It isn't an evaluation, diagnosis, or treatment of your child, and it doesn't replace one.
Marina Coakley, M.S., CCC-SLP
I'm a licensed speech-language pathologist. I know how much you care, and how hard it is to know what to do. My job is to make it simpler. Read my background.
Common questions about parent coaching
What families say about working with Marina
These reviews are from families whose children Marina saw for direct speech therapy, before the Affinity Bridge began. They describe her work, not results of this program.
“Marina was so sweet with our son, and really eased our worries about his speech! She showed my husband and I great techniques to get him talking more, and interacted with our son in a way that encouraged him also to talk more. She is extremely knowledgeable and professional and would be a great speech therapist option!”
“We have had such a wonderful experience with Marina! She was very quick to respond to my initial outreach and got us scheduled right away, very flexible with our scheduling and on time for each session! She had a well thought out plan with creative, fun activities that kept my little one engaged and we have seen such great progress since he started with Marina! She always kept us informed of his progress, what they worked on, and his 'homework' to continue working on their lessons between sessions. We are grateful for her expertise, kindness, and dedication to our son's speech journey and highly recommend her to any family looking for a caring and skilled speech therapist!”
“I'm so thankful to have found Marina, she is very professional and kind. I reach out to her about speech therapy for my daughter and she got back to me very quickly and answered all of my questions. I highly recommend Ms. Marina to any family looking for services that she provides.”
“Marina was wonderful with my son. She is really good at her job and has really helped him with his speech. I highly recommend her.”
Why Marina
Hands-on experience, put to work for your family
Before I became a speech-language pathologist, I first studied music therapy, then worked as a registered behavior technician and as an SLP assistant in schools, with graduate training in skilled-nursing and outpatient rehab. For you, that means a clinician who has done the day-to-day, hands-on side of the work herself, and who builds plans you can actually carry out at home, between sessions, in real life.
Practice that feels natural
Music therapy is where I started, so rhythm, routine, and play shape the everyday practice we build together.
Plans you can actually do
Years as a behavior technician and SLP assistant taught me what works in a real day, not just on paper.
Help where you are
Secure video, anywhere in Tennessee, Kentucky, and North Carolina. No commute, no waiting room.
Ready to become your child's best communication partner?
No evaluation required to enroll. Start with a free consultation to talk through what you're seeing at home and whether the Affinity Bridge is the right fit.
Start with a conversation