How to Record SLP Therapy Sessions

I’ve been an SLP for 27 years, which means I was working with clients long before having a phone and camera with you all the time was even a thing. 

But collaboration has always been important, so at the beginning of my career I spent hours on the phone with other members of my clients’ teams. We would discuss the individual clients' needs and I would often train other therapists to carry over the goals from our sessions. 

As soon as I realized I could save hours of phone calls by simply standing up my phone on a tissue box and recording my sessions… I jumped in with both feet and haven’t stopped since. 

This post will walk you through why recording your therapy sessions is a good idea, how to overcome the most common obstacles to recording, the tech you need to record (it’s a lot more simple than you may think!), and how you can use session recordings. 

Recording your sessions is one of the best ways to collaborate and improve your therapy skills. 

If you’re not currently recording your therapy sessions, consider this your invitation to begin! 

Why should I record my SLP therapy sessions? 

If you’re not currently recording your therapy sessions, it’s probably because:

• You haven’t asked for permission from the parent
• You don’t know what stand to use to hold your phone
• You don’t want to record because your sessions aren’t perfect
• You think it will take too much time or cause a distraction 

These are all legitimate concerns, but the benefits of recording your sessions far outweigh the time and effort it will take to solve these problems. 

Let’s look at the reason you should be recording. 

#1: Recording your session will help you become a better SLP

Your recordings don’t have to be shown to anyone but you. When you watch yourself, you can see the areas that you need to work on to improve your skills. 

#2: Session recordings improve carryover 

I use my recordings to help parents remember what and how they should practice at home.  

I also have the parents record short videos (less than a minute) and send them to me for feedback about their carryover.  

#3: Recorded sessions support better collaboration

Parents often send sessions I share with them to other team members. 

This is a simple, effective way to keep them in the loop with the words that I am working on and to train them to use a motor speech approach because many SLPs were not taught to use motor speech therapy in graduate school.

Important things to know about recording a speech therapy session 

There are three ways that you can record your sessions:

• You can record your face only
• You can record the child’s face
• You can record both of you

I send my clients a video release form to fill out that gives me permission to record their child for my records. The parents are then given a choice to allow me to share the recordings for training purposes and/or social media.  

Anytime you share a client’s recordings you must get parental permission.

Tips for effective recording 

The first few times that you record the child in your sessions, it may cause a distraction. But children get used to it quickly, and it isn’t usually an issue. 

Recording in selfie mode is usually engaging for the child and provides a “mirror” at the same time.

Sometimes I only record myself so I can turn the camera away and the child is not distracted.

If the child is very distracted, have the parent record from their seat so the child doesn’t see it. If the parent isn’t present, you can keep the phone on the stand and press record without the child noticing.

When you catch a good example on video, tap the heart in your camera roll so you know what to send. I usually send these videos as I am recapping with the parent once we’re done.  

What tech do I need to record a therapy session with a client?  

Recording your sessions doesn’t require much, but I do recommend using a good stand! 

I’ve tried many many phone stands, and I believe this stand is the best one for recording your sessions. (That is an affiliate link, but I always recommend this whether or not you use my link to buy it!)

I love this stand because it’s magnetic and your phone doesn’t fall off. (You do need a magnetic case for this to work!)) You want a phone stand that can easily switch between different heights and different camera angles.  

This one is small and easy to pack in your therapy bag if you are on the go.

You don’t need a fancy mic, full-size tripod, or lighting. You just need to set up your camera and hit record.  

With practice you’ll figure out the best placement for the camera. Where you aim it depends on whether you want to record just you, your client, or both of you. 

How do you edit recordings? 

I generally don’t spend time editing recordings I send to parents.  

I record small snippets during the block of practice and send as is. If I want to cut down the clip, I edit it right on my phone.

Where do you share or store session recordings? 

Videos use more storage than photos, so storing multiple recordings can be a stumbling block. 

I recommend deleting videos after a session or moving the videos to your computer and/or a separate SSD card so you don’t use up your phone storage.  

There are many different options for SSD cards. For ease of use, you can buy one that plugs directly into your phone. 

I personally use an SSD card with a significant amount of storage to meet my needs, but you can choose one that works for you. 

Next steps 

You don’t need to be good at technology or have advanced skills to successfully record. Start small! 

Choose a few clients who are more cooperative in their sessions and ask their parent for permission to record.  

Record a few very short videos, around 1 minute each, and watch them after your session to see what you can learn. 

Want help planning a more effective session to record? 

Click here to get my Power Word resource and make apraxia therapy planning easier and more effective!