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A TEACHER & SPEECH THERAPIST
Marie and Aisling first became friends when they were in school. Since then, they have both followed their passion to help children. Marie went on to become a teacher and Aisling became a speech therapist. They noticed that a lot of children were not getting the supports that they needed to reach their full potential. After some research they discovered that this was not only a problem in Ireland but also internationally. They decided to create Building Blocks, a platform to provide families, educators and carers with the information and resources that they need to help the children they care for.
Recently, they were accepted onto Social Entrepreneurs Ireland's Idea Academy, where they have been refining their ideas and creating a pilot for their project. They are very excited to see where the next stages of Building Blocks takes them.
Aisling studied Speech and Language at National University of Galway, Ireland (NUIG), has worked across Ireland as a Speech and Language Therapist in both community health care setting (both primary care and disability services) in acute hospital settings with adults and also in a private practice providing therapy to children and adults.
She has spent time in the USA, providing support to children with special needs. She has provided home and school programs, parent and teacher trainings along with individual 1:1 and group therapy sessions. She also ran a summer camp for autistic children and teenagers focusing on supporting their social interaction skills. She has completed lots of trainings such as Lamh signing, Hanen "It Takes Two To Talk", PECS (Picture Exchange Communication System), Attention Autism, Intensive Interaction, Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale (ADOS), Social Thinking, Autism Level Up and SCERTS model.
Marie studied English and Psychology in National University of Galway, Ireland (NUIG), and then completed her Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE), in London. She has international teaching experience, working with children in Ireland, London, California and Greece.
