Speechy Musings -- Where Speech Is A HOOT!

Take the TpT Plunge!

April 7, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Fun Stuff, Reviews ~ 3 Comments

I LOVE TpT and I hope many of you do too! Felice over at The Dabbling Speechie had an amazing idea to share two resources we use all the time, and one that we made that we think others would love! So many people I know rely on Teachers Pay Teachers for the free products. Being a graduate student, I totally get that. To be honest, I search for free items before looking through paid ones when I need something. But VERY often, I end up purchasing products for several reasons:

1) They are super comprehensive. Oftentimes, when I buy a whole packet, it gives me ideas I would never have thought to search for! I love this, and I really think it makes me a better SLP.

2) It saves you time! For example, purchasing a phonology packet for multiple processes saves you time from finding a free material for each process.

3) Your things match. Let’s be real… most of us are Type A and enjoy things that match and go together. I sure do!

So check out my faves and then head on over to The Dabbling Speechie here to read everybody else’s post!

(1) Alphabet File Folder Songs for Basic Language by Super Power Speech

I’ve been absolutely loving these file folder songs lately! I haven’t even made them all, but I probably use at least one a day!

(2) Articulation Placemats: Homework Sheets and Drill Activities by Figuratively Speeching SLP

Again, I use these almost every day! They were definitely worth the cost. I actually use them in the speech room (instead of as homework) but my students are about 100x more motivated when they get to use a spinner. I bought cheap snap on ones on Amazon that work great and make drill much more fun!

One newer item I’d definitely recommend from my store is my WH Questions Interactive Book.

I put the entire thing in a binder and use it several times a day. My kiddos have really responded well to this book, and have began answering WH questions much more accurately! I’m on a kick lately making interactive products so check out my store here for more!

And make sure to head back to The Dabbling Speechie here to read others’ recommendations!

I Can Do Apps!

April 5, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Uncategorized ~ Leave a Comment

I LOVE apps!! They are so perfect for grab and go sessions, or filling a couple minutes between activities. Recently, I was introduced to I Can Do Apps. These apps are all SUPER affordable, created by an SLP, and really useful!

I was lucky enough to check out five of their apps: Following Directions, Object Identification, Guess What, Guess Who, and Guess Where. I’ll describe each briefly below, but stay tuned in future blog posts to hear even more about these great apps!

Following Directions

2014-04-04 07.39.40 2014-04-04 07.39.35 This is probably my favorite app from I Can Do Apps because it targets some really tricky directions and provides instant feedback. As you can see from the first picture of the app, you can choose which level of difficulty to do!

Object Identification

This app is GREAT for use before a tool like the EET. It targets receptive vocabulary and so much more than simple object identification. You can have your students find pictures using adjectives AND verbs! Example pictures of each level are above!

Inferencing!!!

These three apps are so great I gave them their own folder on my iPad! You can have your students guess who, where, and what based on four clues. Check out some screenshots below:

2014-04-04 08.18.04 2014-04-04 08.18.07 2014-04-04 08.18.14

As you can see from the picture above, you can guess (click answer) after just two clues. Great for those kiddos you want to push to see how early they think they know what it might be. I have my students write revised guesses with each clue and this app is great for that because the clues come up one at a time.

2014-04-04 08.17.34 2014-04-04 08.17.39

2014-04-04 08.16.51 2014-04-04 08.16.59 2014-04-04 08.17.04

Overall, EVERY app I used from I Can Do Apps was fantastic! I use them a lot. The graphics are simple and nondistracting. The concepts targeted are functional and perfect for speech-language pathologists. One thing I need to mention is that these app makers are fantastic and their apps range in price from $0.99 to $2.99 which is A STEAL in app terms!!

Click here to check out their website and see all of their apps!

Carrie was kind enough to share SIX codes for free apps below. I’ll be giving away 3 copies each of Following Directions and Guess What. Use the Rafflecopters below to enter:

a Rafflecopter giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Trains Visual Text + Questions Freebie

March 27, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Freebies, Materials ~ Leave a Comment

I love working on expository text, even with my younger and lower level students. I made a text similar to this one as part of my spring packet and have been absolutely loving it, so I decided to make another. This time, it’s all about trains! {and it’s free!!!}

Check out what I’ve included:

Then I’ve included 11 cards asking various WH questions about the story:

If you’re interested in this freebie, click here to check it out in my Teachers Pay Teachers store!

{thanks for reading!!}

The best visual schedule/motivator ever.

March 25, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Therapy Ideas ~ 1 Comment

This post contains Amazon Affiliate links for your convenience

The title says it all! I am so excited to share this idea with you all!

This idea began when I began working with a very hard to motivate student. She was very smart, but wasn’t really interested in stickers or other rewards I use for the other students. Additionally, her classroom teacher had concerns about her task completion skills. If the teacher didn’t tell her each step of a process, or what to do next, the student would sit there or get into things!

I needed some sort of motivational visual schedule! Below is what I came up with, and I can tell you it was a HUGE hit. She loves using “her boxes”!

First, I purchased/printed all of the materials in the picture below. I used Boardmaker and made the icons 1 inch. To make the reward strips, I put 3 empty boxes and then a fourth with a ribbon in it, indicating they had earned a reward.

You can see some of the icons I printed in the picture below. I cut them out as I need them. Many are classroom related for carryover.

I put a soft piece of Velcro on each box of a pill box, and the reward strip. Then, I put rough Velcro on the icons and the fake money (I used only the nickels).

Next, I put the icons on the pill box like a visual schedule.

Inside each compartment was a fake nickel with Velcro on the back. I told my students that they needed to finish each task and fill up their reward strip to earn painting time at the end of the session! They were excited to get to work.

After each activity, the student opens the pill box, puts the nickel on their reward strip, and puts the icon (e.g. writing) in the pill box to indicate the activity is all done.

This continued until the reward strip was full.

This activity can be modified in SO many ways, which is why it is great!

1) You can make the reward strip longer and use a bigger/longer pill box (see some of the longer strips/bigger pill box in the picture of all the supplies).

2) You can fill the boxes with other things. I plan on putting pom poms in the boxes and having my students each pom poms to glue on do a dot pages. You can also put small items like stickers and beads in there as well. One thing I hope to do in the future is put a bead in each compartment for classroom use. Then the student can keep a string in the classroom and see how many beads they can earn each day.

3) You can put the icon of what the student is earning over the ribbon!

4) Or you can put the reward activity in the last pill box so it’s a surprise to the student when they finish their work!

Really, the possibilities of this visual schedule/motivator are endless! And how cute are these owl pill boxes?! I actually purchased extras of these boxes after realizing how great they function as storage for my millions of icons flying all over the place.

The picture below shows how I store all of the money/icons in the pill box:

Easy right?

What is great about this tool is that it can easily be implemented in the classroom. Did you notice how many of the icons I printed are classroom subjects? This is because this tool now functions as a way for students to increase their task completion and to be more independent. And the students love the reward aspect of it!

I purchased these pill boxes at Walgreens. Not sure if everybody has access to a Walgreens, but the link to see the product is below:

Walgreens 3 Day Pill Cases

It looks like you can’t order them online. If you’d rather order online, the pill box below on Amazon looks very similar! I also like how it says 1, 2, and 3 on each box.

Hope this helps motivate some of your students. Thanks for reading!

Speachy Feedback: March 2014

March 17, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Uncategorized ~ Leave a Comment

It’s time for another Speachy Feedback! This time I picked a winner that left feedback on one of my newest products: Interactive Visuals for Guessing Games, Describing, and Inferencing.

It’s one of my favorite products I’ve made and I’m happy others are loving it too! Check it out in my store here.

If you’re Lovely S. email me at speechymusings@gmail.com for a product of your choice from my store!

To see the main post and see if you’ve won a product from another blogger, click here or on the image below:

Interactive Visuals for Guessing Games, Describing, and Inferencing

Teaching WH Questions

March 14, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Materials, Therapy Ideas ~ 2 Comments

So many kiddos have WH question goals… in some form or another. The ability to answer WH questions is important, in all settings: school, home, in conversation, etc…

I knew this, but I always wondered how to teach WH questions without feeling like I was testing the kiddo. I didn’t want to repeat the question over and over, emphasizing the first word anymore. I didn’t want to point to my WH questions poster that they had seen 100 times but hadn’t fully understood. I wanted to give them an activity where they could succeed, and reflect back on later as the questions got more difficult.

So what’s an SLP blogger to do? Make something! I made a WH Questions Interactive Book. This book is AMAZING for actually teaching the concept of WH questions. Almost every single kiddo I’ve used this with has been able to be successful with it almost immediately. Below are some ideas for teaching WH questions. Have fun!

I follow the steps in my WH Questions Interactive Book. Below are more pictures of the book. Basically, you can use the first couple pages to sort/teach the basics.

Then, have your students find three icons for each page: one that describes the who, one for where, and one for what. The book contains eight scenes, 8 people, and 8 items. Each picture is simple so you can use this to teach a variety of levels!

I also included icons for each type of WH question, and example questions for how, when, and when for each scene.

I work at this level for quite a while with each student. I really want them to understand all of this!! Before moving on, I like my students to be able to independently fill in the boxes for each page, AND be able to answer my WH questions about each page when I mix up the order of the questions asked. For example, I might turn to a page and ask “where” first once, and then “who” first the next time. I usually point to the icon on the bottom of the page when I ask the questions.

After they are able to do this, I use the following worksheets which are also included in the book:

These are also great for mixing it up, to ensure your students really understand what is being asked.

After these interactive materials, I move to more typical WH Question activities. You can find these all over Teachers Pay Teachers depending on what you’re looking for.

I LOVE the visuals I found at Speaking of Speech. I glued them on the back of paint chip cards and they fit perfectly. An easy way to have your students reference visuals! Check it out!

The last way I love to teach WH questions is to use Story Cubes.

I absolutely love the freebie worksheets from Sublime Speech. Click here to check them out! I would recommend having your students plan the who, where, what, why, how, and when for their stories, and then use the one from Sublime Speech to write the story! I may or may not be working on a Story Cubes freebie myself so stay tuned!

What creative ideas do you have for teaching WH questions? I’d love to hear!

Click here to see my WH Questions Interactive Book in my Teachers Pay Teachers store!

My Fluency Favorites

March 2, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Materials ~ Leave a Comment

Jenna over at Speech Room News is hosting another fantastic linky party. I love these because they are great reference pages when I need more therapy ideas on a specific topic. This time, it’s fluency!

Click here to see Jenna’s post and check out other bloggers’ posts!

My fluency favorites are below:

1) My Mega Fluency Packet

This packet is actually my number one best seller in my Teachers Pay Teachers store… and I really love it! It includes tons of visuals, activities, homework, assessment pages, etc… Check out my blog post about it here or click here to see it in my store!

2) Color Me Fluent

I’ve always thought Color Me Fluent is a really child friendly way to approach fluency. Definitely worth checking out if you haven’t already. Click here to see it from Super Duper!

3) Fluency Tools Treatment Packet by Busy Bee Speech

I love thinking of fluency techniques as “tools” for our students, and this product does just that! Click here to see it in the Busy Bee Speech store!

4) My Fluency Bingo Game

Last, I love my Fluency Bingo for increasing utterance length of our students with fluency goals! Click here to check it out in my TpT store!

Those are my four fluency favorites! Hope you saw some new things! Click here or on the image above to go back to Jenna’s post to read all of the other fluency idea from other bloggers!

{thanks for reading!}

What’s In Your Cart Linky

February 24, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Uncategorized ~ 2 Comments

I cannot wait for the upcoming Teachers Pay Teachers sale. Up to 28% off my favorite speech sellers?! Yes. Please.

Below are my recommendations from my store for this sale. Just click on each image to see the item on TpT.

{MY CRAFTIVITIES}

Craftivities are my new speech room favorite. I’ve made packets containing step by step books/pictures with real pictures, communication boards, worksheets and tons more!

{NEW PRODUCTS}

There are my other new/seasonal products you may be interested in!

{OTHER SELLERS}

Below are my must buy recommendations from other sellers on TpT:

Articulation Booklets from Busy Bee Speech: These are so, so, so fun and great for kids working on carryover!

What Do You Know About /r/? from Sublime Speech: These cards are so much more fun than straight drill, but I’ve found I can get a ton of trials in with them as well.

Language Candy Board Games from The Speech Bubble: When things get crazy, I love easy pull and go activities like this!

Candy Math Word Problems for Language Disorders: So many of my students struggle with math because they don’t understand the language! This has been a huge help.

I’m sure I’ll find 100 things I want before checking out!! To see what other SLP bloggers have in their carts, click here to see the linky at Speech Room News.

Interactive Visuals for Guessing Games, Describing, and Inferencing

February 23, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Materials, Therapy Ideas ~ 1 Comment

How many of you use Hedbanz or Jeepers Peepers in therapy? They are both amazing games but can sometimes be challenging for some of my language/ASD kiddos! I feel like I spend so much time prompting and prompting and prompting. I knew there had to be an easier way, but I had trouble finding an appropriate visual for them online. So I made my own! If you feel the same way, or want your students to be more independent when playing this game, this product is for you!

What I wanted out of a visual was something interactive. Something my kids could use themselves, even the nonreaders. Click here to check it out in my Teachers Pay Teachers store.

This product contains:
-1 category page

-12 subcategory pages (similar to the one shown below)

-Yes/no page (for sorting and storing icons)

Note: When I say “page” above, I am referring to two pages, that once assembled combine into one. One page is the storage/question strip page and the other contains the symbols.
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To Use: Begin with the first categories page and the yes/no page. Prompt the student to pick a category icon and move it to the sentence strip at the top of the page. Have the student read the question out loud.

If the question is answered with “yes” move the card to the Yes side of the page and vis versa. This page will help those students who have difficulty remembering or putting together information they have gained from previous questions. After the student knows the category of their card, give them a subcategory page. For example, when they know it is an animal, give them the page that says “It is an animal” on the top. This second page will help them uncover more details about their animal.

To work on describing, pick an icon and have the child find the category and then describe it using the icons on the subcategory page. I have them do this using the yes/no page again, describing what something is and isn’t.

For inference, the SLP can fill the yes/no page and have the child guess what object they are thinking of! Provide picture options as needed. I like to lay out three cards from Hedbanz and fill the yes/no page. Then, the student can choose the appropriate card and explain why they picked it.

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This game is perfect for students who use AAC, who have difficulty formulating questions or recalling information, who have ASD, our language kiddos and other students that you are trying to fade off of prompts during these fun guessing games!
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Curious how it works? Download the preview and get the first 2 pages (for asking about the category) FOR FREE!

This game does require assembly, lamination, and Velcro. Or, you can use page protectors and dry erase markers to circle/cross off choices.

Speechy Musings does not own the right to Hedbanz, Jeepers Peepers, or 20 Questions and is in no way sponsored by these companies.

{CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE PRODUCT FROM MY TEACHERS PAY TEACHERS STORE!}

Spring Themed Speech and Language Packet

February 8, 2014 ~ Filed Under: Articulation, Materials ~ Leave a Comment

SO SO excited to share my latest mega themed packet with you. I know it definitely doesn’t look like spring around here (in Wisconsin) but I always love prepping my packets ahead of time, and spring will be here before we know it! Click the image below to skip right to my TpT store!

Before I describe my spring packet, I should put a plug in for my bundle. This bundle includes every mega themed packet I have. Currently it contains one for Back to School, Fall, Winter, and Spring. As I continue to add packets, I will update this bundle for free. That means you pay the price now, and get future updates for nothing! Click the image below to check out the bundle:

Below is a short description of what my spring packet contains:

-Spring Themed Bingo
5 Bingo Boards, 16 Description Cards, 16 Picture Cards
Use the Bingo Picture Cards and match them to the Description Cards to target spring themed vocabulary words!

-Spring Themed Barrier Games
3 Picture Scenes, 1 page of item pictures, 1 page of instructions
Students should sit around a table with a barrier between them. Books, file folders, or binders work well as barriers. Every player should have the same background and items. The players take turns giving the other players specific directions on how to arrange the materials in front of them. The goal of the game is to have all the players’ materials look the same at the end of the activity.

-Spring Board Games
1 in black and white; 1 in color. You can use the black and white one as a do-a-dot if preferred.

-Spring Do-a-Dot Sheets (3)
Great reinforcers for any goal!

-Spring Conversation Cards
16 flower pot cards with fun questions to discuss spring!

-Spring Black and White Homework/Worksheets

Roll-a-Word (2): Write four articulation words in the boxes at the top. Have your students roll a die and cross them off as they say each word.

Make it Rain/Make a Bouquet: Cut and glue activities that are perfect for articulation practice & homework. Write a word on each item beforehand.

100 Worksheet: A fun lily pad worksheet to challenge your students to get 100 trials.
Favorite Spring Things: Two worksheets (one with only drawing) for your students to write/draw their favorite spring things.

My Spring Weekend/Break: A fun worksheet for your students to sequence, draw, and write about their spring weekend/break.

Color the Spring Scene: 2 receptive language worksheets with directions.

Bubble Chart Describing: Fill in each bubble with a descriptor of various spring items.

-Spring Themed Books Booklist
Contains 5 books with a spring theme. Print and send home as ideas for home, or use in your speech room!

-Build A Sentence
Arrange the cards on the included mat to form spring themed sentences. Great for practicing WH questions as well.

-Spring Themed Non-Fiction Fact Cards
Incorporate fun spring facts with these comprehension cards. At the bottom of each card are comprehension questions to assess your students’ understanding of the passage! Includes a blank page of cards for your customization.

Activities with Visuals:

Spring Vocabulary
Use this to preteach related vocabulary words and send home to parents for great carryover/vocabulary ideas.

2) All About Spring Story with Visuals

3) Spring Question Cards with Visual Answer Choices
After reading the story with visuals, have your students answer the question cards using the visual answer choices.

4) Spring File Folder Sort
Laminate and cut the picture cards from page 69. Velcro onto the spaces on the appropriate pages. Faded symbols are shown where each symbol should be attached for your convenience. Affix pages to a file folder if desired. Great for practicing complete sentences and asking/answering questions. One page asks, “What happens in the spring?” with a sentence answer strip that says, “______ happens in the spring.” The other page asks, “What does not happen in the spring?” with a sentence answer strip that says, “_______ does not ______ in the spring.” All of the activities in this section have visuals like in the first preview picture!

Phew! Hopefully there are activities for nearly EVERY child on your caseload! If you have any questions, email me at speechymusings@gmail.com.

If you’re interested in this packet, you can purchase it in my TpT Store here.

Speechy Musings

Take the TpT Plunge!

I Can Do Apps!

Trains Visual Text + Questions Freebie

The best visual schedule/motivator ever.

This post contains Amazon Affiliate links for your convenience

Speachy Feedback: March 2014

Teaching WH Questions

Click here to see my WH Questions Interactive Book in my Teachers Pay Teachers store!

My Fluency Favorites

{thanks for reading!}

What’s In Your Cart Linky

Interactive Visuals for Guessing Games, Describing, and Inferencing

{CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE PRODUCT FROM MY TEACHERS PAY TEACHERS STORE!}

Spring Themed Speech and Language Packet

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