If you’re anything like me, you love using inferencing and guessing games like Hedbanz, Jeepers Peepers, and 20 Questions in your speech and language therapy. These games are fantastic but were a little tricky for some of my more language impaired students. I made these visuals and they changed everything! Check them out below.
When we start playing a game, I pull out the visuals and give my students a quick reminder about how to play the game (e.g., “You ask questions to try and solve the mystery!”). Then, I show them the visuals and talk about why starting by identifying an items category is a great first strategy (e.g., “There are so many things in the world it could be! We need to start by figuring out what the item is NOT. We want to ask about BIG groups of things so we can get rid of many items at a time.”) Then I model how I use it, “Is it an animal?” No? Okay then it’s not a pig, or a horse, or a cat. Great! Is it a food? Yes? Then I know it is something I eat! Awesome!”).
Once your student knows what category the item belongs to, they can use the subcategory pages to find out more information about their item. For example, if they know the item is an animal, they can now ask questions like, “Does it have fur?”, “Is it a pet?”, etc… See the in picture above how these visuals provide visuals and support in question formulation AND coming up with some topics to ask about.
Another common difficulty I see in students with speech and language difficulties when playing these types of games is remembering the information they know about their item. They might ask if something is an animal and when told yes, they might ask if it is a food. Sooo, as you’re playing, remind your students to keep the icons they’ve already asked about and used on their yes/no form (shown in the picture below). On this sheet, your students can keep track of things that their item is and isn’t. In the picture below. you can see that the item is a food that is red and healthy. It is not an insect or a type of fast food.
One fantastic use of these yes/no sheets is that they can be used after the student guesses the item to describe the item! Some of my students practice sharing descriptions in complete sentences using the visual. For example, they could say/write: “An apple is a food that is red and healthy.” Or, they could say/write, “An apple is part of the group group. It’s color is red. It is healthy.” Sometimes I have students come up with 2-3 more descriptors afterwards as well.
As you can (hopefully) tell, this has been an incredibly useful tool for me in my speech room! I use it nearly every day!! It helps with question formulation, inferencing, describing, and overall participation in a language-heavy, age appropriate game!
Click the image below to check out the product on Teachers Pay Teachers! You’ll use it all the time.
Below are links to the games that pair incredibly well with this packet!
Want a copy for free?! Leave a comment below and I’ll pick a winner on 07/07. Good luck!
{thanks for reading}
judyhale
July 3, 2016 at 2:58 PMThese look likie a fantastic way to teach a commercially available game to students so they can enjoy and play with friends! I love doing things like this, and it gets kids to see that there is more fun than just electronics!
Niki
July 3, 2016 at 3:20 PMI have those games. I definitely need these, great idea! I’ll be starting at a new school this fall 🙂
Tori Jones
July 3, 2016 at 3:36 PMI love using these games in therapy! Such a great visual for those that need the cueing. You make excellent resources!!
Lisa
July 3, 2016 at 3:37 PMThis is a great idea! My students really struggle when playing Headbanz but they LOVE it anyway. Thanks for the giveaway!
Jen
July 3, 2016 at 3:44 PMLove this! These visuals are great for my students!
Mary
July 3, 2016 at 3:53 PMThis is a wonderful way to adapt games for more language impaired students and to model asking questions.
Andrea
July 3, 2016 at 3:57 PMThis looks great! Thank you for the giveaway!
Alexis True
July 3, 2016 at 4:44 PMI love to use Jeepers Peepers, but can’t seem to find the best system for prompts. I love this! I would love to win, but am putting them on my wishlist ASAP just in case! 🙂
Candace
July 3, 2016 at 6:01 PMThe visual prompts are a great idea! My kids have such a hard time remembering what they have already asked too!
Amy Roberts
July 3, 2016 at 6:25 PMThese look awesom! My students have such a hard time with inferencing games like this or Guess Who. These would be so helpful!!
Shara Barlage Kuehl
July 3, 2016 at 6:30 PMWhat a great idea! I just love all your game visuals! I could all of them!
Truvine Walker
July 3, 2016 at 7:04 PMAwesome idea!
Karina
July 4, 2016 at 12:37 AMI use these types of games quite often and this is definitely something that has been missing for many of my students! I hope to add this to my toolbox in the near future! Great visual, thanks for creating it!!
Emily
July 4, 2016 at 12:58 PMWow these are incredible. It will be SO helpful for students would require and need the visual supports!
Carrie
July 4, 2016 at 1:08 PMThese are some of my favorites in our therapy space. Great looking game companions!
jennifer
July 4, 2016 at 4:22 PMThis looks awesome ! I could see myself using this in so many ways ! Great visual support. #slp2be #slpa #gradstudent #Ineedmaterials
Lauren
July 4, 2016 at 4:49 PMThis looks like a great activity!
Lindsay
July 4, 2016 at 7:45 PMThese look like awesome resources!
Alisa
July 5, 2016 at 6:09 PMMy kids & teens love this game. It would be a great resource to help them with expanding sentences and such! Great idea and materials!