When I was in graduate school there was a lot of information about the difference between an “articulation disorder” and a “phonological disorder.” Then I started my internship and found that in order for an insurance company to pay for speech & langauge treatment the child needs a medical diagnosis and that these are found …
Category: Stuff for SLPs
My Favorite Narrative Activities & Tools
Whether I’m working on narrative creation, narrative retell, or using correct language structures during narratives I like to keep the activity as fun as possible. I find that this can be one of the hardest tasks for kids and giving them a fun way to work on it (with Disney videos, video games, or story …
My Favorite Activities for Social Skills
As children with social skills deficits try to navigate our highly-social world they must first learn the basics (eye contact, following eye-gaze, attending to others, etc.) and then learn to use those skills to identify others’ emotions, inference the cause of the emotions, and problem-solve the situations causing these emotions. To target these skills I …
Play-Based Activities for Irregular Plural Nouns
One of my most common goals for patients is to master irregular plural nouns like fish (not fishes), shelves (not shelfs), sheep (not sheeps), and mice (not mouses). I always start this target with flash cards and use a least-to-most cueing hierarchy (unless the child needs a consistent level of support in which case I’ll …
Play-Based Activities for Irregular Past-Tense Verbs
One of my most common goals for patients is mastering irregular past-tense verbs like drove (instead of drived), swung (instead of swinged), flew (instead of flyed), and ate (instead of eated). I always start this target with flash cards and use a least-to-most cueing hierarchy (unless the child needs a consistent level of support in …
Regulation Tools: Bubbles & Pinwheels
I’m constantly reminded that bubbles and pinwheels are therapeutic. Not just because children love them, but also because both blowing bubbles and pinwheels and popping bubbles forces deep breathing and mindfulness. I love using bubbles with children who are having difficulty staying in the calm and ready-to-learn green zone. Since the pandemic started I’ve yet …
Using Toca Boca World in Speech & Language Treatment
I started using Toca Boca World when all my appointments were still on telehealth (until I got my first round of COVID shots). A year later I have patients who still request it during in-person appointments. This open-ended video game is packed with things to explore and it’s really useful for speech and langauge treatment. …
Regulation Tools: Rocket Ship Quiet Tent & Remote-Controlled Star Light
I’m noticing that children who were born shortly before the pandemic are taking longer to warm up to me than the 2-year-olds I’ve seen prior to “these unprecedented times”. So I’m implementing the same rules I use for children who are demonstrating signs of anxiety, such as those with selective mutism: talking is rewarded, but …
Regulation Tool: Quiet Tent & Remote-Controlled Light
I’m noticing that children who were born shortly before the pandemic are taking longer to warm up to me than the 2-year-olds I’ve seen prior to “these unprecedented times”. So I’m implementing the same rules I use for children who are demonstrating signs of anxiety, such as those with selective mutism: talking is rewarded, but …
Using “Doggy Bags” for Articulation
I picked up this fun game as a great way to work on articulation. How the game works: The children (or the child and I) each get one of the two bags filled with plastic food. No one can look into their bag. When the first card is flipped over both participants race to find …