Try out this link to videos from the SLP at Washington preschool here in Findlay

https://www.facebook.com/pg/WAPreschoolSpeech/videos/

These are some great videos on how to use books and toys you have at home to build your child's speech and language skills.  The Speech Therapist is a colleague of mine from Washington Preschool here in Findlay. 
Just a quick note, if you watch the video on how to cue speech sounds, I cue the /s/ sound a little differently than Sarah.  She uses her hand to look like a snake as she says the /s/ and I run my index finger back and forth in front of my lips as I cue the /s/ sound.  Either way, it gives the child more information to help them learn to make the sound. 

Fun sensory activity

Here's a fun activity.  Take Easter eggs and put them in a container.  Put a few pieces of tape across the container.  Supply spoon, tongs, and soup ladle.  Keep the objects by you and ask your child, "which tool do you want to use this time"?  Have them point to the one they want.  Encourage use of the word, "oh, you want the tongs"  Repeat the word several times so they know what it is.  Then ask, "which color egg are you going to get this time"?  Have them point to the color they are after.  Name the color for them, "you are going to get the pink one, pink, I like pink too".  You could make it a direction following task also.  Pick up the spoon.  Try to get the purple one this time.   Have fun!!

 Here are some activities to work on several goals that may be on your child's IEP:
Naming items in categories:  Name all the pictures in each category then see if they can come up with another item that might belong in that category.
Naming the category:  Ask, "what group do all of these things belong to? " (furniture, clothing, food)
Sort into categories:  If you can print this page, cut out the pictures and hand them one by one to your child and see if they can put each back into the correct category.  All the furniture in one pile.  All the clothing in another pile and all the food in a third pile.
What doesn't belong:  Put 4 pictures together for your child.  Use 3 from one category (ie couch, chair and table) and one from a different category (ie shoe).  Ask your child, "which one doesn't belong"?  You may have to say "which one doesn't belong in the furniture group"?

 How are they the same:  Put two items together from a group (ie shoes and pants).  Ask your child, "how are these 2 alike or how are they the same"? 
How are they different: Use the same 2 items and ask, "how are they different"?
Speech sound production:  Listen for sounds produced in error and show your child how you say the word.
Understanding Functions:  Ask "what do you do with this thing"? You can also do a pointing task.  "I am thinking about something you wear on your head.  Can you find it"? 
Listening to 3 clues:  Play I spy. "I spy with my little eye something that is a type of clothing, you wear it on your foot and you put it on before you put on your shoe"

 Try this activity.  Name all the items in the top picture.  Have your child point to the one you name.  You can even ask, "which one says moo" or "which one do you drive".  Then name all the locations in the second picture.  You can ask, "who lives in the barn"? or "where does the cow live"? Have your child point to the picture to communicate with you as they are learning to use their words.  Remember that the more successful interactions they have with you, the more they will keep trying to communicate in more and more ways. 

Week 3: March 30- April 3, 2020

Good morning!  As we approach week 3 here are some ways

you can incorporate speech and language into daily

routines and activities this week.  

For those students who are working on increasing

use of  words or are using devices to communicate, try this:

- In order to support functional communication, it is great to

have pictures of the things your child really likes.  You can

have pictures of favorite foods and drinks and hang them on

the fridge so that your child may request what they would like. 

Then you can have a back and forth exchange.

Whenever there is interaction between 2 people,

the desire to communicate more and in different ways increases.  

- Also take pictures of the daily routine: 

get up (picture of bed), brush teeth (picture of toothbrush),

eat breakfast (picture of child eating). 

You can make a little book of these pictures and read it together.

For children who aren’t that interested in books, looking at pictures

of themselves and things they are very familiar with may increase

the time spent together in an interaction. 

- take pictures of toys that they really like to play

with so that they can request these toys.  Try taking

pictures of parts of the toys such as parts of Mr. Potato Head

or parts of a barn set.  Keep the parts in a bag and give them two choices

- “do you want the eyes or the nose”? By pointing to a picture they are

telling you what they are thinking about and they are improving their

ability to interact which always leads to more and more attempts

to communicate.  

For those students who are working on making

speech sounds correctly, try this:  

Search around the house, inside or outside, depending on

the weather, for objects that start with the sound you are

working on. Consider taking a picture with your parent’s

phone and when you are finished go through and look at

the pictures and name them.  Remember to say your sound

correctly. Or you can carry a notebook with you.

When you find something, write the letter the object starts

with or try to write the whole word. 

Review the words later practicing your sounds.  

For those students who are working on

increasing language skills, try this: 

Search around the house, inside or outside depending

on the weather,  for items in categories.

Consider taking pictures on your phone and

reviewing them later.  

Find 3 things that are soft.

Find 3 things that are hard.

Find 3 things that are red.

Find 3 things that are big.

Find 3 things that are tiny.  

Do some comparing.  I see a rock and a mailbox post. 

How are they alike? (ie they are both hard)

How are they different? 

(a rock is small but the mailbox post is big).  

Have a terrific week!

Indoor scavenger hunt

Try this indoor scavenger hunt.  I linked to a page that has more scavenger hunt ideas.




https://images.app.goo.gl/g9igiLpEbzzJQcVt8

Animal pictures to use with Old McDonald had a farm

 




Use these pictures for your child to point to as you sing "Old McDonald Had a Farm".  Ask questions like, "what animal should we sing about now"? or "what animal says "baa baa"?  Encourage your child to make the animal noises. 

Valentine's Pronoun Language Cards!

 

Find at: http://www.speechiefreebies.com/2015/01/pack-of-pronouns-winter-valentines-day.html

 

 

 This free packet includes 20 picture cards (with a winter & Valentine's Day theme) that can be used to target he/him/she/her/they/them. 

I have used these cards in a number of ways….

1. Put 2-3 cards out at a time. Describe one of the cards using a pronoun and have the child identify the card you are taking about. "Show me: She is ice skating."

2. Play a board game but before the child takes a turn, he/she chooses a card from the deck and has to describe it using the correct pronoun.

3. Use these cards to assess pronoun knowledge/use.

4. Print out 2 copies and play "pronoun memory" with them!

 

Improving Language and Vocabulary at Home!

http://www.speechandlanguagekids.com/bedtime-routine-activities/

The above link takes you to a blog about bedtime routine plans to facilitate speech and language development. But the truth is these activities can be used almost anytime and anywhere to help you help your child. Welcome back to school!

Halloween I Spy

Practice using good speech, language, describing and vocabulary skills while playing this cute I Spy game!

Ideas for Building Language

Great ideas and simple explainations using techniques speech-language pathologists use!

http://letsgrowspeech.com/playing-with-language-building-activities-for-building-language/