Freebies for March - 2 for St. Patrick's Day!
Soon we will be wearing the green! Make getting ready easier with the open ended game from Looks-Like-Language! Then, check back in weekly to get the additional cards and worksheets to match!
This month, I am adding some targeted goals on my card sets to match the game for those of you who would like a little more structure. If you like to review your own skills, the open ended cards with the game will do the trick! Which set are you getting here? I guess you will have to click and find out!
Get them all with one easy download by signing up for my newsletter. I promise, they are short and sweet!
9 Tips for Teaching Choices to Special Needs Children
Choices:
The Most Important Strategy has been my theme this month. I've posted tips for learning to make appropriate choices at varied ages. Don't miss my tips for toddlers and for preschoolers!
For
parents, think about when you take videos. Usually when we do this, we are trying to catch our kids at their cutest! I’m talking about having
some reminder of when they are at their worst. Maybe a family member who doesn't see your child daily will notice the change for you!
Because when they are at their worst sometime in the future, that is when you will find support from seeing that they actually have made changes. When change happens incrementally, it is so hard to see and even harder to keep persevering!
Because when they are at their worst sometime in the future, that is when you will find support from seeing that they actually have made changes. When change happens incrementally, it is so hard to see and even harder to keep persevering!
While
our special needs kids also have to learn to make good choices, they can
benefit from some additional supports along the way.
Visuals! So many students with special needs, especially those with auditory processing problems and those who are on the spectrum, have so much difficulty with oral language.
Pairing oral language with a visual support provides something with meaning to attach to the words, building comprehension skills whether your student speaks or is nonverbal.
Visuals! So many students with special needs, especially those with auditory processing problems and those who are on the spectrum, have so much difficulty with oral language.
Pairing oral language with a visual support provides something with meaning to attach to the words, building comprehension skills whether your student speaks or is nonverbal.
3 Tips for Making Choices with Visuals
Teaching Requesting
Hold
actual
objects in each arm, separated in space, to see which one is looked at, and then:
*Pair
the words
with the choice.
*Say the name of the object the child is looking at. *Pause a second to see if the child will verbalize first, but don’t let the child get frustrated.
*Say the name of the object the child is looking at. *Pause a second to see if the child will verbalize first, but don’t let the child get frustrated.
For
children who don’t vocalize often, pair a pictured symbol with
the object. The
easiest way is to cut the
logo or
photo from
the box, place it in front of the objects and help
the child point at it or hand it to you to make a request.
First/Then Boards
You determine the first activity that needs to be
done, but the child gets to choose the follow-up activity.
For
students who are still learning picture representations, I have found it
helpful to place the photo/symbol on the board anyway, with the real object
next to it, out of reach, with a wait sign covering easy access to it. You may
need to start with one trial before allowing access, building up from there, to
let the child see the sequence and come to understand that he will get the
desired object after the work is done.
Visual Schedules
When
the student understands choice boards and that events occur in a sequence, it
is time for visual schedules.
With a First-Then Board, the student has learned to work through one complete activity before getting a choice.
You can lengthen the amount slowly by using a visual schedule, showing the sequence of events during a therapy session. I like to use symbols that show the type of activity since they can be re-used, like those in this picture.
I included my ready-to-work attending cues on the top. I would say, "Your hands, feet and mouth need to be quiet so your eyes can look, your ears can listen and your brain can think!" After teaching this, my students often just needed a point cue at the pictures to remind them to get back on track.
With a First-Then Board, the student has learned to work through one complete activity before getting a choice.
You can lengthen the amount slowly by using a visual schedule, showing the sequence of events during a therapy session. I like to use symbols that show the type of activity since they can be re-used, like those in this picture.
I included my ready-to-work attending cues on the top. I would say, "Your hands, feet and mouth need to be quiet so your eyes can look, your ears can listen and your brain can think!" After teaching this, my students often just needed a point cue at the pictures to remind them to get back on track.
3 Tips for Higher Level Students with Special Needs
TIP: When an inappropriate choice is being
made, try to keep your emotions out of the picture. Calmly point out the negative consequence of
that choice and ask the student to reconsider their decision. Then give some
time and space for thinking, letting it appear that they have come to a better
decision independently.
TIP: When the child makes a bad decision, try not to have the “I told you so!” attitude. Comments such as, “We all learn from our mistakes” can show understanding without assigning blame. It lets you follow up later, when emotions have calmed, with a discussion of how to make reparation and how a similar situation could be handled differently next time.
TIP: When your student has an anxiety component, making choices can be incredibly stressful and lead to more problem behaviors, at times, than just expecting them to follow directions might. This doesn’t mean that we should not be teaching these students to make choices, just that we need to handle this important growing up skill with kid gloves and collaborate with our teams.
Providing
choices
so that students can learn to make responsible choices is extremely
important! Do
you agree?
Thanks to Educlips for the cute free chalkboards and to Ashley Hughes for the adorable free pockets!
Thanks to Educlips for the cute free chalkboards and to Ashley Hughes for the adorable free pockets!
Freebies for March- St. Patrick's Day!
I don't know about you, but I can never have enough open ended game boards around! All it takes is a make up session, with more than usual mismatched groups, or a day where my students are especially distracted, for me to go looking for a quick and easy game board to pull it all together.
I hope this month's freebie will do that for you! Of course, if all of your students are perfect angels, always, you may not need this, lol! You can download the free game at my store. Each week before the holiday, check back in to get additional game cards and worksheets that coordinate with the game. What a deal!
If you don't want to wait, remember that you can sign up for my weekly newsletter to get the link to all of the freebies (and maybe some extra!)
I hope this month's freebie will do that for you! Of course, if all of your students are perfect angels, always, you may not need this, lol! You can download the free game at my store. Each week before the holiday, check back in to get additional game cards and worksheets that coordinate with the game. What a deal!
If you don't want to wait, remember that you can sign up for my weekly newsletter to get the link to all of the freebies (and maybe some extra!)
Choices and Consequences- Language for Cause-Effect
Choices at Home and in Speech/Language Therapy
Your
little one who was running headlong into trouble is finally starting to get
some idea of what they can do (safe) or can’t do (dangerous.) Whew! But, don’t
relax for too long! Just when you take your eye off of them, they manage to get
into some kind of trouble.
Preschool
is the age when children are ready to learn that actions have consequences.
They may not like the consequences, but they are realizing that they exist and
are starting to show some skill at pushing your buttons. That means it is time to start teaching them that their actions have consequences, including on the feelings of others.
Choices and Consequences- 3 Tips for at
Home
You
can help the development of language, thinking skills and good choice making by
offering choices with consequences. This involves making statements like these:
"If you...., then...."
"When you ...., then..."
"If you want to....., then you need to....."
"You did...., so he feels...."
"When you ...., I feel.....because...."
Natural Consequences
Explain
to your child what will happen next if inappropriate actions are
occurring. That is the natural
consequence. For example, “You can dump
all of the toys out and make a big mess. Then you will have to clean them all
up before TV time. Or, you can just take out the toys you want to play with.
Then you will be able to clean up faster.”
Be sure to make the consequence you stated happen!
Make Consequences Actionable
Apply
a consequence that lets your child know
what your rules are, why you think that and what he can expect to happen. In
very simple terms, of course. For
example, “Screaming in the store is not
polite. If you can’t calm yourself down, we will have to
go home and take a nap to calm down.” Be sure to have consequences that match
the severity level of the behavior and that you can act upon consistently. Be
careful of words like ‘never’!
Teach the Consequences for Feelings
Help
your child see that actions have impact on other’s peoples’ feelings. Since
that doesn’t have a large impact on children’s actions in the beginning, be
sure to have another consequence, as well. “When you say mean things, it hurts your friends’ feelings and makes me
sad. You have to use nice words or I will have to stop setting up play-dates
for you.”
Choices and Consequences- 3 Tips for SLPs
Choice Time
Making
time during the session for the preschooler to be able to have a preferred
choice is the easiest way to start teaching that actions have consequences.
While we try to make all of our activities engaging, some are more preferred
than others and some are harder work! To help our students grow, we are always
pushing to get the most we can from them. Sustaining that attention and effort
can be tiring, so having a little free choice time as a consequence for making good choices and responding to our demands (even if they are couched in play.)
Teach Cause- Effect Skills with Toys and
Books
Little ones have to be able to think ahead to the effects, or consequences, of actions in order to make good choices.
The easiest way to start teaching this is though toys. They are fun and children can see that their actions have consequences. There are so many great preschool toys for teaching cause-effect. The picture to the left has just a few fun examples.
Students who have learned the language associated with cause and effect toys are probably into building and imaginary play. You can continue to expand their language skills through modeling in play, but it is a good idea to start incorporating some great cause-effect picture books!
The easiest way to start teaching this is though toys. They are fun and children can see that their actions have consequences. There are so many great preschool toys for teaching cause-effect. The picture to the left has just a few fun examples.
Students who have learned the language associated with cause and effect toys are probably into building and imaginary play. You can continue to expand their language skills through modeling in play, but it is a good idea to start incorporating some great cause-effect picture books!
The picture shows are a few of my
favorites. Laura Numeroff's books are just general fun, showing 'what happens when,' as are Margery Cuyler's "That's Bad, That's Good!" series.
David Shannon's series of David books shows the consequences of little David's poor choices, with such great pictures! Kids just love seeing other kids get into trouble!
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst is a classic book that lets you introduce perspective taking skills. Does your student think the same way as Alexander?
David Shannon's series of David books shows the consequences of little David's poor choices, with such great pictures! Kids just love seeing other kids get into trouble!
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst is a classic book that lets you introduce perspective taking skills. Does your student think the same way as Alexander?
Actions and Feelings- Social Language
It
is so very important that we provide our students with the language for
emotions, both verbally and non-verbally, for thinking about how others feel,
whether we are modeling sharing during our play with toys or choosing books
with appropriate themes for discussion.
SO many of the choices a student makes all day long after entering school have emotional impacts on others! Students who are not able to think about the consequences their actions have on themselves and others lack the basis for making good decisions.
When instructional time is spent dealing with behaviors, the student isn’t learning. Having the language skills does not guarantee good behaviors and choices, but it does provide a way to intervene!
SO many of the choices a student makes all day long after entering school have emotional impacts on others! Students who are not able to think about the consequences their actions have on themselves and others lack the basis for making good decisions.
When instructional time is spent dealing with behaviors, the student isn’t learning. Having the language skills does not guarantee good behaviors and choices, but it does provide a way to intervene!
February Freebie- Valentine's Color Match Game
February and Valentine's Day are all about love and friendship. I hope you have already downloaded my free game! If not, you can get it at my store.
This week's Freebie for a Fun Friday includes a set of cards to use with my game to open a discussion of kindness. Such an important topic for every room in the school! It also includes a worksheet that can be used for homework after playing the game. Just click here or on the picture of the cards to add a little kindness to your room!
If you want the rest of the worksheets, sign up with your email in the 'Get my newsletter' box. The link will come in my next newsletter, which is sent out every Tuesday. I realized that I had to speed things up a little to start getting you all of the materials before these mid-month holidays! This way, we can get a head start on March after Valentine's Day!
I hope you are feeling the love!
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Add a Little Kindness from Looks-Like-Language! |
This week's Freebie for a Fun Friday includes a set of cards to use with my game to open a discussion of kindness. Such an important topic for every room in the school! It also includes a worksheet that can be used for homework after playing the game. Just click here or on the picture of the cards to add a little kindness to your room!
If you want the rest of the worksheets, sign up with your email in the 'Get my newsletter' box. The link will come in my next newsletter, which is sent out every Tuesday. I realized that I had to speed things up a little to start getting you all of the materials before these mid-month holidays! This way, we can get a head start on March after Valentine's Day!
I hope you are feeling the love!
5 Tips for Toddlers- Language for Choices
Do
you need good language skills to make responsible choices? Definitely! Language and thinking
skills are so intertwined. My last post
was about why choices are so important. Now, let’s take a look at the language
involved.
Toddlers
don’t yet have the language skills to really make choices since they are in the
here and now, while making choices is about decisions for the future. When we
provide toddlers with two simple visual choices, such as graham cracker or
cookie, and label the items, we are doing more than just increasing their
vocabulary and requesting skills! We are showing them visually that they have
choices and giving them the language they need to make that choice!
Think about their play skills, too- working on learning cause and effect. This is a building block for making responsible choices!
Think about their play skills, too- working on learning cause and effect. This is a building block for making responsible choices!

SLP
tips for toddler’s choices in therapy:
1. Attention
spans are sort, so have lots of activities available.
2. Baskets
can really helpful for having similar toys available to grab or put away
quickly. Toddlers will use eye gaze first to show their choice when two objects
are held up. That is our cue to label the one they want!
3. When
eye gaze is established, that is our cue
to delay gratification a little and wait for a vocalization to occur. Listen
for some variation in vowel sounds to occur between the different toys in your
basket, and hopefully some consonant sounds will be emerging, too.
4. For
children who are having problems vocalizing, are a little older, or could
possibly be on the spectrum, this is the perfect opportunity to start
developing a pointing response. Pointing is much easier to prompt than
vocalizations for a child who is not naturally starting to do that.
5. Shape a Pointing Response-Hold
up two toys to see which one is being looked at. Quickly set down the other toy
and scoop that hand under the child’s hand. It is probably already out, trying
to grab the toy!
Use your hand to mold the child’s hand into a pointing gesture while naming the desired object. Be sure to only let the child get the toy after a pointing response, not a grab! While this feels awkward at first, you will soon become adept at prompting a point. Help yourself out a little by holding the usually preferred toy in your non-dominant hand at first so you can get used to the steps using your dominant hand most of the trials.
Use your hand to mold the child’s hand into a pointing gesture while naming the desired object. Be sure to only let the child get the toy after a pointing response, not a grab! While this feels awkward at first, you will soon become adept at prompting a point. Help yourself out a little by holding the usually preferred toy in your non-dominant hand at first so you can get used to the steps using your dominant hand most of the trials.
I
like this technique for several reasons. First, you are shaping a natural
gesture (grabbing) into a communicative behavior (pointing.)
Next, you are pairing the child’s eye gaze with that point, since they are already looking at the item they want. This is so important as prerequisite step for joint attention (the child looking at what you are looking at.)
Once the child realizes that pointing goes with looking, it opens the door for teaching that your point is telling them to look! You are also starting to teach some of the skills the child will need if he has problems leaning verbal language and has to start by using an alternative communication method.
Last, and possibly most important,
pointing and waiting is such a better social skill than grabbing and taking!
How
do you use choices in therapy? If you are still interested in this topic, pop on over to Speech Time Fun this Friday for a summary of my ideas! I'm so grateful for the opportunity to guest post there!
SLP Love Hurts- 5 Tips for Difficult Kids
I
still remember the day when I was reassigned to a new school and walked into
the classroom to meet my new students. Some were spinning, some were rocking,
and some were staring into space. All of them were autistic, non-verbal and
had something that I needed to watch out for. I will probably always have that
memory. I was in such shock. How was I supposed to teach these children to
communicate? Nothing in my experience had prepared me for this!
I
immediately began learning; from
courses, from the internet, and especially from watching the staff in the
classroom. Even with the biters, the spitters and the hitters I had for years to come,
I luckily only got injured once, by accident. Want to hear my tips?
Compassion
Feel the love in your heart for these children with broken communication systems. They aren’t mean! They just get frustrated and lack the means to express it appropriately.
Feel the love in your heart for these children with broken communication systems. They aren’t mean! They just get frustrated and lack the means to express it appropriately.
Comprehension
Get to know your students before placing learning pressures on them. Most severely impacted students on the spectrum have sensory issues. Some sensory input makes them happy and others overload them. When students are overloaded and have no way to communicate, “STOP!” their behaviors will be their communication system.
Get to know your students before placing learning pressures on them. Most severely impacted students on the spectrum have sensory issues. Some sensory input makes them happy and others overload them. When students are overloaded and have no way to communicate, “STOP!” their behaviors will be their communication system.
Visuals
Kids
on the spectrum are not auditory learners, they are visual learners. Find a way
to
show the
child what your expectations are and what they will get in return. Did you ever wonder where my name came from? This experience cemented my belief in using visual supports.
Vigilance
If
you are constantly on your toes, you will see the signs of frustration as they
begin to occur. Before the child acts out, react to the difficulty the child is experiencing and the agitation on the part of the child. Go back to an easier task. Think about how
you can make your expectations more visual before you try that activity again.
Mix
it up!
Have
lot of activities prepared. After a few trials of something that is hard to do,
do some easy/fun/ review trials.
So, the time I actually got hurt? I was covering a class of children who I didn't know at all. I sat behind the chair of a little guy who was getting antsy and put my hands on the chair so it wouldn't tip over and get him hurt, when he suddenly jumped up and hit my chin with his head! It is ironic that after all of the hours of the close contact that occurs during our speech/language sessions, narrowly avoided injuries, watching out for my biters and suffering through getting spit at, my first real injury was by accident!
Of
course, no matter how much we learn, how hard we work, or how hard we try, we
may end up getting in harm’s way at some time or another. But, we still come
back, seeing the positive qualities of the child in addition to the
difficulties. SLPs are dedicated to
helping their students improve their communication skills!
For more stories of how love hurts, go visit the rest of The Frenzied SLPS!
Feeling the Love! A February Freebie
February is a natural choice for discussions of friendship and kindness with Valentine's Day on the way. Children aren't born knowing how to think about the feelings of others- that is something we teach them. The good news is, it absolutely works when we do spend the time to model and teach our students. Take a look at this post if you want to see some research and links to ways to incorporate this at school.
I'm sharing the love around this month by adding my open ended February game freebie to my TpT store. While it practices color matching, it can be used to work on any skill with the younger set. The worksheets that support it are only available on my blog, however! One new addition will be coming next week. To get the rest of the worksheets this month, you will need to get my newsletter. I'm running out of time before the holiday!
Want the whole set at once? Keep reading!
If you have signed up with your email (top right box) to follow my blog and get my newsletter, you will be treated to the entire Valentines Color Matching game and worksheet set in one download! The link will be in my weekly newsletter. My Valentine's present to you- saving you some time and letting you get prepared ahead of time. With such busy lives, timesavers are always a help!
In friendship- Linda
I'm sharing the love around this month by adding my open ended February game freebie to my TpT store. While it practices color matching, it can be used to work on any skill with the younger set. The worksheets that support it are only available on my blog, however! One new addition will be coming next week. To get the rest of the worksheets this month, you will need to get my newsletter. I'm running out of time before the holiday!
Want the whole set at once? Keep reading!
If you have signed up with your email (top right box) to follow my blog and get my newsletter, you will be treated to the entire Valentines Color Matching game and worksheet set in one download! The link will be in my weekly newsletter. My Valentine's present to you- saving you some time and letting you get prepared ahead of time. With such busy lives, timesavers are always a help!
In friendship- Linda
The SINGLE Most Important Strategy for Dealing with Children
YES,
really! And the answer is… CHOICES!!
Whether
you are a parent, teacher or SLP, we all have the same long term goal: to help
the children in our lives to learn and grow up to be responsible, independent
adults. Nothing else helps them along
the way like being able to make choices.
NO
ONE gets to make choices all of the time, that is part of being responsible.
But, we all love to have some control and impact in our lives, which is where
making choices comes in. Imagine this scenario: Your students/children learn
their academics and get to college, having never had any practice making
choices.
Suddenly, there’s a myriad of choices: which friends to
make, what courses to take, showing up for class (or not), spending time
studying (or not), whether or not to go to that party. Imagine facing all of that, and more, for the
first time without ever having any practice! It could be like letting a child
loose in a toy store!
Of course, this is an extreme example, but did it get you thinking? Responsibility is knowing what you have to do, and then doing it. Making choices, and sometimes mistakes, gives students the real life practice they need to be able to know when they just need to do what they are told and when they can make their own responsible choices.
Of course, this is an extreme example, but did it get you thinking? Responsibility is knowing what you have to do, and then doing it. Making choices, and sometimes mistakes, gives students the real life practice they need to be able to know when they just need to do what they are told and when they can make their own responsible choices.
5 Tips for Teaching with Choices
As adults who are helping children to grow and learn, we can guide them along the way by giving them the experience of making choices, when appropriate. This covers a wide range:
Toddlers: Beginning choices are just based on having
two appropriate, responsible choices.
Would
you like this book or that one?
Which
kind of cookie do you want?
Would
you like to eat your fruit first or your cereal first?
Preschoolers: Present choices along with natural
consequences to help young ones start learning to think ahead and make the
responsible choice.
You
can play nicely with your toy and keep it, or you can bang it and break it.
Then you won’t have the toy.
You
can eat your dinner and have dessert, or you can throw it on the floor. Then
food is done for the night.
School
Age: For situations that can allow
choices, try brainstorming possible
choices and their effects, followed up by a discussion of possible consequences
(pros and cons.) It is important to model the methods for problem solving and
making responsible decisions to build those critical thinking skills.
Middle
School: Students at this age are going to make their own choices, often
regardless of what you think or whether a choice was being offered. Try to only offer possibilities after you know their plan for how to deal with a situation and see that they haven't thought it all the way through. Of course, students this age still need boundaries and consequences!
High
School:
By
now, you are hopefully reaping the rewards of years of teaching students to
make responsible choices. In the later teen years, the goal is to increase
decision making skills until the student
is able to function as independently and responsibly as possible. This means
that students need to be able to determine when they can make choices and solve
problems independently and when it is time to ask for help.
Next
week, I will be be sharing some more practical tips for how to use choices, focusing more on helping young children communicate I hope you’ll be joining me!
Do
you need some tips now? Check out my post:
5 Tips for a Tough Caseload.
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