Pot of Gold Activity
With over 100 kids total on my caseload (at five different schools), I am a busy speech-language pathologist just like you. So I’m always looking for quick, easy, and flexible activities that I can use in my therapy sessions to keep them fun and productive. This one meets all of those criteria and makes a great item for each child to take home for practice as well.
Materials:
- 2 paper plates per child
- black crayons for coloring the pot
- scissors tape or stapler
- paper coins – Here is a page of coins for you to print out or you can use a circle paper punch. You can use colored paper or color it yellow or gold yourself.
Preparation:
- Gather the materials.
- Cut a part off the top side of one paper plate to make it resemble an open pot.
- Cut out the coins and decide what the targets are going to be (i.e., sounds, antonyms, etc.).
- Attach the plates together if you want to have this done ahead of time.
Activity:
- Have the child color the back of the cut plate and the top part of the other plate black. If working with a group, the children can color while waiting for their turns.
- Tape or staple the plates together so that they create a pocket.
- Spread the coins out on the table or put them in a bag or bowl for the children to pick from.
- Have the child pick a coin, practice the targeted activity, and then put it in his pot.
- If there is time, review the stimuli in the child’s pot.
Again, for a printable page of coins to use in this activity, click here.
“Take a Peek” at this Therapy Idea
Here’s a way to make practicing words and sentences more fun and “focused” without spending time or money on it’s preparation. The activity is simple, but makes practice seem like a game. And since the materials don’t cost anything, you can let the child take it home to encourage carry-over.
Materials:
- a cardboard tube from a paper towel or toilet paper roll for you and each child (decorating is optional)
- stimulus cards or pictures
Use:
Word level – Have the child look through a tube at stimulus cards (or around the room to find objects with the target sound) and then say the word.
Sentence level – Depending on what level you are working on, the child could simply say, “I see a __.” or a more complex sentence such as “The __ is next to the window.”
Groups – Play the game “I Spy” with the tubes and have the children guess what the person has spotted. Be sure to let them know what sound is being targeted.
Extra ideas:
Use this activity in pirate, explorer, and astronomy themes.
Quick and easy Valentine’s therapy activity
You can use this as a quick and easy Valentine’s game or as positive reinforcement for answers and speech productions.
What you need:
- Valentine cards (I used my son’s left over ones)
- Marker or pen
- Candy hearts, stickers, or other treat (optional)
On the inside of the Valentine cards, write a 1, 2, or 3. I put six 1s, four 2s, and two 3s. You can also add a card with a sticker on it as a “pick again” card. Fold the Valentine cards in half so the numbers don’t show, and place them in a bag, bowl, or small box.
When the students respond to their stimuli, let them pick out a card. The numbers written on the inside of the cards can be how many treats they get, spaces they move, or points they earn. (You can choose whether you want the students to put the cards back in or keep them out.)
Have fun!
Becky Wanca
Here are some “sweet” Valentine’s Day therapy materials…
What better way is there to get your message across this Valentine’s Day than to put it on a “candy heart”? There is a cool website that allows you to enter your own word or message, pick the heart’s color, and save the result.
To make your own, go to http://www.cryptogram.com/hearts/
I’ve made some pages of “r” and “l” Valentine’s Day words on hearts for you to print.
L Valentine’s Day words on hearts
R Valentine’s Day words on hearts
Enjoy your week!
Becky
Happy Anniversary, SpeechTherapyIdeas.com!
Wow! Today, February 1st, 2010, marks one year since the launch of SpeechTherapyIdeas.com. My hopes for the website’s first year have been far surpassed. The website’s reach simply amazes me. The monthly traffic has grown tenfold, and it has been visited from 131 countries!
Thank you to those who have shared it with others and to those who have left comments and given me encouragement along the way.
Email a friend or colleague a link to the site.
Here’s to another great year!
Becky Wanca