Fab Find Friday: 3/29/2013

Happy Friday, everyone!  I'm at home right now, enjoying time with my family for the Easter holiday.  Anyone else have a long weekend?  They're the best!

1. A video example on YouTube of an Oral Mechanism Examination



2.   A Sight Word Tic-Tac-Toe game from Mom to 2 Posh Lil Divas.  This can easily be adopted for target words and pictures for our speech and language kiddos!

3. A brand new website that launches April 2nd--it's like Groupon or Living Social but for educators!  Oh yeah, and if you sign up before they launch, you get $10 in credit!! Check it out here.

4.  NORMS for standardized tests for when you forget your test manual at home!!! Seriously, a life saver from Home Speech Home here.

5.  A poster from Erik X. Raj with 25 different ways to say, "Good job!"  Check it out here.

6.  A picture that made me chuckle a little :)

Source: Pinterest

Hope you enjoyed those finds!  Have a very blessed Easter weekend! If you don't celebrate Easter, happy weekend! :)

DIY Therapy Materials

A week or so ago, Felice at TheDabblingSpeechie asked me to do a guest post. I thought I would share it with you here, too, in case you missed it! 

Today’s topic is using what you have already for therapy.  I’m going to start with why I think it’s important to be “thrifty” and use what you may consider “trash” or everyday items for therapy.  First, if you’re anything like me, you can’t afford to buy all the newest games out there. You also can’t possibly buy absolutely everything on your TpT wishlist.  Also, I hate throwing everything out. Why not be a little green and recycle what we have?  Also, the kids LOVE it. Seriously, they run towards me when I come in with these activities. They love being creative.

So how did I get into this?  Glad you asked. I have always been a big proponent for recycling. This semester, my clinical supervisor challenged us to be creative and inventive with our materials.  She challenged us to NOT bring in games or anything along those lines. Instead, she encouraged us to start saving our trash.  And I mean TRASH.  Anything that you were about to throw out, you had to look at and decide, “Hmm could this be made into a therapy material or craft?” Let me tell you, our houses and apartments are now overflowing. It amazes me actually.  Of course, you don’t just have to save trash.  You can also use extra paper plates that are just sitting in your pantry.  Or how about those beans that you bought to make chili but then never made it?

Here’s another thing to consider when you go to bring in your iPad (or other electronics) to certain environments. Some of these kids have never seen or heard of an iPad ever. Some of them will never be able to afford one, either!  The last thing you want to do is make them feel inferior because of something like that!  Besides, when you use things you have at home (e.g. toilet paper rolls), it is something they can do at home too!  If we want carryover, this is the perfect way to do it!

Now for some ideas.  I obviously cannot list all possible activities-the possibilities are seriously endless.  Here’s a couple of things we have done. Please note that these activities were for preschool and whole-language groups.

1.   Sink versus float. Take a small tub or Tupperware container.  Fill it about halfway with water. Find objects around your house for your students to place in the container. They will determine if they sink or float and can mark it down on a chart. This is a great activity because it is so incredibly easy, focuses on school/curriculum concepts, and focuses on vocabulary that will be useful to them in the future! 

2.  Tambourines/other musical instruments.  I’m sure a lot of you have done this yourself growing up. We took paper plates, folded them in half, filled them with beans, and stapled them shut.  The students could decorate the outside. We then talked about music and rhythm. We will be making more musical instruments using boxes, plastic containers, and rubber bands. 

3. Muffin tin activity.  I posted about this activity on my blog, Home Sweet Speech Room, a few weeks ago.  Check out the post here.  We took muffin tins (or egg cartons) to target basic concepts such as letters, colors, and shapes. We put paper with different shapes in each cup in the muffin tin. Then, students threw a ball (gently!!) to see where it would land. They would then have to name whatever shape (or color, etc) that the ball landed on. 

I love these activities because they give the students a chance to express themselves in a different way than maybe they’re used to. It allows them to create and be hands on.  It’s not expensive, either!

 Do you have any ideas?  I would love to hear about them!  Like I said, my supervisor is challenging us to be creative, so I need some ideas!
 
 

My Journey to Becoming an SLP

Hope everyone's week has started off well!  About a week ago, my story was featured on Pocket SLP.  Some people have been asking about my journey, so I thought I would share what was written last week, if you're interested.  It is written in third person because that's how it was on Pocket SLP.  Without further ado, here is my journey:

Carissa is a current graduate student in Saint Louis, Missouri, studying Communication Sciences and Disorders. She enjoys running, cooking, shopping, and exploring St. Louis when she isn’t busy reading and prepping for school and clinic. In fact, she is currently training for a half marathon she plans to run with her mother in November! She is currently working in a Head Start center with preschoolers and in the International Adoption Clinic on campus doing diagnostic testing for internationally adopted children. Carissa is passionate about everything related to children! She is writing her thesis in the area of pediatric dysphagia and thickening liquids, which is her true interest! She also has experience working in skilled nursing facilities, home health, and outpatient clinic settings.

Carissa first heard about speech pathology when she was in high school. She had planned on becoming a Spanish teacher and had just completed a semester student teaching a 7th grade Spanish class. While she loved her supervising teacher and the experience, she also realized the 30-1 ratio was not the best for her. Neither were junior high-ers. One day, she was over at a friend’s house, making Christmas cookies. This friend’s sister-in-law was also there and was asking Carissa about her plans for her major in college. Carissa expressed her frustration and confusion. This sister-in-law suggested that Carissa look into speech pathology because her of ability to speak Spanish. After all, we always need more bilingual therapists, right? She went off to college and declared her double majors in Spanish and Speech Pathology and Audiology and never looked back.

She knew it was the right field for her when she had to the opportunity to conduct research and present it at ASHA in 2010. Rarely did undergraduate students get a research assistant position their freshman year of college and get to present it their junior year, especially at a conference so big! She also had the chance to shadow in several Neonatal Intensive Care Units, thanks to connections of various professors. Things just seemed to be falling into place. Carissa is still so incredibly thankful for those opportunities.

In December 2012, Carissa started a blog to share her ideas for therapy! She says that it is one of the best decisions she has ever made. The blogging community is a great place for resources and ideas! 

What's your journey?

March 2013 SLP Link-Up

I just found this SLP Link Up, a great idea from Oh, How Pintearesting!  I love this idea because it helps connect SLPs together and just reinforces the great connections amongst bloggers.  Be sure to read the rules on her page about the rule and how to join, if you're interested!

State of Mind:  I'm content.  I should be exhausted and should be working on homework, but I'm not.  I chose to take some time off this weekend to watch basketball and hang out with friends. That beats homework any day, doesn't it??

Loving:  I am loving the snow!  We are getting hit pretty badly right now.  Yes, it was a MESS on the way to church this morning. Now that I am in my nice, warm apartment all snuggled up with a blanket and some hot chocolate, though, it is BEAUTIFUL!

Prepping:  I'm busy prepping for a whopping ONE day of clinic this week.  We'll be working on my Sleuth-y Blends packets here and here.  I'm also prepping Same Different Cards by Primary Punch.  Because we only have one day this week, I don't have a lot of prepping to do. Next week, however, I will be prepping The Great Animal Sort by Kristin at Simply Speech.

Have you picked up some great materials lately?  I would love to hear what some of your favorites are!!

Enjoy the link-up!

Fab Find Friday: 3/22/2013

Happy Friday, everyone!! I know many people are starting spring break. If you are, ENJOY it!!  I am sitting at home, watching NCAA games and watching my bracket slowly die.  Don't get me wrong--I'm happy for the underdog teams winning and knocking out some big teams. BUT, they did ruin my bracket a little bit.

Here's what I found this week:

1. Jenna at Speech Room News created a HUGE list of all the speechie blogs out there. Check it out here.

2.  Lauren at Busy Bee Speech is starting a new Friday series called F.A.Q. Friday.  Check it out here.

3.  A series of blog posts on phonological disorders from Katie at Playing with Words 365 here.

4.  A new behavior management from Kristin at Simply Speech here.

 
5. FREE basketball numbers from Ashley at The School Supply Addict here.

6. Any Girl Scout Cookie lovers out there??? A Thin Mint puppy chow recipe from Your Cup of Cake here.

Again, happy Friday! Enjoy the madness :)

World Down Syndrome Day

You may or may not know that today is World Down Syndrome Day!  Many places around the world are hosting events today to raise awareness for Down Syndrome.  The motto this year is "Let's Change" and is focusing on equal rights, inclusive education, employment, health care, and independent living for those with Down Syndrome!  Pretty cool, right?  You know what else is amazing??  The United Nations recognizes this day!

How you can get involved:
It's quite simple.  Just wear lots of socks!! You read that correctly.  Wear bright, mismatched socks today!  Here's the thing--they have to be on display so that people can ask about them!  Maybe it's 3 socks (or an EXTRA sock) for an extra chromosome!  Get creative and find out more info here.

Image: World Down Syndrome Day

Myths/Facts about Down Syndrome (from Down Syndrome International):
-Myth: People with down syndrome do not live very long.
-Fact: People with down syndrome can live long lives thanks to medical advances.

-Myth: Only older mothers have babies with Down Syndrome.
-Fact: Older women do have a higher risk to have a baby with Down Syndrome. However, more babies with Down Syndrome are born to younger mothers.

-Myth: People with Down syndrome cannot achieve normal life goals.
-Fact: They can, with the right support. They can learn to walk, talk, etc. A lot of children with down syndrome are now mainstreamed in school and can live semi-independent adult lives.

Language guidelines for talking about Down Syndrome (from Down Syndrome International):
-Don't say "mongol"...instead say "person/baby/child with Down Syndrome"
-Don't say "suffers from" or "is a victim of"...instead say "has Down Syndrome"
-Don't say "a Downs baby/child/person"...instead say "a person/baby/child with Down Syndrome"
-Don't say "retarded/mentally handicapped"...instead say "learning disability"
-Don't say "disease/illness/handicap"...instead say "condition OR genetic condition"
-Don't say "Downs"...instead say "DS" when abbreviating

Hope you found some of that interesting. I certainly did!!  Spread awareness and wear some socks :)

Springtime Preschool Packet

It is officially spring, everyone!  It certainly doesn't feel like it here, though! It's about 30 degrees and extremely windy.  But I have something that may bring up your mood a bit- Springtime Preschool Packet.

If your preschoolers are anything like mine, they need quick activities that can be completed in 10 minutes or less! This 31 page packet is full of quick activities for them!

-Sign-In Activities: Includes eggs to color and write names on and sign in cards. Students will trace words associated with springtime. Includes 2 eggs and 12 sign in cards.

-Egg Color Sort (adjectives): Students will sort the eggs by their color. Includes 1 sorting mat and 24 egg cards.

-Listening for Detail: Students will take turns drawing cards. The SLP will read the cards the students draw. Students will listen to what is read and color in the designated areas. Includes 1 worksheet, 32 calling cards, and 8 blank cards.

-Same/Different Cards: Students will take turns drawing cards. SLP will prompt students to pick out the card that is different or the same (based on the goal for the student). If the student answers correctly, they keep their card. Whoever has the most cards wins (or use a game board). Includes 12 cards

-Game Board and Die: An open-ended board game with an accompanying die to be used with these activities or other holiday activities

 You can find this activity in my TpT store here.

I will giveaway one copy of this to a reader!  Just comment below and tell me your favorite spring tradition or activity! 

Blast Off into Spring with an ‘Out of this World’ Speech Giveaway!

Domo Arigato I Sound Like a Robot-O!: Speech Fluency PacketI absolutely love this blogging community! A lot of us bloggers have come together to bring you another HUGE giveaway. Seriously, any SLP would love to win this package!  This giveaway will begin on March 17 and will end on March 21!  Check it out:

Here's a list of the AMAZING prizes: 

The 1st Prize Winner will receive a $25 Teachers pay Teacher Gift Certificate plus all of the following Speech Therapy product downloads.

The 2nd Prize Winner will receive a $10 Teachers pay Teacher Gift Certificate plus 10 downloads. 

The 3rd Prize Winner will receive a $10 Teachers pay Teacher Gift Certificate plus 2 downloads. 

Check out the products that are being donated:

WordNerdTeachSpeech: Butterfly Categories
Kids Games for Speech Therapy: Easter Language Activity Pack
Let’s Talk Speech Therapy: Breaking it Down- Phoneme Segmentation/Blending & Multisyllabic Words
Rae’s Speech Spot: Sequence Comprehension
Home Sweet Speech Room: Directing the Action: Social Skills/Pragmatics
Natalie Snyders: March Homework Packet and April Homework Packet
Kristin Minden: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Chick Activities and 1 and 2 Step Following Directions
Major Speech Minor Girl: What Would You Do or Say Social Skills Activity
Teach Speech: Who What Where When Questions with Visuals and What Questions with Visuals Add On
Speak Listen Play: Practice on the Playground S and S Blends
Crazy Speech World: Social Candy Monsters
Nicole Allison: No Print Expressive Pack
Speechy Musings: Phonemic Awareness Packet Powerpoint
Ms. Jocelyn Speech: Buzz Words
Live Love Speech: Live Love Speech: Who Wants to be a Social Skills Superhero?
Danielle Reed: Hedgehog Grammar Unit
Busy Bee Speech: Monster Mash Artic
Slp For Me: Spring Egg Hunt - Language Lessons Around the World
Speech Time Fun: Spring Word Fun
MrstSLP: Easter Basket Roll a Dice Game
Speech Room News: Easter Early Developing Sounds Articulation Game
If Only I Had SuperPowers: The Princess and the Dragon Speech Language Activities

Consonantly Speaking: Domo Arigato I Sound Like a Robot-O!: Speech Fluency Packet

Ready to enter???  GOOD LUCK!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Fab Find Friday: 3/15/2013

Yay, weekend!!  I have been busy this week trying to get ahead in school work...fun spring break, I know!   But there are some exciting things coming up in the blog world, so stay tuned!!   And without further ado, here is Fab Find Friday for today!

1.  A blog post by Major Speech Pathology Fun by a Minor Girl about Teachers Pay Teachers and feedback! 

2.  Jenna at Speech Room News just posted this morning about Flipboard, a way to read all of the blogs you follow!   Check out here post here.  (Please note, though, that Google Reader will not be available after July 1st of this year. Enjoy this method while you can!!)

3. The Language of Speech posted another way to manage your feeds, using Feedly. Read the post here.

4.  Sight Word Domino Game idea from No Time for Flash Cards, here.  This could be used for our target words for our students who are reading!

5. FREE, HUGE packet for the Three Little Pigs for preschoolers from 3 Dinosaurs, here. 

6.  Homemade Churro con Chocolate recipe!!  This is a staple in Spain, so I was SO excited to find a recipe for it this week!  I absolutely LOVE these! Check out the recipe here.

By the way--there's a big speechie sale on Sunday (March 17, 2013).

Happy St. Patrick's Day in advance!  Have a fun and safe weekend!

Product Swapportunity with Speechy Musings

Today, I have the fun "swapportunity" to check out a new product from from Speechy Musings!  She recently posted about her new Phonemic Awareness PowerPoint, which you can see here.  As soon as I saw this product, I knew I absolutely had to have it!  Check it out below, and you'll see why!

When you open the PowerPoint, you see this picture:

Then, if you click forward, you'll be taken to this screen:

It gives you choices for FIVE different activities: alliteration awareness, phonemic matching, phoneme segmentation, phoneme isolation (initial), and phoneme isolation (final)!  She thought of everything ;)   Just click on the box of the activity you would like to do, and it will take you right there!

The first activity is alliteration awareness.  On each slide, the student will identify which picture starts with a different sound.  See the example below-the student would choose rainbow. Simply click on the picture, and it will give you immediate feedback (right or wrong).  

The second activity is phoneme matching.  This time, a picture is given in the question, and the student will identify which picture starts with the same sound! Same thing is true here about the feedback!

The third activity is phoneme segmentation.  In this activity, students will identify how many sounds they hear in a word (the picture for the word is given here).  Again, feedback is provided!

Fourth, you have the phoneme isolation (initial).  In this activity, students will identify the letter that the picture starts with.   An arrow is provided for a visual cue for the first letter.  Feedback is provided here, too!

Finally, you have phoneme isolation (final).  Similar to the previous activity, student identify the LAST letter of whatever is pictured.  An arrow is provided for a visual cue for the last letter.  Again, feedback is provided!

Why I love it: 
She had this fantastic idea of creating "no print" type products. This makes it easier for YOU because you don't have to spend all that time printing, cutting, and laminating. Not to mention it saves you money because you don't have to buy paper, ink, or laminating pouches!

It gives you immediate feedback!  This is so important for our students!

It's simple and easy to use.  Just pull it up on your computer and go! Students will enjoy it, too!

You could also print these out if you wanted to, to use as flashcards!  I cannot bring in electronics to my clinic placement, so this is probably what I will do!!

It targets basic skills needed for communication and academic success!!

It's 129 slides long.  That's lots of opportunities for your students! 

Be sure to check these out:
You can find this activity in her TpT store here.  Great news: It's on sale right now and will be all week (until Sunday, 3/17).

You can like Speechy Musings on Facebook here.

Check out her blog post about one of my products here.

Sleuthy L-Blends: Articulation Packet for Speech Therapy

Thanks again for your patience during the last couple of weeks of midterms.  I am finally catching up on sleep and relaxation!  I also had the chance to finish another Sleuthy Blends packet for you!  Check it out:

Print, cut, and laminate all cards and detectives. Tape a detective to a Kleenex box, cardboard box, or basket. Either do one box for the entire group or one for each student. Please note: There are both male and female detectives as well as dark and light skinned detectives because all of our students are diverse!

Students will draw “detective tool” cards and say the target word on the card.

If the student says the word correctly (and the designated number of times by the SLP), he/she gives the tool to the detective (i.e. he/she places the card in the box/basket).

For each target word said correctly, the student gets a point. Tally up points on the sheet provided. Whoever has the most points wins!

A word list is also provided!

Hope your students will enjoy this as much as mine do!! 

You can find this activity in my TpT store here.  
You can find the Sleuthy S-blend packet here.