Favorite speech and language products lately...

I often get asked about books/games/toys that I would recommend, either to other SLPs working with children or to parents of children I am working with.

Here are a few things I love and use OFTEN:

1. "That's not my ____" books by Usborne Books.

If you haven't heard of Usborne Books, you should check them out. I am often wary of things that are sold by consultants (like Usborne Books), however I will say that these books are amazing products. I have used them for years and will continue to do so. In particular, the "That's not my ___" books are awesome for working on a variety of language targets with young children (usually I would use these with 2-6 year olds, depending on the child's skills). The simple illustrations are great and the inclusion of touchy-feely elements on each page offer the opportunity for sensory stimulation as well as vocabulary expansion. That's Not My Bunny and That's Not My Snowman are among the many titles available in this collection.

2.  The Mystery Box and Guessing Game by Lakeshore

These are two products that work well both together and separately. The Mystery Box and Guessing Game are both great tools to work on things like describing items using adjectives, matching items to pictures (The Guessing Game is a box full of objets with corresponding pictures), making inferences ("What do you think is inside the box?"), turn-taking, and more!

3.  Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Tap & Teach Drum

I am not always wild about toys that make lots of electronic "noise," but there are ways that such toys can be used in an educational fashion. This is a cute, inexpensive drum toy that can be used with littles to work on cause and effect skills (turn on the drum - when the child taps on the top, it lights up and makes a variety of sounds which are typically rewarding to a child), imitation of motor skills (tap the drum either with it either on or off and encourage the child to imitate you with language like, "do it like me!" or "now you do!" or "your turn!"), and social language skills such as joint attention, turn taking, and three-point gaze.

4.  The Articulation Station Pro iPad Application

This has been an old favorite of mine for the past few years now. The app developers have added great updates and the app has become one of the staples in my articulation therapy sessions. It's a little on the pricey side (currently $59.99), however there are sales every now and then that will bring that price down. I've seen sales occur in November around the time of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association national convention. The app includes all sounds in American English and has a variety of activities under each to work on increasing the child's accuracy. There are even tips for parents or therapists for eliciting correct production of the sound. In my personal opinion, this app is so valuable that I purchased it one year with my classroom budget for my school iPad as well as personally purchased it on my private device.

5.  The Sneaky Snacky Squirrel Game

This is a great game that I use in my therapy sessions for a variety of functions. It is great for turn-taking and memory (remembering what the different symbols on the spinner indicate) as well as for use as a reinforcer during articulation drill activities.

Of course there are many other products that I love for a variety of reasons, but these are a few things that I use on a regular basis for a variety of functions. I am a HUGE proponent of using the same tools in a variety of ways - why have a ton of materials that can only be used for one function each? Instead, I recommend having a collection of materials that could each be used in many ways. Sometimes this takes some creativity and planning on the part of the therapist (or parent), but it's a great mental practice in addition to just smart planning!

Have a wonderful day :)

~Mrs. Wells.

Here is a Great Book for Targeting Social Skills!

Sometimes working on pragmatic language (social skills) can be tricky and frustrating...for students and educators.  Today a stellar ISU graduate student I have the privilege of working with introduced me to a great book:  Social Rules for Kids: The Top 100 Social Rules Kids Need to Succeed by Susan Diamond.  (Quick aside:  one of the BEST parts of working at Metcalf is having the opportunity to learn from my undergraduate and graduate students as they work with me!)

After glancing through a few lessons, I immediately ordered the electronic version on my iPad and I must say...I'm in LOVE with this book!

Topics discussed range from "Using a Friendly Greeting" to "Be Both a Listener and a Speaker" to "Be Calm if I Give an Incorrect Answer" to "Try to Ignore Others' Annoying Behavior" to "Be Funny but Not Too Silly" and "Say it Right with Voice Tone."

There are a wide range of topics and skill levels that can be targeted using this book.  Already, I have shared it with some teachers for use with a 4th grade student (in particular the "Be Funny but Not Too Silly topic) and with our PreK teacher (in particular the "Using a Friendly Greeting" topic).  I plan to use the lessons in the book to target skills and to shape discussions with a variety of students.

Pragmatic language can be difficult to effectively target in an effective and sensitive manner and this book does a great job of discussing topics in a child-friendly and appropriate way.  We know that it is crucial for students to have good pragmatic skills so that they are able to effectively communicate with their teachers, peers and families and so that they are able to make and maintain meaningful friendships throughout their lives. This book looks to be a wonderful tool to increase pragmatic skills across a variety of situations and relationships.

I hope you enjoy this book.  Feel free to leave a comment if you have suggestions for other great resources targeting social skills/pragmatic language, questions about this book or these skills, or any other discussion points!

Have a wonderful day,

Ms. Matyasse