The Frenzied SLPs: A Treat of Halloween-Themed Language Tricks and Activities

In this second October installment of The Frenzied SLPs we bring to you A Treat of Halloween-Themed Language Tricks and Activities.

If you checked in earlier this month you caught my favorite reinforcement activity, Spooky Tree! Download this FREEBIE as a treat to pair with any language drill activity!  My favorite preschooler was prepping my materials last week.

Visuals.  Visuals.  Visuals.  Did I say visuals?  My first trick for you, write/draw supports always and anywhere.  Have a picture or write words of what you expect to remind students of target skills. This picture shows a student working on present tense verbs.  The student was struggling to match the correct speech sound for the ending.   So I added the sounds as we were working.  There is also a fluency strip as another reminder to practice fluent speaking when the target was finally achieved.  I will be writing on the table more often for this student!

During our pumpkin craftivity, this student was trying to make a past, present, and future tense sentence with pictured verbs.

Pictured below, some of my 4th graders grabbed their own clipboard when I said we were going to recall key details from a text read aloud (nonfiction texts from Nicole Allison). Tell me that's not using a strategy!

I use books in therapy ALL THE TIME!  Are there times I don't get the quantity of trials I'm looking for? Yes! Does that get my anxiety rising? Yes!  So why do I keep  using books in therapy? 

My students ask for books.  My students listen attentively to books. My students love structured activities that go along with books.  My students talk a lot during my therapy using books.  I can target every goal in mixed groups using books!  Now that's a treat for this SLP!  Motivated students yields increased results.

Another trick, when possible, use a series of books throughout the year.  You will be amazed at the predicting as well as confidence in verbal expression that comes with a familiar series.  Here are a few of my favorites, although I am not affiliated with any of these books.

There Was an Old Lady books by Lucille Colandro

Bear books by Karma Wilson

Otis books by Loren Long

If you give a books by Laura Numeroff
Pout Pout Fish books by Deborah Diesen
I also like Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey, A Pirate's Night Before Christmas by Philip Yates and other Night Before books!

I'd love to hear some of your favorite series books!

To wrap up this post and allow you time to wander around the linky, I'd like to share one last treat!  I finally finished my Otis and the Scarecrow Print and Go Book Companion.  While I will put it on sale for 50% this week, if you download the preview, I have included a FREEBIE carryover page which focuses on perspective taking and showing compassion!

Thanks again to Doyle Speech Works, Twin Speech Language and Literacy, LLC, and All Y'All Need, the linky party hosts this month!  I hope you find many more tricks and treats along the way from The Frenzied SLPs and talented SLP friends!

An InLinkz Link-up