I've had a few parents request some educational app suggestions for kids lately since there may be a few new tablets, iPods or iPads under the Christmas tree. : )  I put together a short list of some of my favorites.  Unfortunately, most of them cost money.  But, all of them are ones that I would recommend!  Some of them also have websites that offer educational games too. The age range is a loose guideline since I have had 10 and 11 year olds love some of the younger games. All apps are available on the Apple iTunes Store. You can download the file by clicking on the picture below! Want more apps?  Check out this SLP linky for apps specific to speech-language pathology! ...
Recently I have had a lot of requests for homework for my toddler kiddos that I see out of the office.  Since their parents aren't usually there during the session to observe/participate in therapy and they are too young for worksheets and things like that I find it's often hard to give homework without giving the parent a lecture.  So, I thought about the top toys I use in therapy (you can check out THIS post if you're interested in my go-to therapy toys) and decided to do a short write up of how they can use the toys to facilitate language at home.  I have quite a few kiddos who are working on naming and identifying vocabulary which is great because it is such a broad goal I can bring in vocabulary with just about any activity. If you are struggling like I was to give parents ideas on how to facilitate language at home with toys check these out, they're FREE! : ) (Note: This packet is text heavy, with any packet that has a lot of text there is the risk of a t...
It can be so hard to give homework for my little ones to practice language at home.  Many parents want homework (and I'm working on a more comprehensive set) but since we use mostly toys to facilitate language it can be hard to give them homework without just having them watch what we do.  So, I put together a quick playdough mat to practice vocabulary.  Directions are included at the top of the mat, just print, laminate and send home!  I would recommend making sure your kiddo has playdough at home too.  If you're in need of playdough Walmart had large tubs of playdough for 50 cents today!  They also make a great stocking stuffer! :)  Click on the picture to grab this playdough mat for FREE! ...
Are you working with the early intervention population?  If so, be sure to check out my FREE Play-Based Speech Therapy Homework .  Here is a small collection of the toys and games I use when working with the birth-5 population! Goals to Target: naming body parts, identifying body parts, requesting, producing 2-word phrases (blue shoes, green hat), basic verbs (walk, sleep, jump, hop, dance) Goals to Target: following commands, identifying vocabulary, matching pictures, naming vocabulary, requesting, animal sounds, categories/sorting Goals to Target: requesting more/please with words or signs, imitating "ready, set, go!" or "1, 2, 3, go!", producing bilabial sounds (wow, bubble, pop) Goals to Target: naming vocabulary, identifying vocabulary, simple sentences (I see __), early literacy skills.  Goals to Target: requesting, identifying animals, commands (Give me the __), naming, making animal sounds, basic concepts (in/out, on/off, etc) ...
My iPad has made some changes these days now that I am working with little ones.  I have been trying to search and gather my favorite speech/toddler apps.  My goal for most apps these days is SIMPLE!  I look for ones that are very easy to use, don't have a lot of distractions and can be completed quickly or with repetition. Here's a short list of my current favorites (and the ones that are currently getting the most use)! YES/NO App This app is as simple as it gets.  There is a yes button and a no button.  And as you may have guessed we use it for answering yes/no questions! It's particularly helpful for kiddos who are non-verbal or use limited language.  Object Sort I just found this one and haven't used it a ton but it is another simple one that works on sorting objects by colors just as the name implies.  It could also be used for naming or identifying basic vocabulary.  Towers (by Tiny Hands) This one is mostly just fun for little ones.  They ...
There are many things I miss about not being in the classroom and the holiday crafts and activities are definitely one of them.  I loved making Christmas countdown chains with my kiddos every year and decided I could adapt them to work with my speech kiddos too! My older kids had so much fun making these today and it was a great way to get SO many repetitions.  Since I don't see the same kiddos every day, we will rip off more than one link each time they see me and they'll take the links home for home practice.  There's still a few hours to get it on sale!!   ...