Putting Therapy Into Practice
Talk with your child about their school year thus far. Discuss the similarities and differences between their class last year and this school year such as: teacher, classmates, schedule, classroom decor, and classroom location.
Monthly Activity
You will need:
- burlap
- 5 orange pumpkins
- 5 white gourds
- black permanent marker
Using the marker, draw a tic-tac-toe board on the burlap. Sort the pumpkins and the gourds. Pick what you want to be for the game and decide who will go first. When it is your turn, place your object on the burlap board. Whoever gets three in a row first wins the game!
Kara’s Recommended Toy
Little Tikes Builders I-Fell Tower & Apatosaurus with Cave Men can be used to target cooperative play. This is a fun building tower set in which the child can enjoy setting up the scene and then knocking it down. They can then choose to knock it down by either pushing a button or using the dinosaur’s wrecking ball. The cavemen are also included which can be used for role playing.
- Question Formation: Ask What do you do first? Next? Which one do you want?
- Answering: In response to What do you do first? you and your child can say I need the (color/shape/object) piece. In response to What do you need? you and your child can say I need ___, I don’t need it. In response to Which one do you want? you and your child can say I want (the)___.
- Turn-Taking: Encourage turn-taking with building the tower by saying (It’s) Your turn, (It’s) My turn.
- Commenting: When it’s your turn to build, make comments such as I am building, I am using it, I need it, you need it, it’s getting taller, it’s getting bigger, it’s fun, someone (the dinosaur) is coming, there’s an earthquake coming.
- Problem Solving: Try to “create” a problem by talking through the situation. Depending on your child’s language skills, you can ask open ended questions such as: What piece is missing? Before you add the ___ piece, what do you need to do?
- Motor Speech: Speak with your PROMPT© trained SLP to develop an appropriate vocabulary to use to match your child’s level of motor speech control. A lexicon might include: on, on top, put on top, up, I need it, I do it/you do it, oh no, boom, down, go down.
Upcoming Events
- October 13th-16th: Farm Harvest Days and Carnival Fun at Frying Pan Park
- October 29th from 1:00-4:00: Fall Frolic at Glen Echo Park