Putting Therapy Into Practice
Have your child write and/or draw a card for a teacher, therapist, friend or family member thanking them for something. Brainstorm out loud with your child why he/she is thankful for this person. Then, if your child is writing, have him/her write down the reasons why he/she is thankful inside a card. If your child is not yet writing, have them draw a picture and dictate their reasons.
Monthly Activity
Let’s Cook!
Discuss what your family eats during Thanksgiving. Then, ask your child to list his/her three favorite dishes. Pick one side dish and make it with your child. Some of our favorites are sweet potato fries, mashed potatoes and green beans. This activity may be messy, but it is very important to allow your child to experience the actions (stirring, pouring, scooping etc.) of preparing the dish.
Talk about:
- how it tastes: salty/sweet, crunchy/soft,
- how it feels: sticky, hard/soft
- what it smells like: strong/mild, good/bad
Donna’s Recommended Toy
A play washing machine is a great toy for replicating a real-life activity that mommy or daddy performs. If you don’t have one, make one out of a cardboard box. Be sure to slit one end for a lid that opens and closes. Take socks, pants and T-shirts that your child has outgrown. Have your child put the clothes in a laundry basket, and then put them into the machine. Don’t forget to pour pretend detergent in the machine! Depending on the age of your child, you can encourage conversation during play to include:
- Commenting to stretch vocabulary:
- Concepts: clean, dirty, wet, dry, colors or patterns on the clothing.
- Actions: open, close, put it (load), take out (remove), sort, pour, wash, clean.
- Nouns: machine, top (lid), soap (detergent), socks, shirt, pants (clothes)
- Questioning: What do you need to put in the washing machine? What helps our clothes get clean? Why do we need to wash our clothes? Do we put clean clothes or dirty clothes in the washing machine?
- Sequencing: What do we need to do first? And then what? What happens after we put the soap in the washing machine? What do we need to do before we turn the washing machine on? Once our clothes are clean, what should we do with our wet clothes?
- Motor Speech Control: With this toy, you can target functional words and phrases. 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: wash, open, dirty, in, put in, I do it/you do it.
Upcoming Events
- Thru November 8th: Kids Euro Fest
- November 7th at 11:00: Manassas Veteran’s Day Parade
- November 12th 7:00-9:00 PM: Special Needs Sibling Night at the JCC in Fairfax
- November 14th from 12:00-9:00: National Harbor Christmas Tree Lighting
- November 14th 8:00-3:00 Including All Students: WHY and HOW? at Kenmore Middle School
Ongoing Events
- AMC Theatres offers sensory friendly films once a month on Saturday at 10:00 AM
- Meet a Farm Animal at the National Zoo every Saturday and Sunday at 11:00
- Special Needs Night at Flight Trampoline Park on the first and third Tuesday of every month from 5:00-7:00