1 – Story Champs Intervention

I utilize Story Champs with so many of my students.  I wrote a review of it last year as well that you can view here.  Story Champs is flexible and I’ve seen really good growth from utilizing it.  In my mixed language/articulation groups, I’m able to target story grammar, vocabulary, articulation, and more with this tool.  There is also a Spanish Bilingual version available now.

Cost: $298.00

2 – iPad/Apps

I’ll just get this out of the way here.  I do utilize my iPad and apps frequently as therapy tools.  My iPad is much easier to take around to my quick artic sessions, screenings, etc. than a pile of artic cards or paper screeners.  I utilize it in various ways as well, using apps that aren’t solely for therapy as well.  I will say that we don’t ALWAYS use the iPad and I never let my students just “play” on it (unless they’ve earned free time after an assessment).  I typically sit next to them when we use it and I always hold it and have control in the session.  There are many great apps out there that can unleash your creativity as a clinician and apply speech/language skills in a different way.  I would recommend attending the upcoming XceptionalED Special Apps Update conference if you are interested in learning more.

Cost: iPad $329-1149  Apps: Vary $0-90

3 – Books

We use books constantly in therapy.  They are wonderful for mixed groups, themes, etc.  I typically find my books at thrift stores because they are so affordable there.  Occasionally I splurge on new literature.  There are so many great books that I won’t be naming them.  However – here are a few great lists by some of my favorite bloggers: Crazy Speech World; Speechy Musings Book Lists by Speech Sound and Books for Teaching Story Grammar in Speech Therapy; The Speech Space; etc.

Cost: $0.50-$20

4 – Super Duper

Honestly, for the most part I have moved away from the games and card decks from companies like Super Duper.  However, there are a few products that are flexible enough to be used for many goals and groups.  These are the products I pull on occasion to target 4-5 different goals in a session: “WH” Chipper Chat; Pirate Talk, What Do You Say…What Do You Do… At School?; The Question Challenge Card Game; Turtle Talk Fluency and Language Game

Cost: $55-70

5 – Board Games

We don’t play a lot of games but when we do, they address goals!  Now, I preface this by saying that most of these will need some adaptations made to make it work in therapy.  But that’s why we do the therapy and the material doesn’t do it.  Some of my favorites include Hedbanz, Blurt, 5 Second Rule Jr, Riddle Moo This, and others.  Again, I hunt thrift stores for these as I would much rather spend $3 on a gently used game than $15 on a new one.

Cost: $12-20

6 – Teachers Pay Teachers

I would be lying if I didn’t say that I utilize many wonderful materials from TpT.  Not everything on TpT is created equal and I highly suggest reading information and reviews carefully.  Also look for any information about the use of the product from the seller or others.  Some of my go-to resources include Editable SLP Assessment Templates; Cycles for Phonology Toolkit; Grab N’ Go “WH” Questions; Nyms-O; Nonfiction Texts Targeting Articulation and Language

Cost: $3-30

7 – Your School Campus

There is no reason to keep yourself inside the therapy room at all times.  Get out of there!  Within your school and on your campus are great opportunities for language and articulation.  We have done attribute searches (find something red, find something square), sound walks (find your articulation sound), and more.  Some of our favorite places to visit are bulletin boards, the playground, and my administrators (we like to ask them questions or tell them stories using our good articulation for example).  A big part of our job is moving the skills we work on from isolation into the general education environment.  These structured therapy times outside of the speech room can do just this.

Cost: Free

8 – Maps

A lot of my students have not been outside of the city they are growing up in.  They may travel to a nearby state or to Mexico to visit family occasionally.  We like to use maps – the bigger, the better – in my speech room.  We can use these to plan a road trip and read about/discuss attractions along the way.  We can hunt for cities that have their speech sound in the name.  We can talk about what we see around a place on the map (river, highway, city, park, etc.).  Maps are very interesting to kids in my experience.  They also love to use google maps to explore place they haven’t been or are just interested in.  We’ve used google maps to look at the house I grew up in – they LOVED that!  You can often get maps for free from local tourism shops, services like AAA, or from relatives who don’t want that atlas any longer.

Cost: Free

9 – Sensory Materials

I love integrating sensory bins and materials with my “everyday” speech materials.  We love using kinetic sand, fake snow, water beads, etc. to create a sensory component of our sessions.  I will often hide thematic/sound-based dinky doodads and other tiny items in sand and excavate them.  We may close our eyes and describe what we feel using our description details.  We might just put some laminated TpT cards or other stimuli in the sensory item and work on those.  Regardless of the activity, my students love working with sensory materials.

Cost: Free – $10

10 – Box of Highly-Preferred toys/items

If you work with students using PECS or other AAC devices/systems, having many highly-preferred items at your fingertips can be the key to unlocking their language skills.  I often keep several varieties of wind-up toys, light-up toys, poppers, sensory items, etc. nearby.  This allows me to quickly have students requesting with attributes and working on describing their items.  This can also help in motivating younger students to complete tasks and earn a preferred item.  I recommend looking in the dollar sections, holiday clearance, thrift stores, and even fast food meal toys.  Pro tip: keep these out of reach/sight if you aren’t using them or you may have a distracted and upset child on your hands.

Cost: Free – $4 each

Therapy is not all about the material you use.  It’s important to remember that the material is not the therapy, YOU provide the therapy and may utilize a material/tool in doing so.  What are some of your go-to therapy materials… share below!

    One of our favorite social skill curriculums has recently gone mobile with their app: Social Detective from Social Thinking and Social Skills Builder.

When you begin, a single user may create and select their avatar. This is saved and can be used on the next time through the app.  Each area includes narration and instruction and practice items before progressing to a test with video scenes and questions.

The first section is unexpected vs. expected behaviors.  The second section is about good vs. uncomfortable thoughts.  The third section is about making smart guesses using tool box items.

I liked that this app includes video examples of familiar situations.  In the third section, you get to see what happens after the student makes a smart guess about what will happen.  It has good questions that reinforce the Social Thinking curriculum and books so it is a great companion to that for those who use it.  It would still be good discussion for those who do not use that curriculum but is most beneficial for those that do.  I like that some questions have more than one component to them to expand upon.  The videos don’t automatically progress after correct answers so that you can discuss further before the next scenario.  The narrator reads the answer choices which can be helpful (but answers are not highlighted when they are read so students may have a hard time retaining which one to select).  Finally, data is tracked on the app and there is the ability to e-mail the data!  Awesome!

I wish that this app had better sound quality in the videos.  It can be hard to hear the conversations at times.  Because you can only use one avatar at a time, you may have difficulty with tracking progress of students if they are seen in group.  However, I overcome this by having the students come up with a “team” name and avatar to utilize. When you complete all of the levels, nothing happens.  It would be nice to have a fully dressed detective with badge presented at the end or another reinforcer for the children.

Overall, this is a great app to have if you utilize the Social Thinking curriculum/materials.  I would not recommend it to be used without that material.  It would be best to use in an individual session or a session with a maximum of 2-3 students.

This app retails for $24.99 and is available at iTunes or check out more information and reviews at YappGuru!

Everyday Speech, a company which has previously released the iPad apps “Let’s Be Social”, “Let’s Use Language”, and “Let’s Learn Emotions”, has now released 36 Social Skills videos written by Brittany Lehane, CCC-SLP, an ASHA-certified SLP.  These videos include:

I have had the privilege of previewing several of these videos so that I may discuss them with you!  First, I love that the videos are labeled by topic!  I also like that they explain the problem and go over the definition of terms that may be unfamiliar before beginning the video.  They then show a video of the situation going poorly.  Then, you get a peek into the characters’ minds to see what they’re thinking!  Feelings are discussed as  well.  Then a few discussion questions are listed and you can easily pause the video for student feedback before continuing.  Finally, a situation going well is shown which is a great use of peer/video modeling.

Explaining

Feelings

Learning

Thoughts

Young Group

Older Group

Overall, the videos that I previewed were great.  I see these videos being beneficial for a variety of students and a wide range of ages.  Even middle and high school aged students would benefit from watching older group videos.  These videos would be a great companion to many of the other Social Skills products and curriculums that are available.  While the terminology is not exactly the same, the concepts are similar enough that they would be extremely useful.  Plus, these videos can be viewed on your computer, iPad/iPhone, Android, etc.!  The uniquely SLP approach to the creation of these videos will be appreciated by therapists and their clients.

If you would like to purchase the rights to the 36 published videos at 50% off, consider the bundle which is a complete collection.  You can click here and use the promo code “sublimespeech” to receive this bundle for only $35!  Enjoy!

I became an Expert App Reviewer at YappGuru almost a year ago and have loved watching more Experts join us!  So what is YappGuru and why should you care?  Well, YappGuru is a site that compiles expert reviews from trusted expert SLPs working with various populations across the world!  These reviews give you a detailed look at the app and if it is worth your hard-earned money.  Plus, you can vote up your personal favorites and in doing so, voice your opinion through the ranking system!  

The site is also great for discovering apps that would be a good addition to your tablet!  You can find apps by using a Keyword Search or by browsing categories that make sense to therapists (unlike the general “Special Ed” list provided by iTunes).  You can explore articulation apps, general reinforcers, and even OT apps for co-treatment!  It’s limitless and awesome!

 Here are the current YappGuru experts… I’m sure that you’ll recognize a few of your favorites in the group of trust-worthy reviewers!

So head over to YappGuru and register for free for the site so that you can vote up your favorite apps and take advantage of the ever-growing library of expert reviews!

So this month, YappGuru is challenging us to add new reviews during a March Madness competition. Competition is my middle name so I’m totally in!  Check out my progress and reviews by clicking the basketball!

Are there any apps that you’re curious about and would like a review for?  Comment below!

Being an SLP is hard work.  It’s paperwork, meetings, tough clients, data, evaluations, therapy, materials, parents, teachers, therapists, and more paperwork.  It’s easy to get bogged down by the copious negatives.  Sometimes your SLP Soul needs a little pick-me-up… a little “Chicken Soup”!  This blog hop is the perfect place to be reminded of the amazing occupation we are in and all of the wonderful and funny things that happen in therapy.

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First Words

For most children, first words are uttered around 12 months of age.  It’s an exciting time for families.  However, for many other children, first words don’t come until much later or in an unexpected way.  I have been very lucky to witness first words with a few of my clients and it has been an incredible experience each time.

First, you should know that I didn’t decide to become a Speech-Language Pathologist to rid the world of articulation delays or because I had once needed Speech Therapy.  I originally wanted to teach Gifted Education and was on the path to doing just that when a High School assignment changed my life.  I decided to become a Speech-Language Pathologist after observing a child with Cerebral Palsy utilize an AAC device in her speech session.  I was immediately hooked.  I thought that it was incredible that a child, who if born only 30-40 years earlier may have been placed in segregated schooling or living placement and thought to be “feeble-minded”, was using this device to articulate her incredibly clear thoughts to her SLP during their session.  I have had a love of AAC since that day.

For the first few years of my career, I worked with children with severe delays and disorders including Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Autism, and other genetic disorders within the school setting.  Many of my students had yet to say their first “meaningful” word.  (Though, as many SLPs and families who know children with these delays/disorders can attest, they communicate in many other meaningful ways.)  I had a particular student whose parents feared that he may never be able to communicate in a way that was understandable by others.  They had very limited resources and were unsure of the best path to pursue for their child’s communication.  We tried several lower tech devices for this child and he was able to utilize them to request basic needs but seemed uninterested in the devices on most occasions as he was fairly independent and able to use gestures or other means to get his needs met the majority of the time.  Because we suspected that his cognition was at a high enough level, we discussed utilizing a higher tech AAC device for the student.  We were able to secure a trial device through the state’s program and I took it home with me to program it with the basic starters for the next day.

When I arrived to work the next day, device in tow, I couldn’t wait for my session.  Though I was uncertain of how much we would accomplish, I was so excited to see what this student could do and what he had to say.  As we entered my office for his session, the student walked over to the device (powered off) and sat immediately.  He looked at it, searched for the power button, and then turned the device on.  Immediately he began exploring the symbols and moving through pages and pages of words simply pressing them to hear what they said.  Some of the symbols must have caught his attention because he would press them multiple times before moving on.  Finally, after we had gone through the majority of the pages with our exploration, we returned to the home page and cleared the sentence (which was of course an enormous run-on of nearly every word that was programmed on the device).  I paused and looked at my student who was sitting fairly quietly at the table.  It looked like he was just processing the mini computer that sat in front of him.  Then, he slowly lifted his finger up to the device and in only a few seconds used it to say “Hi, water go yes” before stopping to reach back to touch the door handle of my office.  We stood up and walked to the water fountain, got a drink, and returned.  It was his first request using more than one symbol and was so incredibly meaningful.  And it was just the beginning for him.

I would love to say that all AAC trials go like this.  They rarely do – there are many tossed iPads and rarely used devices placed in closets until “needed”.  But this student was different.  For him, the device was a way to unlock “our” language for his use.  He was quickly able to map his device that was purchased for him and could move through the device with incredible speed and use multiple word sentences within a matter of months after receiving it.  He still utilizes AAC to communicate as he has never “spoken” with his physical voice.  However, he has become very successful in communicating with his device, now an iPad, and I often think about his “first words” in my office that day.

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We’re so excited that you’ve joined our hop!  In addition to getting some Chicken Soup for your SLP Soul, we’ve gathered a few prizes for those who check out each post.  Below are the prizes that will be raffled.  You will also want to jot down the number below – you’ll need it on the final post to enter the raffle.

If you’re just beginning the hop, feel free to head back to the “First Blog” by following the link below.  If you’re ready to head to the “Next Blog”, simply click on that image and enjoy the next stop!  Thanks for stopping by!

(In no particular order of course!

Articulation Test Station – $49.99

I love using this app for RtI screener, speech samples during evaluations, and progress monitoring.  It is incredibly easy to use and is always my go-to for a quick paperless evaluation/screener!  Watch for sales but it’s worth the $50, and I don’t say that easily!

Peekaboo Barn – $1.99

This is one of my favorite apps for preschool clients.  We utilize it to work on following directions, identifying animals, and labeling.  We can also talk about the animal attributes, what’s in the barn, and more.

Avokiddo Emotions – $2.99

I love to use Avokiddo emotions with a wide range of clients.  We use this with social goals to identify emotions, talk about why the character feels that way, etc.  We also use this to work on attributes, actions, describing, requesting, and so much more.  It’s a well-made and versatile app!

ArtikPix Level Plus – #29.99

This is a very versatile and clean app for articulation therapy.  I love the way it is set up and remembers settings and data between sessions.  If you work with a lot of articulation clients and/or RtI for Articulation, this app is a great investment!

aacorn – $189.99

AAC is an ever-changing area.  This app is great for some students and a great way to introduce AAC to younger children.  It learns the student and can be customized completely.  I also love that they offer free version to SLPs for therapy and trials.  Plus, of all AAC options, this is one of the best made and affordable options.  I have used this with nonverbal elementary students as well as nonverbal children under 3.  With some training, it can be utilized by most students easily.

Soundable – FREE

Sometimes you have to kick back and relax with a nerdy little SLP game.  Soundable is a great refresher for IPA and fun SLPs!  Think of it as Scrabble with IPA!  Enjoy!

Toca Kitchen Monsters – FREE

This is a great free app from Toca Boca.  As a general reinforcer, it is goal.  However, if you dig deeper you’ll find that you can do following directions (which food to pick, how to cook it, etc.), talk about attributes, vocabulary, and much more!

I Dare You Articulation – $4.99

This app has been a favorite of mine since it’s arrival in the app store.  My older articulation students love it!  We even were able to go around our school with the app and “dare” some teachers and the principal to do the dares by utilizing good speech sounds.  It was so motivating and the staff loved it!  Erik X. Raj has so many motivating articulation apps!

Real Vocabulary Pro – $29.99

I really enjoy how this app targets vocabulary learning in students K-5.  You can work on antonyms, synonyms, definitions, multiple meanings, and idioms within this app.  It also keeps data for you!  There are reinforcer games as well which is helpful for older clients!

Sentence Ninja – $19.99

Sentence ninja is a great way for students to work on grammar and syntax.  It can also be used for language and articulation carry-over.  It’s a very motivating theme for students and they enjoy working on this app during sessions.  It has built-in data tracking also.

There are so many incredible apps being added to the marketplace each day.  These 10 were my favorites of 2014 and I can’t wait to see what 2015 will bring!  I hope you’ll visit the other blogs in this linky to see which apps they loved this year!

Appy New Year!!!

]]> http://sublimespeech.com/2014/12/appy-new-year-yapp-guru-expert-linky.html/feed 3 http://sublimespeech.com/2014/09/appy-friday-sounds-at-home-by-vsc.html http://sublimespeech.com/2014/09/appy-friday-sounds-at-home-by-vsc.html#respond Fri, 19 Sep 2014 10:00:32 +0000 http://sublimespeech.com/?p=1876  

Today we take a look at Sounds at Home by Virtual Speech Center.  You can learn detailed information about the app by watching the video tutorial below.

From the start page you can easily access settings, reports, and reinforcer game along with tutorials and more.

There are some great ways to customize your sessions in the settings.  Changing the sounds and reinforcer amount are very important to me.

Students and their data are stored in app.  To begin you choose the student(s) you will work with.

This app targets Auditory Awareness, Phonemic Awareness, and Following Directions.  You can choose the areas and levels you would like to target for each client in your group.

In Auditory Awareness, clients identify the source of sounds that are heard.

Phonemic awareness tasks require the client to find rhyming words.  This takes place in the “kitchen” scene.

These screenshots above demonstrate the various levels of Following Directions.  These range from identifying objects to following simple instructions to following 2-step and temporal directions.  I found this to be the most difficult to operate.  It was difficult to get the objects exactly where the app wanted them on the screen.  The simpler levels were easy to use.

After the student completes their number of correct responses they are automatically taken to the puzzle area.  There are 3 levels of puzzles.  These are pretty easy and I wouldn’t expect any children to not be able to complete these though some may require assistance for manipulating the pieces.

Data is kept in-app and accessible at any time after completed sessions.  This is an excellent tool for staying organized and taking very specific data to the area/level.

Overall, this app from VSC is a a great addition, particularly for those working with younger clients (Pre-K through grade 3).  I have not seen many other apps targeting the areas of Auditory Awareness and Phonemic Awareness which is an area that many younger clients struggle with.  The Following Directions section is not my favorite among other apps that offer similar targets.  This app is on sale for just $4.99 in the App Store (regularly $6.99).

Here is the official App-ometer Rating:

Today we take a look at Auditory Memory Ride by Virtual Speech Center.  You can learn detailed information about the app by watching the video tutorial below.

From the start page, you can adjust settings, view reports, go straight to the reinforcer game, and more.

There are quite a few settings that can be changed to best fit your sessions.  I appreciate the ways to customize to meet specific target areas/goals for my clients.  (Never underestimate the power that changing the incorrect sound can have!)

Students and their data are kept within the app which makes it easy to keep track of progress.  You can select several students at a time which is great for groups.

There are 4 areas with 29 levels that can be targeted in this app!  Each student can work on different areas/levels in the same session with others!  You can select several areas/levels at a time as well.

During presentation of the stimulus, this “audio” image is shown.  No visuals are given which is helpful for concentrating on audio only.  Then, after the stimulus is given, the client sees a waiting period illustrated by a timer image.

After the timer image ends, the student is able to input their answer.  This differs with area/level.

As a reward, students can fly this plane through obstacles for a determined amount of time.

Data is kept in-app and accessible at any time after completed sessions.  This is an excellent tool for staying organized and taking very specific data to the area/level.

Overall, this app from VSC is a much-needed area of focus.  I have not seen other apps targeting Auditory Memory which is an area that most of my language students struggled with.  It should be noted that some of the tasks are a bit more difficult and I had the most success using this with grades 2+ but it would be possible to go lower with the right assistance.  This app is available for $19.99 in the App Store.

Here is the official App-ometer Rating:

Today we take a look at Social Norms by Virtual Speech Center.  You can learn detailed information about the app by watching the video tutorial below.

The navigation from the first page is simple and easy to get started.

I like that you can easily adjust these two important settings: Text and Audio.  This helps to customize the activity to your needs and the goals of the client.

One of the best aspects of this app is the ability to add personalized stories.  Having social stories for children that you work with is a great tool.  This app makes it easy to create and store these stories for those clients.  You can add illustrations or real photos.

There is a very extensive list of ready-made stories to use.

You can choose multiple stories to do in a single session which lessens the amount of time between each story for setup.

The stories have decently clear and nice illustrations.  The emotions are conveyed well throughout.

Each story shows that adults can help in social situations which is helpful for younger clients.

Overall, this app from VSC offers a very nice way to present, create, and store Social Stories for children.  The pre-made stories are best for younger students (Probably Pre-K through 2nd grade) but the ability to add customized stories would make this appropriate for nearly every SLP working in schools/EI.  This app is available for $9.99 in the App Store.

Here is the official App-ometer Rating:

I’m a huge advocate of making certain things easier about speech and language therapy.  One thing that has always driven me crazy is toting around oodles of paper copies of articulation screeners.  Luckily Little Bee Speech (and a few other app companies) has delivered the goods with their articulation test/screener.

Choose between Screener and Full Test, adjust settings, view information/tutorials, and see results from the start page.

 Little Bee’s Articulation Test Center offers a wide range of goodies in their comprehensive app.  It’s incredibly complete and easy to use.  If you’d like to learn more about the details of the Screener or Full Test, I suggest you take a few moments to view the video tutorials below.  This will help you to decide if this is the right tool for your iTherapy box!

Screener: Choose appropriate age/phonemes to screen, mark errors in as much detail as you’d like, record notes, etc!

In the elementary school that I last worked in, I utilized the screener portion of this app to screen RtI students.  I loved the mobility and flexibility of this app.  Plus, this screener is more motivating than the screener forms and easy to use with non-readers.  I could simply mark if a child made an error or be very specific with the type of error or substitution that was made.  I also loved the notes section where I could jot down things that happened or were noted during screening.  You all have incredible memories but we can all use a little reminder sometimes!  The notes section is perfect for this and is available throughout testing for use.

Full Test: Much like the screener – choose positions and if a sample is needed. Progress through stimulus cards.

I love how clear the stimulus photos are.  They are also great for vocabulary during testing!  You can even turn the photo to face the child with one easy click.  Perfect for sitting across from students during testing without having to turn the ipad for them and trying to mark the test upside down!

Speech Sample: These colorful scenes record the entire conversation that you have with the client. It is interactive and you can click on objects/animals throughout for prompts.

 The Full Test is also great for gathering even more information.  While this is not yet standardized, it is a great tool for progress monitoring, gathering detailed speech samples, and more.  I have also used this as a more detailed screener for RtI students.  While I could not include the results from the prompts into formal SpEd testing, I often used the speech sample portion of this test as an addition to the GFTA, etc.

Results are comprehensive and easy to utilize in reports to teachers, parents, and for your own files.

 I love the easy to use results section. Ready-made results are easy to tweak for your own reports for parents, teachers, and for student files.  I also love that recommendations for phonemes to address are given.  This makes transitioning over to Articulation Station a breeze. (yes, we used that great app too!)

Overall, this app is a must-have for SLPs using an iPad for therapy.  No, it isn’t standardized yet and some may not be able to utilize it for formal testing purposes.  However, for progress monitoring, screenings, and RtI, this app is extremely valuable!  I look forward to utilizing it with my Pre-K and EI students as well.

 Little Bee is having an incredible sale on this app right now – Take advantage of 50% off!

Only $24.99!

If you’d like to win a copy, enter below!  Enjoy this incredible Back to School Buy!

a Rafflecopter giveaway