Sublime Speech

Walking & Talking: Don’t Miss Therapy Opportunities During Transition Time

SublimeSpeech — Tue, 06 Sep 2016 05:42:23 +0000

I’m an SLP and I enjoy long walks… down the hallway?

Most SLPs have a packed schedule. Trying to organize therapy minutes for 60+ students across multiple grade levels and goals into about 30-35 hours per week is extremely difficult. I’m not sure about you, but I end up with sessions back-to-back nearly all day.

Each year I’m surprised with how long it takes me to walk to and from my students’ classrooms. This year I’m on a very spacious campus. For example, if I have 1st grade students scheduled at 9:00, I am leaving my office with my previous group at 8:58. It takes a few minutes for me to gather all of them from their classrooms and organize them. It’s 9:02 when we leave their pod area. We begin walking, as briskly as their 1st grade legs will move, and arrive at my room at 9:05. By the time they are sitting and calm and I begin our activity or lesson, it can be nearly 9:10. At 9:28 we must depart to return to their rooms. We don’t walk silently, I’m trying to engage them in conversations that further target their therapy goals but it is difficult to do without bringing along materials. I feel like I’m missing out on so many minutes of potential therapy each day.

I know that part of the solution is students moving about campus and arriving to my room independently. While my older students should be able to come to me on their own, there are those beginning weeks of learning schedules as well as those students who demonstrate “difficulty” with getting from their classroom to me. And eventually I’d like to be able to send my Kindergarteners and 1st graders back on their own but we’ll likely be starting our sessions together for a majority of the year.

To take advantage of these minutes of transition, I’ve developed these Walk ‘n Talk cards to keep on hand. I have included a majority of the targets my students work on in 16 prompt cards (printed 2-sided) that I can use as we walk across campus. I can have students practice articulation for 3 more minutes, warm up with some reminders and questions, practice fluency carry-over or conversation skills, etc. These cards are available here!

I have really enjoyed having prompts on-hand during our transitions and it has also been something that I can utilize for quick articulation and language RtI and screenings, provide to teachers for RtI and carryover in the classroom, and send home for parents.

I would love to hear from you on this topic. Are transition times something you struggle with as well? How do you take advantage of those minutes?

Have a great week!

Summer Prep Part I – Getting Organized

SublimeSpeech — Tue, 15 Jul 2014 05:44:15 +0000

Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.

~A. A. Milne

Summer is a great time to get ready for the busy Autumn ahead. No matter what setting you are in, organization is a key element to successful therapy. This year I have put together 2 organizational tools for you.

The first is mainly for School therapists. This SLP Organizer is perfect for creating a custom organizer for all of those dates and paperwork you need!

Pre-made cover

Various section pages for organization and a blank template for additional areas.

Year at a glance for 2 years, 12 months of monthly calendars, 3 types of To-Do List pages.

Meeting Notes, Schedule, Lesson Plans, Communication Log, Progress Chart, Therapy Notes, Caseload, & Student Attendance Log.

Year at a Glance IEP/Eval Dates, IEP at a Glance, IEP Meeting Notes, Monthly Eval Dates, CEU Course Log, CEU Notes, Blank templates

This product can be found here and is on sale for the remainder of July!

For more generic planning I have put together an SLP Planning Calendar:

Fun cover

Weekly Calendars with quotes

Monthly Calendars with quotes (June ’14-September ’15)

Dates to Remember Page

Notes Page

This product can be found here and is on sale for the remainder of July!

And, if you’re in need of the simple basics, a simple wall calendar may be more of your style. Here is an example of a wall calendar that I created:

This product can be found here and is on sale for the remainder of July!

The most important thing about becoming an organized SLP is to find a system that works for you. No two SLP organizational systems are the same. Please share your organizational tips below!

Easy-To-Say First Words: A Focus on Final Consonants {Book Review & Giveaway}

SublimeSpeech — Mon, 28 Apr 2014 05:00:13 +0000

It’s time for the very FIRST Book Review here at Sublime Speech! And, I’ve had the privilege of starting off with a bang with Easy-To-Say First Words: A Focus on Final Consonants! This simple, yet incredibly useful, book was sent to me from the author, Cara Tambellini Danielson who is an SLP! (I’m a little biased towards those amazing SLPs!)

This book was developed to help children acquire first words and articulate final consonants. It has unique and engaging illustrations that capture children’s attention. The target words in this book are easy-to-say because they are one-syllable words that contain early-developing consonants. Since the words in this book are common first words, this book can be read with any child who is learning to talk. There are three categories of final consonants included in the book: words that end with /p/, /t/, and /k/.

I love that there is a parent guide explaining how to help children with his/her speech and language skills included. This is easy to understand and can be used by parents … or SLPs!

I actually have used this with my K-5 students with severe Autism including a student who is currently nonverbal but working on those early sounds that are targeted in the book. We utilize the great drawings to expand on each illustration.

As you can see… it’s a very engaging book and my kiddos LOVED the illustrations and the predictable format of the book. This is perfect for EI/Early Childhood and students with severe Autism/other diagnoses who are minimally or nonverbal.

Overall, this is such a great little book! It is currently available from Amazon for $10.39.

Cara has offered to do an amazing giveaway for THREE copies of the book! Enter below and good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Take the TPT Plunge Linky Party!

SublimeSpeech — Tue, 08 Apr 2014 02:27:00 +0000

TpT and I have been great friends for a very long time. Back when I began this blog and was creating materials and hosting them through Google, etc. I thought that there had to be a better way to host the materials. When I ran across an article about the now-famous Deanna Jump and looked into this “Teachers pay Teachers thing”. It wasn’t long before some of my now-favorite SLP bloggers were populating their shops with amazing materials that have forever transformed my therapy and career!

However… I did hesitate to make my first purchases on TpT! When I finally did make the move from Freebie Downloader to Paid Materials Purchaser I found some of the best materials! My first purchase was from the amazing Nicole Allison at Allison’s Speech Peeps. Her “K-5 Common Core Standards Supporting IEP Goals for English Language Arts” has become a go-to for me in developing CCSS-aligned goals and has, to no surprise to me, become the #1 Best-Selling SLP material on TpT!

(I also LOVE her “C urriculum Based Language Assessments for Grades K-5 Aligned with Standards“!)

I also purchased an amazing social skills material from Jenna at Speech Room News. “Yellow Brick Road Social Skills” has been used with all of my elementary students with pragmatic language skills goals and has been a huge hit. It’s very motivating and thorough!

My new No-Print materials have saved me a TON of time this year. My favorite is my “No Print I ‘Mustache’ You a Question: Answering and Formulating Questions” material! These No-Print materials are perfect for use with Smart Boards, iPads, and computers with PDF readers and they act like apps! Plus… they are MUCH cheaper than apps with the same amount of material included!

Are you ready?!?

Check out the other great bloggers linking up over at The Dabbling Speechie for this great linky party! Enjoy!

What’s In Your Cart? {linky party}

SublimeSpeech — Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:00:00 +0000

It’s here again… Another HUGE Teachers pay Teachers sale extravaganza! Are you all set and ready to party with up to 28% off? My cart is full to the brim with some amazing products from my favorite SLP bloggers as well as some sweet clip art for new products!

First, here are a few of my products that you might like to add to your carts for the upcoming Spring/Summer:

No Print Activities! Save on time, paper, ink, and laminating by using these materials:

No Print I Mustache You a Question

No Print Articulation Trivia: /s/

No Print Articulation Trivia: /r/

No Print Grammar Full Pack

My latest pragmatic language activity is Alice in Social Wonderland… I love using it!

We love Uno-style games… this UNO-Style Speech & Language Games Mega Bundle comes with 4 sets of Uno-style activties (7 decks!).

Now… for what’s in MY cart for the big sale:

Speech Tube: A YouTube Speech & Language Companion Pack from Speech Room News!

Super Test Taking Vocabulary Bingo from Word to the Wise!

Interactive Visuals for Guessing Games, Describing, & Inferencing from Speechy Musings!

Speech Therapy Task Cards for Articulation from Busy Bee Speech!

Speech & Language HW for a Year from Super Power Speech!

Curriculum Based Language Assessments for Grades K-5 from Speech Peeps!

Don’t forget to use code TPT3 to get your full discount during the February 27-28 sale! Enjoy!

Mustache Dice Descriptions {Materials Monday}

SublimeSpeech — Mon, 24 Feb 2014 17:00:00 +0000

Describing is one of the most difficult tasks for my students with language impairments. They often give very nonspecific descriptions or are completely unable to complete the task. When we are first learning how to describe appropriately I give them hints and require only a few areas of description. Then, as they improve their skills, I require more of them. To add a little bit of fun to this task, we use a die to play this freebie that I have for you today: Mustache Dice Descriptions!

Several game-play versions are available with this therapy aid. Typically I give the student or group a vocabulary word. The students then take turns rolling a die and describing the vocabulary word using the area of description that they roll. As an advanced version, we roll a die and that is the only area that they do not need to give. We sometimes play for points (based on the number rolled for points) or other games listed in the product. This game goes very well with most game boards and general reinforcers as well!

I’ve uploaded this for free here. Also, hop over to the Facebook page for more updates on freebies like this!

Thanks for stopping by, enjoy!

SpeechPage {Materials Monday}

SublimeSpeech — Tue, 04 Feb 2014 07:00:00 +0000

I was given the opportunity to check out some materials from SpeechPage this school year. With my new caseload of children with severe Autism who are nonverbal and utilize AAC to students with articulation errors only, diverse materials are music to my ears. Here are the products that I previewed:

The first thing that I got to take a look at is the “Tic Tac Toe w/S, R, &/or L“. These boards have 126 different pictures in a seven SpeechPage set. They are in heavy-duty laminate which is great! They are also already hole-punched for easy storage in binders. We use wet-erase markers or tokens when we are playing. I also love that students with different sounds can play together. There is also a blank template included so you can work on other sounds, vocabulary words, etc. This set retails for $16.95!

I also had the opportunity to use the “Intro to AAC Requesting Puzzle Activity“. Each set (they have several available) has four request for puzzle pieces SpeechPages. As you can see below, there is a light outline of the puzzle on the sheet with velcro on it. Students then request a brightly colored puzzle piece with velcro on the back in a few different ways. We began by touching/handing the square symbol/item picture to me to request the piece. Then we transferred the skill over to their device. It was a much easier transfer of skills than other methods we had tried. Also, the puzzles are motivating for students and they enjoyed the activity. A therapy suggestion sheet is also included. Each set retails for $26.98 (on sale at the time of this post for $21.58).

Finally, I have had the opportunity to trial “AAC Ask for 2-Step Outcomes” SpeechPages. These are designed to allow the client to expressively communicate two specific requests to gain a desired outcome. We utilized the bubbles and ball sets with one of my clients on multiple occasions. They were able to tell me to dip the wand and blow or lift the ball and throw it. We were then able to transfer this skill/vocabulary to their device and add to it as they could use other steps. It has twelve different activities with 2 images each. It also comes with a therapy suggestion sheet included. This set retails for $21.99 (on sale at the time of this post for $19.99).

SpeechPages offer many other items that you can find on their site. They have picture AAC & Autism sets, Articulation sets, Therapy Games & Motivators, Language sets, Life Skills, and binder bundles. There are definitely some neat and practical sets available through SpeechPage. We have utilized the sets above on several occasions this school year. I am most impressed by their ready-made materials for AAC/Autism which is the most difficult thing for me to find for my clients. Check it out!Disclosure: SpeechPage provided copies of these materials for review. No other compensation was provided and all opinions are that of the author.

Holiday Artic Word Practice Freebie!

SublimeSpeech — Mon, 02 Dec 2013 18:21:00 +0000

With only a few weeks to go in the semester I’ve decided to get a little more festive! Here is an articulation practice game that can be used with ANY sound that you are addressing so it is great for groups!

Simply print the cards (in color or black and white), shuffle, and place on the table. The child draws a card and states if the word they see has their sound(s) in it. If so, they say the word again or create a phrase/sentence for the word. Play continues and the child with the most cards is the winner.

Grab it HERE! Enjoy!

What’s In Your Cart? Cyber Monday/Tuesday Linky Party!

SublimeSpeech — Sat, 30 Nov 2013 18:45:00 +0000

I hope you had a fantastic Thanksgiving with your families and are ready to tackle the rest of 2013 in style! On Monday we will have one of the most fantastic times of the year… Cyber Monday & Tuesday!

TpT always gives out a happy code that, when combined with seller discounts, gives you a 28% off discount on TpT materials! You probably know how amazing some of the SLP sellers are and I have a wish list full of items ready to purchase. I wanted to share a few of my faves with you!

First, here are some products from my store that I would purchase if I hadn’t created them

(Click on the photos to learn more!)

Now, on to some of my wish list items from some of my favorite SLP bloggers!

Winter Themed Speech & Language Packet from Speechy Musings

No Print Social Language Pack from Speech Peeps

Winter and Holiday Inferencing from Speech Bubble

Speech & Language Homework for a Year from Super Power Speech

Check out more great products that are in the carts of your favorite SLP bloggers by checking out Jenna’s Speech Room News “Linky Party”!

Enjoy the sale! I can’t wait to see which products you purchase and love!

Super Duper Publications Silly Sets: Minimal Pairs for Maximum Progress {Materials Monday}

SublimeSpeech — Tue, 17 Sep 2013 01:30:00 +0000

This week I have the awesome opportunity to share a fellow MSU Bear’s collaborative work on a great NEW Super Duper product for Minimal Pairs entitled “Silly Sets: Minimal Pairs for Maximum Progress“.

Kim Patterson, M.S., CCC-SLP and Rynette Kjesbo, M.S., CCC-SLP collaborated to author this great 100 card set of hilarious Silly Sets aimed at helping students develop their listening skills and produce correct speech patterns. They are great for students with phonological disorders as well as other goals such as creating a story based on the picture, articulation carry-over, inferring, and overall expressive language tasks.

The game includes 5 game ideas as well as information about the processes included:

Final Consonant Deletion

Cluster Reduction

Fronting

Stopping

This product is one of my favorite and is very easy to use! I typically had the student identify which sentence I said by pointing on the photo and then repeating for attempts at the sound they were working on. For students who could produce the sound, I typically had them say the sentence and I would point to what I heard. I also tried using it with my students with Autism. We talked about why the incorrect sentence was wrong and how to fix it or what they thought was silly about the sentence. We also worked on inferring as to why the characters were doing the action in the photo or what they would do next. There are several ways to use this product. Here are some Pros and Would-Improves:

Pro:

Colorful Illustrations
Great content
A sampling of most sounds/processes
Hilarious content
Motivating
Separate card with the words used
Small, easy to transport box for traveling SLPs

Would-Improve:

Wish the included intro card had the whole sentences instead of just the words listed to allow the stimulus card to be placed on the table when the clinician is reading it.
This is a stand-alone deck (much like other fun decks) but there are no matches so most games will need to be additional to the product.
I think this would make a GREAT App! (hint, hint!)

Overall… I love this set. It’s very motivating and can be used to target several things. It retails for $21.95 at the Super Duper Web Page. The authors have offered us the opportunity to give one away to you! Enter below using the rafflecopter and Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: Kim Patterson, author, provided a copy of this material to Sublime Speech for review. No other compensation was provided and all opinions are that of Sublime Speech.