USING TOKENS IN SPEECH THERAPY

You know how you walk down the aisle of a store and think to yourself, 'I could use that in my speech therapy room'? Well, that's how I started using tokens in my therapy room. Nearly two decades ago, I was walking through an SLPs home away from home, a dollar store. I spotted sleeves of plastic poker chips and they somehow jumped into my cart.

At the time, I was working with a preschool and early intervention caseload. I grabbed some modge podge and my trusty Boardmaker to add visuals. They worked beautifully to keep the kids engaged with a learning tool that they perceived as a toy.

Many years later, I've updated the graphics and vocabulary that I use but the concept remains the same. I've used poker chips I've found at the thrift store, glass gems from the dollar store, wooden discs from Amazon, and plastic bottle caps. Now, to ease the process, I print my images on full sheet label paper and simply stick them on. Works like a charm.

Here are some of the ways that I have used Articulation Tokens:

• Use tokens in sensory Boxes
• Hide & Seek
• Incorporate with spatial concepts
• Use in play based therapy as manipulatives with toys (ex. tokens ride on pirate ship)
• Create a game board
• Feed a puppet
• Stack
• Deposit into piggy bank
• Fill token companion letter
• Use in silly fill-in-the-blank stories
• Place on pictures within a storybook
• Use in a speech relay race
• Balance on a spatula and deposit in a bucket across the room
• Hot potato (say target sound when passed to you)
• Use in a lending library for RtI (paired with data sheets)
• Use printable shrink paper, cut out and place in the oven to create your tokens
• Use black & white stickers on crafts
• Cut a row of token strips to form into bracelet
• Print as smash mats
• Print black & white pages of the labels to use with paint dab markers

If you are interested in introducing Articulation Tokens to your speech therapy sessions, I've done some of the legwork for you. This Articulation Tokens Bundle contains token templates, data sheets, storage labels and token companion letters. I hope that they bring as much joy and engagement to your sessions as they have to mine! 

From Little Seeds Grow Mighty Trees

From little seeds grow mighty trees.

What we do today impacts what our students do tomorrow. No pressure, right?

When we work together with students and families, our impact increases. You can read more about the how and why I have this tree in my classroom here. In the meantime, let's get to how I made it, shall we?

Being the frugal resourceful SLP that I am, I was determined to make this project happen with minimal cost. Initially I thought I would make it using an artificial tree. Then I spotted the price on them-- yikes!

Insert Plan B.

The first thing I did was take my boys back to a wooded area behind my house to scope out our "tree". We hunted around until we found the perfect branch. However, our luck didn't end there. We also found an abandoned wooden toolbox. The perfect base for our project!! We checked with our neighbor whose son had abandoned the toolbox he had created in boy scouts and got the green light to use it. Awesome!

A little white spray paint and our perfect branch was ready to go!

I then busted out my trusty Cricut machine to add vinyl lettering to the toolbox. Vinyl and I are BFFs you know...

As in any DIY project, safety comes first so my son was well protected with his hockey helmet as he drilled into the toolbox. He loved every second of it.

Now, onto the mason jars. My daughter helped me design mason jars that we could adorn the tree with, highlighting my students' strengths from their perspective. We used floral wire to create a hanger for various sized mason jars. 

I just love how the final project turned out.  My students love showcasing their strengths and reading the positive messages that their parents leave them on the attached ribbons! You can read more about how they are used in my speech room here. You can download the mason jars here.

Student and Family Relationships Come First

Relationships come first. Establishing strong, authentic relationships with my students and families increases the value that they place on improving their communication skills. This in turn, positively affects their progress. 

Working in an urban, low SES school presents its unique challenges with parents/guardians who may not have the same knowledge on how to help their child communicate as we do as SLPs. Acknowledging the parent’s role and establishing a positive partnership with families cultivates that dialogue. 

Providing personal touches as small as offering a water bottle at meetings, making positive phone calls or sending notes home go a long way. When I meet with parents, they write a message to their child on the back of a ribbon. 

We hang it on a tree branch displayed in my room to illustrate our home-school connection. The students then write their favorite part about themselves on a mason jar tag that we attach to the ribbon. 
(You can find the mason jar tags here).

After reading his father’s message, this student filled out his mason jar with such a sweet response. We tackle what is hard for our students but encouraging words help them know that we are rooting for them every step of the way. 

You don't need to spend a small fortune to create the tree that I described above. Learn how I made mine for less than $5 here.

Spread the Love with Your Bulletin Board

When designing the bulletin board in my classroom, I wanted to use photographs in an inspirational way for my students. My district has an initiative to demonstrate pride for the city that it is in so the two came together perfectly with this one.

I loved the idea of creating a bulletin board that would inspire my students to think of speech when they are outside of my speech room. Using visuals on my bulletin board helps my students do just that. When they are out and about around the school or community, they make connections between what is in our speech room and the outside world. The more they reference our speech room outside of their speech time, the more they may think about what we actually do in there.

I often get asked where I purchased the wooden bulletin board. It is actually just Fadeless Designs Weathered Wood bulletin board paper that I purchased from Amazon. I have since spotted it at Michaels, Hobby Lobby and Joann's Fabrics as well for less than $10. Remember to bring along your coupons or use a coupon app to save even more!

The ruler clip boards were from the Target's Bullseye Playground. I had the burlap ribbon border, twin and clothes pins on hand. I cut out the letters using my Cricut Machine.

HOW TO CREATE YOUR OWN PHOTOS:

First, I took some photos of student hands making a heart above a neon green piece of poster board. The poster board served as a green screen. I quickly learned that this was a lesson in following directions and fine motor challenge for a few of my friends. 

Next, I put out an all call for photos around town. I also took a few of my own on our school campus. The power of teamwork never ceases to amaze me. Our night custodian sent me so many gorgeous photos. I also received a couple from a fellow SLP Blogger, Rock Chalk Speech Talk from when she had lived locally for graduate school. It was awesome!

Using the Green Screen app by Do Ink, I placed the photos that I had acquired as overlays on the heart photos. The beauty of this is that you can do so right from your iPad or iPhone.

To do so, layer the scenic photo on the bottom layer. Then add the hand photo to the middle layer. The image will look as if the hand is in front of the scenic photo. To have the image on the hand, select the rainbow circle on the bottom (this determines which color is washed out depending on the color of your green screen). Typically, I select a bright green. However, this time tap on the hand portion and the photo will appear within the hand. To adjust the opacity, adjust the sensitivity bar.

Once you have saved the image, you can open the image in a photo editing app and convert it to Black and White. I used the app Color Story; however you can also do so by simply editing the photo with your device's built in editing features. I then printed the photos on card stock using my regular printer.

I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial. What bulletin board inspiration tips do you have? I'd love to know. Let me know in the comments below. 

SLP Toolbox Storage

I see you working your tail off for your students/clients. I see you supporting your colleagues, sharing ideas and implementing evidence based practice. I see you when you are elbow deep in paperwork and Medicaid billing, wondering when/if it will ever end. I am right there with you. 

I created these toolbox labels to go with the rustic decor of my Fixer Upper Style speech room. As a simple way for me to say THANK YOU for following along, I am sharing them with my newsletter subscribers for free! Not a subscriber, no worries! You can subscribe here.

I know how happy it makes me to have my room set up in the beginning of the year, organized and ready to bring on the new school year. It won't be perfect by any means, but that time I put in at the beginning of the year sets the stage for my year. I hope that this SLP Toolbox will help ease your load, even if just a bit. At the very least, it will make your organizational heart happy to look at as you use it throughout the year.

What tips, tricks or advice do you have for starting the year? I'd love to hear them! Comment below with what works for you.

P.S. If you haven't heard, I am currently moving on up in the world to a larger speech room. I am sharing the journey of my Fixer Upper style makeover with all of you. A picture says a thousand words, so if you would like to check out what I've done so far (bloopers and all), hop on over to SLPTalk on Instagram or Facebook. Before you go though, don't forget about your FREE SLP TOOLBOX DOWNLOAD!

Functional Storage in My Speech Room

I made a bit more progress on my speech room makeover today by repurposing a display for eyeglasses. I love that it rotates and provides functional decor for my room!

I switched out the existing display with white pegboard that I purchased at Home Depot. They cut it to the exact size that I needed. To go along with my rustic style, I used plastic flower pots from Home Depot that I glued twine onto. They were the perfect size for my needs. I attached chalkboard clothespins found at Michaels to label each flowerpot. That certainly wasn't necessary but having them match the style of my speech room just made me happy. 

Prior to my current display, I have used book bins or the top drawer of a rolling storage cart to store Articulation and Language Sticks. Their durability and having multiple targets on each paint stirrer make them an easy resource for me to grab and go in a pinch. 

Articulation Sticks are honestly a staple in my speech room. I love having over 1,000 stimulus words at my fingertips to target articulation while also introducing a variety of vocabulary concepts with picture supports. Working with a high risk, low socioeconomic and high ELL population, it is important that I maximize our activities to close that gap. 

Language sticks allow me to further differentiate student needs within mixed groups. Currently displayed are Category Sticks and Describing Sticks.  I am updating my Grammar Sticks so I can share them with you and add an updated version to my collection. If you are interested in learning more about how I use the sticks, you can check out the links below.

What tips do you have for organizing materials using functional decor in your classroom? I would love to hear!

Fun & Functional Speech Room Decor: SLP Books

These books were one of the first decorations I put out in my new speech room. Not only do I love the way these SLP books look, I love their function too! I am very intentional about the decor in my room and the meaning that each holds. When I spotted these at Michaels, I just knew they were perfect for what I had in mind!

S is for SPEECH. The "S" will house favorite moments as students graduate from SPEECH. I only wish I had started this 17 years ago! When students graduate speech, I will have them write what their favorite memory was in speech and I will write something I love about them. Relationships are huge and anytime I can take the opportunity to share a meaningful connection, I am all in.

L is for LAUGHS. I will write the LAUGHS that I always want to remember in "L". Our job is full of them! What better book to open when you are having a tough day or need to lighten up Medicaid billing? I keep a little "He Said, She said" journal of funny moments with my own kids that we love to look through together. Our "He Said, She Said" journal along with our Thankful Journal are my favorite books in the house.

 P is for PATH, as in the path you take in life. The "P" will include stand out moments with students, families, and colleagues that remind me why I am on this PATH. You know, the ones that affirm that you were right where you were meant to be. 

I am busy working on my "Fixer Upper" style speech room but will be sure to post the reveal when I am finished! In the meantime, if you love a good DIY project on a budget, head over to Instagram for some behind the scenes action.

Quick DIY Tip & Update

Happy Spring everyone! I just wanted to pop in to let you know about a quick DIY tip I blogged about over on Conversations from the Classroom using what you may already have! Hope on over to see what I crafted up using Easter egg dye and clothespins that I picked up from my local dollar store.

Wow, it has been a while since I have hopped on here. If you have been wondering what I have been up to, here is a quick glimpse into some of the happenings in my therapy room (and beyond). 

We have been trying out these awesome Pop Phones. They are a great companion to the app Seesaw (a digital learning portfolio that I use with my students).

Speaking of going digital, I used the No Prep version of my Cup Stacking paired with these rubber bunnies which was a huge crowd pleaser. 

While we are on the subject of Target, my home away from home, look at these fun mouth molds I found in the gag gift section! They were perfect to make dough molds of our mouths and compare/contrast target sounds.

My graduate intern and I got our head in the game with the annual Staff vs. Students basketball game.  We made it through the game with no injuries and our pride intact as the staff maintained our undefeated record. Phew!

Last, but certainly not least, I was privileged to attend a balloon release to celebrate a special little Hall & Oates fan's birthday and educate others on lissencephaly. 

I hope that you have enjoyed a great month too! My students continue to be unstoppable and inspire me each and every day. Leave a comment below or email me to let me know what you have going on in your corner of the speech world. I'd love to hear from you!

3 Simple Dollar Store Hacks

Hi all! Raise your hand if you love the dollar store. My hand is waving in the air in a "pick me, pick me!" fashion.  I visited the dollar store the other day and thought I would let my closest peeps in on a few ways that these hack will make my life a little easier this week.



1. Limit the Hand Sanitizer to a small pump, rather than a bath. I use hand sanitizer in my therapy room when my students use the sensory bin to cut down on little germs hands spreading their love in the bin. I also use it if a student handles our hamster class pet. I picked up this hand sanitizer at the dollar store and added a Germ Blaster label. A simple hack to cut down on students pumping copious amounts onto their hands, which then overflows onto your floor is to wrap a rubber band around the neck of the pump. Now, students will get a small, appropriate amount to use.

2. Attach a battery powered light switch purchased from the dollar store to the poster below to let those in the hallway know that you are testing or use to let others know not to disturb your small group. Download the posters here for free or click the image below.

3. Purchase small ramekin containers (available in packs of 10) to keep dice under control during game or independent work activities. Stop the insanity of dice flying everywhere by placing the die inside the clear ramekin container for a student to shake to roll. It is a simple trick that will surely save your sanity.

What dollar store hacks have you tried lately? Let me know in the comments below or shoot me an email. I would love to hear from you!

DIY Scratch Off Tickets

Raise your hand if you love a scratch off card! I mean really, who can resist? There is something so exciting about scratching them off, isn't there? Here is an easy way to bring that excitement (minus the gambling of course) into your therapy room or classroom!

All you need is acrylic paint (preferably metallic to give it the authentic scratch off feel), dish soap and clear contact paper.

Directions:
Mix 2 parts acrylic paint to 1 part dish soap. Stir.
Paint a coat of the mixture on the contact paper.
Let Dry.
Repeat 2 more times until you have 3 coats of paint.

Next, simply cut your new scratch off stickers to size to fit over the area that you need them for and stick them on the laminated surface. Once the scratch off is used, you can either peel off the contact paper or place another scratch off sticker on top of it to reuse it again.

I love to use mine on Valentines each year. The Valentines have three scratch off squares on each card. Two of the squares have a cute saying and the third square has a number (either 1, 2, or 3). After earning their cards, the students get to select a Valentine prize from the drawer associated with the number on their scratch-off card. I do not use a prize box in my room, so  this is an extra special treat that they look forward to.

There are many ways you can use scratch off tickets in your therapy room or classroom. As long as a task card is laminated, you can easily cut the scratch off sticker to size and add it to:

• cover up answer choices on a task card
• cover choices on a Bingo Board
• tangible reward cards such as Lunch with the SLP/teacher, Free Homework Pass, etc.
• Articulation Word Lists
• Verb Tense
• Context Clues- What word would fit in the sentence?

You can find the Open Ended Valentine Templates as well as the drawer labels that I made here or by clicking on the image below.

If you like this activity, you may also like this Speech Hearts Base Ten: Articulation Challenge. You could actually use the scratch off stickers on these too!