Conversations Book DIY Take Home Booklet

So you will first need some paper. I used about 5 sheets of different colored construction paper. All you have to do is fold it in half and staple the pages. You can add more sheets of paper for more pages if you want. 

Then choose some colored markers. I recommend a adult writing in the book so it is easier to read but most of the ideas will be from the child. Now it is time to brain storm...

First I asked the child different ways we might say "hi" to someone.

We made a list and then added it to our book. 

Next we thought up things he liked to talk about. This was exciting for him and he was able to think of a list. You can give cues like, What movies do you like?, How about video games?, Do like books?, whats your favorite tv show?.... This made the book more about him and personalized what he likes.

Page 3 was all about getting to know others. We brainstormed questions we might others to get to know their name, likes, and etc. 

Page 4 was all about polite words because I felt it was important to add those in as a reference. We don't have them all down but remember you can always add more.

The next page focused on the partner in speech. Again we had to think outside the box and think of general ideas and subjects others might like to talk about. Since I know this child very well it was easier for me to distinguish when he chose a subject he preferred talking about and guide him on ideas about others. 

Page 6  We thought of a situation that might occur in his life. What might a teacher ask him at school? This was a bit tough for him and I had to provide extra guidance to help him think of ideas. You can think of multiple situations that might help a child in a social situation. This page is different from the other but it prepares him to think of response for the questions. He gets nervous when he doesn't know what to expect in different settings. 

Next is all about compliments. What are nice things we can say to others. I taught the child the importance of compliments and how they make others feel. I always remind my patients if you like hearing nice things so do the others around you. Always be kind. 

Page 8. This page is also different... It's all about things he doesn't like to talk about. Things that make him  feel uncomfortable or might be boring. I informed him that its ok to change to subject when these things come up as long as we do it politely and with good reason. 

Finally we ended the book with some friendly farewells. Its the perfect way to end the book of course. 

Remember you can add anything to the book. This is to help with social situations and the child should use this as a guide to help the child feel better prepared.  Thanks for reading! Please post your ideas for new pages. 

There's A Book For That

Before I go into my blog I’d like to thank you for reading my first two posts. I’ve been thinking about blogging my ideas and thoughts about speech for a while... it feels great to have people read them. My name is Bryanna and I’m a Speech Therapist Assistant in Texas.  I’ve been working as Speech Therapist for about 4 years now.  My ultimate goal in my blog is to share ideas with therapists, educators, and parents. 

I love books. I feel in the world of technology some books can be overlooked. Parents instead of wondering, If there's an app for that? I want to encourage  you to look for a book for that. Not that today's technology isn't great but I think books are better. Books allow you to engage a child using your voice. You get the satisfaction of teaching them how to point, turn pages, and learn new words.  . 


Parents if you are wondering what book is best for your child I found these great links http://www.reachoutandread.org/FileRepository/RORmilestones_English.pdf  http://www.reachoutandread.org/choosing-books-for-children/

Bellow are some of my go to books for my younger patients.

I love this caterpillar plush toy/cloth book.  It is easy to flip through and it is nice and soft. A great book companion for the board book. I like to allow children to use it to eat all the food.

Let's start counting and naming animals. This book  is very interactive because children can feel the book versus just touching the paper pages. I feel younger children sometimes get bored easily because they are not participating so this book allows them to put in some input.

With this book you should attempt to introduce new food. Showing children the food in the book that is yummy get's them to not only experience the food but understand that it really is YUMMY not YUCKY!

I love, love, love these. Children have to wait for the book to finish to get to play with the trains at the end. We get to learn the names and even make up our own stories. Thomas the train is usually a big hit with the little boys.  

Seek and find books are great way to read in different way. You can focus on finding and learning the names of animals or objects. The great thing about this book is that you can use a dry erase marker on it. 

Baby sign in visual can assist children to utilize sign language. I always say the word and sign to help but this book allows me to give them an additional visual. These signs are simplified for younger learners. 

Lets get bilingual! This book is great for children who are learning English and Spanish. You can ask children to point and name objects or ask them to find it. It's a great refresher course every time I use it. 

In this post I wanted to show you the different variety of books for children. How you can approach each book differently. Not all adults are used to reading out loud and can find the task daunting.  Well you can play ,you can eat, you draw, find, learn languages, touch, and understand. Make books exciting not only for a child but yourself. Books can be as fun or even more fun than apps. Try something different or maybe even create your own book. Go to the store and help your child choose a new book that you can both enjoy.

Website Recommendation!

Hello everyone! Thanks for visiting! I'm excited to share this site with you. Even most of my own colleagues have never heard of it. By the way I haven't properly introduced myself, my name is Bryanna. I am a speech therapist assistant (hence the name). I work in a clinical setting and I have some experience working and volunteering in a school setting. But that's enough about me... I will properly introduce myself in my next blog. First things first...Have you heard of www.edhelper.com? Check it out now! Wait! Let me give you the basics first.You can subscribe to the site for 19.99 (reasonable price) for the edhelper basic subscription and 39.98 (still pretty good) for edhelper everything subscription.  You can also order a school license for up to five teachers  but you will have to contact them for a price.  The site contains materials for grade levels K-12. Utilized correctly this site is wonderful and has endless amount of materials for speech therapists, occupational therapists, teachers, and parents. Plus if you explore the site you can find some free materials too! (YAY!! FREE!)                          

                                           (Clip Art Courtesy of edhelper.com)                                                                                                                   

Reasons Why I love it:

• ·      Materials for K-12 

• .      Free Materials 

• ·      Holiday Activities

• ·      Daily Themes

• ·      Monthly Theme

• ·      Free Worksheets

• ·      Customizable Worksheets 

• ·      Teacher Lesson Plans

• ·      Bulletins

• ·      Crosswords

• ·      Word Finds

• ·      Learning Centers

• ·      Teaching Ideas

• ·      Reading Passages

• ·      Activities For Most Subjects

• 
  

Teaching Body Parts

Hello Everyone!
 I wanted to share this cute book. This book teaches up to 6 body parts including: Belly, Nose, Hand, Foot, Eyes, and Ear. What I like about this specific book is that it really is interactive. Children love touching the squishy belly, and tickling the toes. The book also has a mirror so you can have children point to body parts on book and on themselves. I posted a link to Barnes and Noble but of course you can look up this book and find the best price. This is my first blog post! I hope to share and create more ideas, books, and other speech topics. 

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/listing/2671082216962?r=1&kpid=2671082216962&cm_mmc=GooglePLA-_-Book_5To14-_-Q000000633-_-2671082216962

Other Activities for learning Body parts

Other Activities for learning Body parts

1. Mr. (Mrs.)Potato Head [lets identify and find body parts then place them correctly on the potato]

2. Favorite doll, toy, action figure [Use toy to point to body parts or have child teach toy body parts]

3. Coloring book with favorite character [Give child direction on which body part to color. This can also be used to identify colors.

4. Singing time! http://youtu.be/eBVqcTEC3zQ I love this song but beware it will get stuck in your head. Head and shoulders knees and toes is also a good one but I like to spice it up. 

5. Self portrait. [ Have the child draw a picture of themselves. Instruct them to draw body parts.]

6. DYI make pictures with missing body parts and ask child to draw the missing part.