Vocabulary Development – In Spontaneous Speech

Fun With Angry Turkeys

4 Nov

November 4, 2022 Cindy 0

I am bringing “Angry Turkeys” to the top once again. It is a game that can be adjusted for the needs of different groups of speech students. For my younger students it was a great way to review prepositions. For my older students it was just a good reinforcement activity with a November theme.

This toss game was originally based on the old app Angry Birds. I renamed it Angry Turkeys and introduced it in November. Students may not be as familiar with the app these days but that doesn’t really matter. Basically the app had pigs building stacked structures. The birds became objects to toss at them and break down the buildings when they hit.

I made turkey bean bags from scrap fabric I had on hand. The only other things you need are paper rolls and coffee can lids. I covered the paper rolls to give them color. I made the green pigs from paper rolls cut in half. I printed out clip art of a pig and taped it to the paper roll to represent the pigs.

The directions for the Turkey Bean bags are here.

I started the game by making towers with the paper rolls and lids. I then gave students the pigs and told them where to place them or they told other students where to place them. This gave them practice following instructions and using prepositions.

I then handed out the turkey bean bags. They all tossed one turkey on the count of 3 and hit the towers down. They always requested to do it again. I love activities that are self reinforcing and encourage review of vocabulary.

Fall Bulletin Board

1 Oct

October 1, 2022 Cindy 0

I used this cute owl back in 2011 with my speech therapy students. I had searched for something that I could use for speech therapy and looked appealing for a Fall bulletin board. Here it is Fall 2022 and I decided to bring the post back to the top for those of you looking for therapy ideas.

I found an owl pattern that was simple to make, and used multiple shape and size vocabulary. It would give an opportunity for sequencing of directions and I could add preposition symbols to the finished project to reinforce those concepts. I used a die press to cut out most of the shape pieces for the owls. I printed out preposition icon symbols to put on the owls belly.

The Owl pattern is found on this page http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mshapesowl.htm

I made a tree as my background on the bulletin board. By twisting brown paper to make limbs and then then making them come together for the trunk. I then added a half moon behind and a rock below the tree. This allowed opportunity for my students to place the owls according to the preposition sign they had on their owl. They could place them in front, behind, beside, below, between, and next to an object or the tree.

I gave it a title of “Who is Here?” Here is a picture to give you an idea.

Word Association Tasks for Teaching Vocabulary

7 Jul

July 7, 2022 Cindy 0

It’s time to talk about strategies for teaching vocabulary again. Vocabulary is the cornerstone for most of what is taught in our schools and is important at every level. Studies have shown that a good vocabulary is a good indicator of success in the classroom.

Students acquire vocabulary best if they are taught through activities that allow them to think about the words rather than just memorize the definitions. Figuring out the similarities and differences in word meanings is a good way to study and retain the information.

My word association task cards are based on this principal. I made this post to tell you about additional features that are now included. If you have purchased the task cards in the past, you now have additional access to EASEL on Teachers Pay Teachers. This gives you two instructional methods. You have the option of two sided task cards that can be printed out and used as flash cards or a digital activity. The digital activity is a multiple choice activity which gives immediate feed back.

The already prepared digital activities are available with individual sets and as part of the bundle. Below are screen shots of the Animal and Household sets to give you an idea. All 3 sets are similar.

If you have purchased these in the past, go check out the new features. If it looks interesting to you, follow the link to see the Preview. You save by purchasing the bundle.

One Cut Book on Bean Growth Cycle

1 Mar

March 1, 2022 Cindy 0

One Cut Book Bean Growth Cycle — Growth Cycle of Beans

The days are getting longer, it is getting warmer, and thoughts of planting a garden come to mind. It is a good time for students to plant seeds and watch them grow. I made a one cut book to help show the sequence and introduce the vocabulary for the activity.

The project may look familiar to you because the book uses the same template as a previous one on the development of a butterfly. It folds up the same and only needs the printed booklet and a pair of scissors.

To complete the activity, students plant seeds in a plastic bag or cup of dirt and watch their mini gardens grow. They can observe seeds as they sprout and grow a stem, roots and leaves. They can use their booklets to label the parts. Plant extra seeds so you can uncover seeds along the way to see their progress. Make sure you plant a few extras for students in case they get a bean that doesn’t sprout in their container. We don’t want any disappointed students.

Making the plant booklet would be a good activity to do before students start planting. I am providing a free down load for the booklet. You can print out what you need for your students. Please refer people back to this site for the download and do not use for commercial purposes. Use it with your students when planting those bean seeds. They can then follow their plants progress. The free download contains the book and complete directions as pictured below. It only requires folding and one scissors cut. You can get the free download by clicking on the yellow star below.

Happy Planting!

free down load — One Cut Book/ Plant from a Seed

Tier II Vocabulary Task Card Challenge 3

23 Nov

November 23, 2021 Cindy 0

Could you use some task cards to help students over the summer break? Take a look at my sets of Vocabulary Task Cards for students to quickly review vocabulary. Challenge 3 is written using words off 7th and 8th grade vocabulary lists. If you have used the Challenge 1 and 2 cards using lower level vocabulary, these are similar. Words are presented in a short paragraphs and students complete word meaning and comprehension tasks after reading them. I have included a free sample in this post for you to try out. Scroll down to find the free download.

The cards are flexible for a variety of teaching situations and student ability levels. I always liked materials that I could tweak for different learning styles and students don’t appear to be getting something completely different from their peers. I think the instruction sheet below, included in the download, best explains the different options available.

The full set of task cards are on Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT). You can assign them to individual students digitally on EASEL platform. This allows for paperless teaching if you wish. You can also download and print them out on cardstock. They can then be used with individual students for home work or in learning centers. 126 words are covered in 20 cards/slides. A variation of the 20 cards using the same words means there are 40 cards/slides total. The free sample provides the word list used.

If these cards work for you and your students, you can purchase the whole set at my store “The Spontaneous Speech Spot”. Click below for a direct link to the full set.