Frenzied SLPs: Sharing Kindness {blog hop}

Welcome to our Frenzied SLPs Sharing Kindness Blog Hop! If you hop through all the blog posts, you'll find plenty of FREE kindness-themed downloads to use in therapy over the next couple weeks. Let's all work together to help instill a desire to treat others with respect and kindness in the little minds that we work with. The world can certainly use as much kindness as possible it seems. This stop in the blog hop includes a prepositions practice interactive booklet, which can be downloaded for free here. Enjoy!

Click here to go to the next stop at Gold Country SLP. When you make it all the way back here you will have 14 new freebies to use! Have fun :)

And remember: "Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." -- Dalai Lama

DIY Window Cling Craftivity

you can make your own window clings with two simple supplies

This week we have been having fun with a Valentine craft during our speech therapy sessions - DIY window clings! All you need for this easy craft are puffy paint and ziplock bags or plastic sheet protectors.

Step 1: This is not necessary, but to keep things under control I printed off heart patterns on a sheet of paper and inserted them into sheet protectors to act as a template for my students.

Step 2: Use the puffy paint to trace around the heart template.

Step 3: You can use multiple colors to make designs and patterns. Make sure the paint isn't too thin, or it will be difficult to peel off the plastic. Also, if the paint is too thick then it takes forever to dry.

Step 4: Let the paint dry overnight. Then you can peel the hearts off the plastic and decorate your windows!

This craft was easy peasy, and many of my students told me they really were excited to use the paint. Try it today!

**Thanks to my friend and colleague Kayla for the idea for this craftivity!

==========
Abby's husband will be out of town on Sunday. She will spend Valentine's Day with her kittens instead :)

Bouncy Balls Valentine Printables

free Valentine printables to make a bouncy ball treat for your speech students

Happy Valentine's Day from my speech room to yours! Each year I try to do something special for my speech therapy students for Valentine's Day. Last year, I was working with the preschool population and gave them bubble treats. This year, I have 3rd - 8th grade, so I was looking for something a little more on their level. By far, the most-picked item from my prize box has been bouncy balls, so that's what I went with!

The bouncy balls were purchased in the party supply section of Dollar Tree, and the 3" x 4" treat bags were purchased in the candy making aisle at Hobby Lobby. I created three different label options, printed on neon colored cardstock, and was all set! Simply fold the baggie over, and staple a label on top. Click HERE to download these labels for your own use.

I can't wait to give these to my students! Happy Valentine's Day!

==========
Forget the roses, Abby's favorite flowers are tulips {hint, hint dear husband}.

For the Love of Speech Blog Hop

click your way through the loop and download nearly 30 free Valentine activities

Welcome to Schoolhouse Talk! I'm so twitter-pated to be a part of this "LOVELY" blog hop hosted by Speech to the Core and The Speech Owl! If you're new to my blog - welcome! I am a school based speech language pathologist working with 3rd through 8th graders on a military base in North Dakota. I love reading, watching movies, checking Instagram, baking, crafting, and creating materials for my speech room. Be sure to follow along with me for therapy ideas, new materials, freebies, and all things SLP:

instagram

facebook

pinterest

twitter

shop

So how does this blog hop work? It's simple - you will click your way through 28 different blog posts or Facebook pages collecting Valentine's Day materials at each stop. By the time you've looped through all the posts, you'll have an entire Valentine's Day unit ready to go! SWEET! The blog hop path is a loop; so it doesn't matter where you start, you'll eventually find your way to all the blogs. Be sure to leave a little SLP love at each stop and say "thanks for the freebie". You should also consider becoming a follower of each blogger - these ladies work hard and are full of completely inspirational ideas!

Let's get to the fun! My freebie for you is "Capture the Whole Picture", which targets inferencing skills for 3rd-5th grade students. This packet includes inferencing task cards - students will read the paragraph and will have to infer in order to answer the question at the bottom. Then they can scan the QR code to see if they are right! There is also an anchor chart to use as a reminder of how we make inferences, plus other goodies too! Just click on the picture below to download. This packet will only be free February 1-4, 2015.

Now click on the picture below to be taken to the next LOVELY stop:

Enjoy!

Lucky in Love {linky party}

see what I'm loving currently

I'm linking up with Lucky to Be in First's Lucky in Love party! Click over to her blog post to read more and see what other bloggers are loving right now.

Here are a few things I am loving:

1) MY HUSBAND. He rocks my world. He always thinks of me first. He's considerate and caring. He keeps me laughing. He's the best, and he's alllll mine!

2) GOODREADS. I am reading with a vengeance in 2014! I set a goal to read 25 books this year, and am already 6 books in! Goodreads is an awesome way to keep track of what you're reading, rate books you've read, and find ones to read in the future. Right now I am reading Reconstructing Amelia. It's great :)

3) TRADER JOE'S DARK CHOCOLATE ALMONDS. So much yum. Can't stop eating these!

4) CALL THE MIDWIFE. This show is the best! Great characters and heartwarming episodes. I can't get enough! I just finished season 2 on Netflix and am longing for season 3!

5) DIY PROJECTS. I love making my own cards and other craftivities. This year I also DIY'd my own Valentines for my students. Crafterdays are my favorite kind of Saturdays!

==========
What are you loving right now? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Bugs and Kisses {and giveaway}

a preview of Bugs and Kisses preschool articulation packet

Hellloooooo February!! Is it just me, or was January a reallllly long month?? A few too many "polar vortexes" (vortices?) for one month. I mean, it was so cold one morning, the banana I was eating in the car steamed when I peeled it. I am not joking.

Now that February is here, we have a lot to look forward to: the Super Bowl, all things love, the end of winter in sight, Spring Break! Let's get the party started with some new speech materials!

My newest labor of love is a preschool articulation activity packet! This baby has a sweet Love Bug theme and targets the following phonemes: P, B, T, D, K, G, F, M, N, and it includes bonus practice pages for S. Here's a sample of what's inside:

1) CVC Words in Increasingly Complex Contexts: These cards help students move towards using their phonemes in more complex contexts. They can practice their target phonemes in single words, then phrases, then short sentences. Pictures are included to help our non-readers with the words. (4 cards per phoneme, 40 cards total)

2) Final Consonant Deletion Cards: A lot of my preschoolers are working on eliminating final consonant deletion. These broken hearts will help highlight the final consonant in their target words. Help your students say the first part of the word, then point out the final consonant on the other half of the broken heart. Pictures are included to help our non-readers with the words. (6 cards per phoneme, 60 cards total)

3) Roll, Say, and Cover Games: I love these roll and cover games. This one is meant to be a head-to-head competition! Each player recieves a different color marker or bingo chip. Roll a letter die and a number die (use the Make Dice app if you don't have access to a letter die!), then find the word coordinating with that dice combo. Students practice that word before covering it with their marker. The student with the most words covered in the end is the winner. Two pages are included for each phoneme - one with the phoneme in the initial position of words, and one in the final position of words.

4) 'SWEET' Token Boards: This is a reinforcement game to reward students as they complete their therapy practice. Collect your designated Love Bug and all the letters to spell 'SWEET' before anyone else and you will be the winner! Mats are included as visual aids to help students collect their cards.

5) Color by Number Pages: Roll the dice, practice a word paired with that number, then color the space according to the color by number key. This activity practices target phonemes in the initial position of words.

6) Love Bug Cootie Catcher: This is an open-ended fortune teller hand game which can be used to target any phoneme! Folding and Playing instructions are included.

7) Love Bug Dot Reinforcement: Another open-ended page with the cutest little love bug! He can be used to target any speech goal and is great to send home for home practice.

Bugs and Kisses is available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store and will be 50% off for the next 24 hours (until 9:30 am central time 02/02/14). I'm also going to give away a copy to a lucky reader! Enter the rafflecopter below for your chance to win :)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

==========
Abby is wearing her new stocking hat knit by her sister along with fleece-lined leggings to stay warm.

Valentine's Scratch-Off Cards

fun DIY scratch-off cards that are a nice change for therapy

These scratch-off Valentine cards were so much fun for my students! I found the idea here, and adapted it into an activity to use with my students. They lurved it! And I did too. These take a bit of extra prep work, but are so worth it. NOTE: This packet was updated on February 05, 2015 (details below).

And I already have a ton of the work done for you! This download includes practice sheets for initial and final F, V, K, G, L, S, S-Blends, SH, CH, L, L-Blends, R, R-Blends, Vocalic R, as well as a blank page for you to make your own. There are also color or black and white printing options!

Here's the fun part: they are scratch-off tickets!! Students use a coin to reveal the pictures underneath.

As you can see, the pink paint I used is still pretty see-through, even after 4 coats of paint. I would suggest sticking to metallic acrylic paint colors.

They had a blast! The best part is, they were able to bring their practice sheets home for home practice. For my students with language goals, we used the pictures to formulate sentences, make descriptions, or answer questions.

Try these today...they are too much fun :) P.S. Once the painting was done, I was able to assemble and do all the prep while watching the latest drama unfold on "...the most dramatic season ever" of The Bachelor, so the extra prep work isn't too daunting. ;)

You can find the target words here.

Leave a Comment: Have you ever won big on scratch-off tickets?
I have only had three scratch-off tickets in my life, and they were a graduation gift.
I won zero dollars.
  

You may also enjoy this post: St. Patrick's Day Open-Ended Game Board {FREEBIE}