I’m constantly looking for new and fun ways to work on following directions; especially for my patients who have Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, which is best treated by varying activities and tasks. One of my favorite apps to use for any and all speech and language treatment is Toca Pet Doctor. This app isn’t one of the …
I love the part of Terminator 3 when Claire Danes is making as much noise as possible in the back of her vet rescue truck (where she’s been imprisoned by the newest Arnold Schwarzenegger robot from the future) as a robot-battery-turned-bomb explodes outside and Arnold yells at Claire, “RELAX!” as he looks intensely towards the …
With this Zones of Regulation tool the child either uses 2 pillows and hits them together or hits a pillow against a bed, chair, or sofa. This tool is great for the red zone, which I’ve found is particularly challenging for kids who have witnessed domestic violence. These kids often fear their own anger, but …
Toca Kitchen Monsters is another FREE app from Toca Boca. It’s another fun way to address following directions during a naturalistic/play-based activity. In this game you pull the left side of the screen over to get various foods and the right side of the screen to find ways to prepare the foods. You can use …
“Hi, I’m Amy and I’m a recovering perfectionist.” I really wish we had meetings for us recovering perfectionists! The daily battle to accept my imperfections and mistakes is often isolating and I’d love time and space to talk about it with the many who can relate. I know some would be my fellow SLPs. SLP …
I think this is my patients’ favorite game! Although many Toca Boca games are free, this one costs $3.99. I usually use it for social inferencing (identifying each pets’ feelings and the cause of those feelings), but I use it for irregular past-tense verbs, too. As we play the game I’ll ask the kids questions …
This is honestly the tool I use most often. These cushions are like magic for children who have trouble sitting still like those who have ADHD or are just more active. Each cushion has 2 sides: on is bumpy and one is smooth. They usually come with a pump to inflate them and I like …
“Tune In” time (instead of “time out”) is a part of the evidence-based discipline strategies from No-Drama Discipline by Dr. Daniel J. Siegel (professor of psychiatry) and Dr. Tina Payne Bryson (pediatric psychotherapist). I’ve combined this idea with the Zones of Regulation by giving my patients a place to calm down while sorting through their …
I love the Zones of Regulation! The curriculum has taught me so much about regulation and the tools have helped so many of my patients engage in speech and language treatment! I have colleagues who hate the Zones of Regulation because it gets confusing for kids whose teachers use the color-coded behavior charts. to be …
When I was helping parents of children who have Autism Spectrum Disorder around the state I often made these envelope visual schedules and first-then schedules. They’re not too big to carry around and you can fit the tokens, icons, and/or a marker into the envelope. Once I was working in the schools I found them …
