Looks Like Spring!

We love spring! Not only is this the time of year that you can find Cadbury Mini Eggs on store shelves, but it is also when you start seeing florals and pretty pastel colors popping up everywhere.  In fact, while perusing the aisles of Michael's craft store, we spotted these cute spring flowers that we thought would make fantastic magnets.  So, we picked up more .5 inch magnet buttons, a pack of sparkly flowers, and a pack of colorful clothespins and...voila! In our pastel-candy-coated-chocolate-egg-haze we created a set of spring magnets to spruce up our board.

The magnets, flowers, and clothespins were relatively inexpensive, plus we had a 40% off coupon.  If you have a Michael's nearby and don't receive Michael's coupons in the mail, there is an app with an assortment of coupons.  The app, Retail Me Not,  typically has a few coupons at a time to use within the store or online.   Grab your coupons and head on over to the scrapbooking section of your local Michael's or other craft store and pick-up some spring decor.  

Happy Spring!!

Exploring Ireland

In need of a last minute activity that promotes vocabulary and appeases those enjoying the fun of St. Patrick's Day?  How about learning about the Emerald Isle!   

Time for Kids has a great page with facts about Ireland which contains curriculum-relevant vocabulary such as population, capital, currency, climate, agriculture, and industries.  You can find the page here at http://www.timeforkids.com/destination/ireland.  This sheet would make for a great discussion regarding vocabulary and life on the Emerald Isle.  Additionally, you can have your students compare and contrast many of the items listed above with facts about the United States using a graphic organizer such as this.

For a little extra fun, introduce a few common Irish expressions.  Have the students match each expression to its meaning by using the context of the sentence.  

Enjoy!

The Month in Manners

It's finally here! That busy time of year that commands so much to be done in such a short amount of time. The students are getting restless for winter vacation, the semester is coming to an end, and you have a million and one things to do. During this hectic time it is best to simplify. We like to select a lesson topic and use it for the month.  At this time of year, we find the topic of manners to be applicable and appropriate for many of our students.

Here are a few ideas we like to focus on:

• Conversational rules/manners involving interrupting, appropriate dinner table-friendly topics, and body language and posture
• Table manners involving eating and drinking...this is a big one: no double dipping! 
• Using pleasantries such as, please, thank you, you're welcome, excuse me, etc.
• Acceptable behavior while in your own home vs. being a guest at someone else's home

Fun ways to teach and practice manners can include:

• An interactive trivia game through PowerPoint 
• Analyzing movie clips*
• Have a "feast" of healthy snacks at a table which require passing and serving of food.  Students must ask for items and interact with those around them.
• Make a collage of foods, people, and words/topics cut from magazines

* When using movie clips, be sure to screen all clips prior to showing and do make sure the clips are appropriate for your age group. Here are a few clips we enjoy for adolescents:
  - opening dinner scene from Step Brothers (be sure to edit this clip!)
  - pizza/dinner scene from Home Alone
  - many Adam Sandler films
  - there are also countless video clips available on Youtube involving the topic of manners

Enjoy!

Fancy-Shmancy Wall Decor

A new school year has begun!  It seems like each year I return to my office, I look for new ways to get organized and make my place of labor a little more inviting.  During the year, I constantly scour the aisles of Target looking for something fun, cute, and practical to hang on the plain walls of my office.  Maybe I'm too picky, but it's rare I find something I want to look at every day for years to come.  

Luckily, there are stationary stores that sell fancy-shmancy sheets of hand-made, beautiful paper!  Near us, we have a Paper Source where you can buy individual sheets of paper in more colors and prints than imaginable.  Let these words just flow through you...chevron, damask, marble, peacock!  Are these just the finest sounding sheets of paper you have ever heard?!  Can you imagine creating wall art with a sheet of mustache paper or a vintage-inspired sheet of London paper?  Too cute!  

Get into a stationary store, invest $3-8 in a sheet of fancy-shmancy paper, pop it into a large frame, and voila! 

You can create hanging wall art that is chic and one-of-a-kind!  Get a water-based Sharpie pen to double your art as a dry erase board.  

Happy new school year!

Therapy Straight off the Hook

 Have you noticed that this time of year our students start falling into a mid-year rut?  The semester is in full swing, spring break is still a week away, and the interests of the students on our caseload are slowly dissipating.  If you can relate, it may just be time to spice up therapy.  And what better way to do that than by adding a little...flare.  Enter...

In all seriousness, slang and figurative language is an important piece of language use, as it is embedded within music, movies, TV shows, etc.  Even many animated films (think Ice Age) contain figurative language.  Many individuals with language impairments struggle to interpret such language.  Understanding and using slang is equally important for students with social cognitive deficits who have difficulty interacting with their peers and making friends.

So, what can we do with these silly cards you ask?  Well, one idea is to use a card or two as a warm-up activity to gain attention, elicit discussion, and add some fun to the therapy session.  Although some of the slang included in these cards is quite common, you'd be surprised how many students are not familiar with the terminology or expressions.  And the best part is, not only is the slang age-appropriate (used by much of their peer group), it is also hilarious (thanks to the fine illustrations).

Here are a few "fly" ideas for incorporating the cards into therapy:
 - use the context to determine the meaning of the word or phrase
 - locating/discussing part of speech, synonyms, multiple definitions
 - formal vs. informal language...how would you say this to a more mature audience (e.g.,   
    grandmother)
 - create a "slang-of-the-week" board as a conversational piece
 - slang vocabulary worksheet

You can find these cards on KnockKnockStuff.com or even Amazon.com.  They are around $10 and well worth it, based on the hilarity of these cards alone.

Be sure to flip through the card deck and separate any cards that may not be appropriate for your students before using, and enjoy!

I Heart Valentine's Magnets!

Nothing says February like candy hearts, so why not use them to express your love on your bulletin board or fridge?!  Just hot glue candy hearts to small magnets...I got the magnets at Michaels this time.  You can coat them with Mod Podge to give them a polished look, or leave them raw!!  Also, got some fun ribbon to tie into bows and glued them to magnets too. 

Holiday Eye Candy

'Tis the season to decorate your fridge, speech room, or classroom with festive decor!  Also, these peppermint magnets make a great gift for your favorite teacher, therapist, or neighbor!  Inexpensive and takes less than 5 minutes to make a jarful!

Start with some self-adhesive magnets from Wal-Mart...inexpensive at about $2 dollars for about 20 magnets...and a package of peppermint candies from the candy aisle...  remove the sticky paper, stuck them to the candies, and done!     

Great thing about this gift is its way more practical AND more diet friendly than just a jar of candy!  Throw them in a mason jar with a ribbon and you have given someone some "fridge eye candy".

Happy Holidays and Merry Magnets!