The First Thanksgiving

Goals I Targeted:
- WH Questions
- Main Idea
- Details from text
- Vocabulary Identification
- Vocabulary Associations
- Categories
- Describing
- Sequencing

For the week before Thanksgiving I selected an easy book about the 1st Thanksgiving that can be printed online for free. After reading the book once, I went back and asked each student questions as we went.

After the book, we played a matching game with the Thanksgiving vocab used in the book. This game allowed for describing the vocab, making associations between words, and other goals. Plus, any amount of competition from a game really gets the students motivated to work.

Lisa

Drink of the Day: Since I have to have energy to pack and get on an airplane today, black coffee is my drink of choice!

How I stay organized

Speech-language pathologists are notoriously Type-A, and super organized. Well, many are. For me it took a bit of trial and error to figure out the system that works for me. I know we all have different ways of organization, but I want to share mine incase it helps you figure out your own system. Mine is not very sophisticated, but I think its the best I can do on my budget.

For School-Work: Each semester I begin a new white binder. I use dividers to separate classes, and hole punch all my papers. I still enjoy having paper copies of everything, so I can't help much if you want to do everything electronically. (Sorry!) Once I fill up the binder during the semester I begin to put older notes/papers into a separate one. At the end of the semester I combine the binder and separate the classes into the different binders.

For the cover I use a Word Template then change it for what I need. I usually put a picture of my school's mascot and then list the classes for that semester. Had I not already begun my system of labeling I would use cuter cover pages that can be found online. (I still may change my mind and change out my system)

For Clinic/Practicum: I use black binders to keep them separate from my school binders. Once again I use dividers, but to separate between clients not classes. To keep and personal client information protected I color code everything instead of using names. Since I have begun my practicum I divide between groups not individual clients.

For each group I print sheets with goals. The goals are then color coded to find any goals in a group that may be related. This makes it easier to plan. If you know you are working on antonyms you may see other related goals that would be easier to target simultaneously. I plan my sessions weekly, and at the end of the week I put finished worksheets and data sheets in the binder.

As I said before, my system is not the most sophisticated. I also have something I affectionately call my "junk folder". This contains all the random papers I collect that I need to keep, but am too busy to put somewhere else, or just have no place for them. This folder is my bit of organized chaos.

I hope this gives you some inspiration to find your own organizational system.

Lisa

Drink of the Day: Since it finally got chilly here in the South I wanted something warm. I thought warm spiced apple cider was just the thing.

Apples, Apples, Apples

Goals Targeted:
- Categories
- Main Idea/Details of the story
- Past tense verbs
- Identifying correct or incorrect grammar

A few weeks ago I was trying to plan my sessions, and I found the book Apples, Apples, Apples by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace. I figured this was perfect for a week in October, and wasn't Halloween themed. The book follows along as a family of rabbits goes apple picking one autumn day. Throughout the book there are activities that correspond to the story. I decided to not use any of those activities during therapy, as they are a little too complicated for my students.

Each student got a basket to collect their "apples" in. After each student answered their respective question they rolled the die. They got the amount of apples that they rolled. The student with the most apples at the end of the session won.

Drink of the Day (2nd drink):After the snow yesterday, I am getting in the holiday mood. I continued that today by having Candy Cane herbal tea. If this doesn't keep me in the festive mood, I'm not sure what will!

Stone Soup

Goals Targeted:
- Synonyms
- Antonyms
- Answering detail questions after reading a passage
- Stating the main idea
- Identifying Colors

While November is short month for school, I didn't want to go straight to Thanksgiving themes the first week. I revisited the short story Stone Soup, and figured it would be great to introduce the idea of sharing as a precursor to the holiday themes.

Scholastic has the story you can print to create a small book. It was super handy to have pictures that went with the story, as many of my clients are not able to read but the pictures help them follow along.

After reading the story together, we began the Stone Soup game. Each student has their own pot they will fill with ingredients to create their own stone soup. After answering their question correctly they rolled a die that had a different color for each side. The ingredients I printed correspond to the colors on the die. (Below I show a game board that can be used for the same idea with the colors) At the end of the game who ever had the most ingredients was the winner.

As with other books I've used before, I labeled targets in my copy of the book. I underlined words that could be used for antonyms/synonyms, and created questions asking about the main idea and details of the book.

Drink of the Day: I have been feeling a little under the weather, so I am sticking to tea. Today it is Papaya Passionfruit black tea with a dollop of honey.

"Clinic Supply Box"

Since beginning undergrad I have accumulated items for my clinic box. It has now overtaken more than 1 box, but is more of a clinic closet. I think as an SLP, regardless of where you work, it is important to start creating your own "supply" closet. You never know what materials your job sites will have, if any at all.

I am not advocating spending tons of money, as most of my materials were free or very cheap. (Garage sales and Dollar stores are fantastic!) But having your own materials can save you if you need to plan a session quickly.  I am not going to list everything in my materials box, but the things I have found most helpful.

- Books: Most of these I found at garage sales, or free-to-good-home tables. I tired to find some that could be used year-round and a few for specific seasons. It is easy to pull a book last minute and target a variety of language and articulation goals.

- Rainbow extendable ball: I don't know what it is about this toy, but kids love it! It can be used to model a wider/more open mouth, or just as a reward. My classmates and I have used it with all ages of children, and clients with Autism have enjoyed it too. (Ollie likes it too!)

- Big foam dice: I got these from the dollar store, and have used these countless times. The easiest way to use these is as part of a basic game. The amount you roll is how many productions of the target needs to be done. I have also taped different things over the numbers to incorporate other activities. Kids love to roll the dice, and the best part is because they are foam, they won't hurt if a child throws them around.
- Bubbles: Everyone loves these. Plus they are a great stress reliever if you ever need a break!
- Coloring Stuff: Crayons, markers, color pencils, chalk, etc.
- Extra Toys/Fidgets: You never know what a child is going to like. If a random toy works as a motivator just go with it!

- Box of Articulation Cards: During the course of my education I have made articulation cards for every phoneme in each position. This has been helpful in school clinic where everyone is sharing materials. Having these cards means I don't have to rely on my school, and don't have to panic is someone else is using the same phoneme.
- Laminator: This is not really a clinic material, but for me has been a lifesaver! It was my "splurge" item for myself when I started grad school. I purchased one of the cheapest available, and while it has shortcomings, laminates materials well enough.
- TeachersPayTeachers: While this is not in my clinic box, I have begun to count this as an invaluable resource when trying to plan sessions quickly, or to get new ideas.

If you have any other items that should be in a "clinic supply box" please comment below!

Lisa

Drink of the Day: Lemon Tea with honey. Perfect for cold fall mornings/afternoons.

Applying to Graduate School

Applying to graduate school was one of the most stressful things I have ever done, not necessarily because of what went into applying to schools, but having to do that on top of classes and extracurriculars during my senior year. I tried to make my process of applying to schools as easy as possible, and hope that it helps any of you applying to school in the future.

- I made a binder to store every thing related to graduate school applications: any paper applications, printed off online applications, information from school visits, copies of my resume, and any correspondence from schools I applied to.

- I treated applying to graduate school like homework or a class project. I would schedule time during my week to work on them, and tried to do a little each night.

- I used deadlines to keep myself on track:
   - Summer before applying: write general personal statement, take the Praxis, and finalize list of schools you are applying to.
   - September: finalize letters of recommendation and begin all applications.
   - November: finish all applications
   - December: make sure all applications have been received, and that they are complete
- My goal was to be done in December so I didn't have to worry about finishing applications during Winter break. Plus, many schools begin to have deadlines in December or early January.
- Once applications are completed, take a nice break. If you do not hear from schools by the decision deadline I would suggest contacting the program.

- When I began my applications I created a checklist for each school which I used as dividers in my binder. Not only did they separate one school from another, but they made it very easy to see what the next step was in my application process.
- I would try to knock out something on the checklist every day, even if it was to only send one GRE score, it was progress.
- After each application was completed I would give myself a reward. Since I love chocolate, I used Lindt truffles as my reward.
- When I had finished every application I gave myself a larger reward. For me it was a mani/pedi day with my friends.

- As hard as it is to do so, the best thing is to not freak out about getting these applications completed.
- Even harder is to not freak out while you are waiting to hear from schools.
- As you start to hear from schools you have to remember to keep calm and deal with the decisions in a good way. My roommate and I were both applying to grad schools at the same time, and would post all our rejection/acceptance/wait list letters on our hallway walls. After we both had decided where we were going to attend we had a bonfire with all the decision letters. It was therapeutic to burn all of the bad news we had received over the months.

I hope this gives some helpful advice about applying for graduate school. If you have other tips please leave a comment.

Good Luck Applying!

Lisa

Coffee of the Day: Vanilla Coffee with cream and sugar. A sweet treat for a Friday!

Gone Fishing

Goals I Targeted:
- Initial /f/

Other Goals To Target:
- Antonyms
- Synonyms
- Vocabulary
- Sentence Formation
- Any other articulation target

This is one of the first activities I created as a student clinician. I used it to target articulation goals, but it could be used for others as well. That is why I think it is a great activity to have for when you need something quickly. I used it for a preschool client, but it could work for a variety of ages. This activity would work wonderfully as part of a larger theme, such as ocean or beach. It can work for an individual session, or for a group. In a group they can take turns and compete to see who can collect the most fish.

All you need to make the fishing pole is a dowel rod, some string, tape, and a magnet. For the "fish" I took articulation cards I had made previously and put paper clips on each card I wanted to use. I also created some extra cards to make the game more interesting, such as "lose a turn" or "put a fish back." The picture of these extra game cards is below. (Pictures found on http://bestclipartblog.com)

During the session I simply spread the "fish" on the floor, sat in chairs, and then would fling the string of the pole to the fish. At the end see who has the most fish, or just play until all the fish are "caught." It is truly the easiest game.

Happy Fishing!

Lisa

Drink of the Day: Dark Roast coffee with cream. Nice and Simple.