Why I love Core Boards

Why I love Core Boards

Technology and all the wonderful tech tools that are out there to help our students is amazing. But I’m not giving up my printed core boards any time soon. 

🧡🧡🧡 I love core boards because:

  • They help make an abstract word visible by giving it a symbol and a location
  • Visuals can focus a student’s attention and help them filter out distractions
  • Many kids with disabilities have strong visual skills
  • They help give language visible structure and a visual pattern
  • It gives a visual foundation of frequently used words
  • They work
  • A big board is great for everyone in preschool classrooms, special education classrooms and in your speech rooms too.

If you are looking for help with core boards, then download your condensed guide to core boards here. You’ll find links to popular AAC boards, along with tips to get started.

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FREE Speech App for Speech Language Pathologists

FREE Speech App for Speech Language Pathologists

Looking for a fun, engaging, interactive, FREE speech app for your toddlers, preschoolers, and young students with special needs?

I found an awesome one called Speech Blubs

This subscription-based app is free for SLPs for use on one device. Children mimic sounds and words while looking at videos of engaging kids. My primary functional skills classroom loved it when I used it as a reward activity during therapy. A couple of my students that generally won’t try to imitate words, actually tried this. I was sold right then and there.

The kids really enjoy seeing the kids in the app. It’s just so natural for them to imitate other kids.The colorful images are clean, super-fun and engaging. When you activate the camera the kids can see themselves on screen, which they love (it’s like looking in the mirror). In the Early Sounds section, the kids imitate an animal noise. When they do this, fun things happen. Donkey ears appear on their head or maybe even a duck.

You have to see for yourself in this short little video I made.

Isn’t that great?

If you feel you can use this with your students, go to the App Store and download Speech Blubs. Follow the prompts and make sure you indicate that you’re an SLP so you can get your free copy.

Guess what? For a limited time, I’m giving away 10 free codes for you to share with the parents of a student. I think this would be so great for practice and interaction at home. The code is good for a 6 month subscription. If you’re interested, just comment below with your favourite animal from the app. I’ll choose ten winners on Monday, September 18, 2017.

SLP Summer Planner for Speech

SLP Summer Planner for Speech

Do you love planners as much as I do? I created a special SLP summer planner just to help you make sure your summer doesn’t slip away.

SLP Summer Planner for SpeechAnd the best part…it’s FREE!

WE made it through another year! Now for a well-deserved summer break. If you’re like me you start the summer with very well-intended plans of projects, revamps and things-to-do. Sometimes the transition from flat out running and wrangling kids all day to summer relaxation can be a little tricky. SLP Summer Planner to the rescue.

So you take a few days to adjust. You make some vacation plans and you sleep in. Binge watch Netflix and before you know it, summer’s over.  If you’re happy with that then great.

But… what if you start the summer knowing how you want to feel at the end of it? What if we a take little time to reflect on the past year and celebrate our successes?  Let’s make time for what we really want to do with these precious months and use the SLP Summer Planner to make it happen.

SLP Summer Planner

What can you do to take care of yourself and refill the well? Who do you want to spend your time with? Figure out if you really want to do projects.  If yes, pick ones that will make you feel good. Maybe you just want to sit under a tree and get lost in a book.

Give yourself what you need. The work you do is so very important. You really do make a difference. Because you “SLP”-ed Like a Boss all year, you deserve to be the boss of your summer.

I hope you use this SLP Summer Planner with a sense of play and intention. Then when summer comes to an end (which it always does) you can use the final sheets to transition into the coming school year.

Wishing you an incredible summer,

Beautiful Speech Life

Beautiful Speech Life

P.S. Watch for the SLP Like a Boss School Planner coming soon.

Get Free Better Hearing and Speech Month Helpful School Posters

Get Free Better Hearing and Speech Month Helpful School Posters

Want to do something for Better Hearing and Speech Month (every May) and don’t have time to prepare something? I’m pretty sure it wasn’t a school based SLP who decided May was the best month for this.
I’ve got you covered with these free handouts/posters. There’s a black & white version or four pretty color options. Use them as posters or handouts, they’re actually great all year!
Better Hearing and Speech month is the perfect time to place these posters in the staff room, on your speech room door, and anywhere else that teachers may congregate. These are actually great to use as handouts (the b&w version). They’re also great for in-service days to help new teachers understand how we can all work together.
After working in the schools for many years, I’ve noticed several common factors. Teachers are over-worked. SLPs are over-worked. Teachers have too much paperwork. SLPs have too much paperwork.  Teachers want the best for their students. SLPs want the best for their students. [spacer height=”20px”]
The students who make the most progress are generally the ones who have a team behind them.[spacer height=”20px”]
The more we can work with the teachers to help our students take their newly learned communication skills into the classroom, the faster our students will have success across all environments.[spacer height=”20px”]
I hope these handouts will spark ideas and stimulate discussions.  I know there are some great teachers our there who fully understand what a speech language pathologist does and how we can work together. I also know there are some well meaning teachers who think we “just work on articulation.”[spacer height=”20px”]
It’s our job to help bridge that gap.[spacer height=”20px”]
To get your free printables just click here.[spacer height=”20px”]
I hope this helps you out. Remember summer is almost here, we can do it![spacer height=”20px”]
Happy Better Hearing and Speech month,
P.S. Need a fun low-prep year end activity that will take you through at least two therapy sessions and works for multiple goals?

SLP Freebies

Have you been working your nicely manicured fingers to the bone?  I know I have, it’s just that time of year.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Loads of IEP meetings, evaluations and always progress reports (ugh).[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I’m giving you a few handy resources. You can give these to parents,  your team, or share them with a CF student you’re supervising…and they’re FREE.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
First click here for those colorful Spring Speech Punch cards, there’s a colored version and b/w.
While some of you may have seen them in my TPT store, a lot of you are new, so I wanted to make sure you knew about these.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Use this as a poster or handout to share with your team at school!
Created to celebrate Better Hearing and Speech Month, May 2017; this is a great tool to promote understanding of the role of Speech Language Pathologists in the school setting. Collaboration is key![spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Did you know there is a developmental order of prepositional acquisition? Here’s a handy little FREE chart you can show to parents and teachers. Use this to help determine what preposition your student is ready to learn next.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
This FREE download explains the difference between speech and language. We SLPs know there is a huge difference. I created these posters/handouts using parent friendly language and visuals for use when you need to give a brief explanation. Perfect to use as posters in the speech/language room, teacher’s lounge, and school conference room. Also great for use when explaining evaluation results to parents.
I hope this helps!
You Don’t Have to Buy Anything

You Don’t Have to Buy Anything

Happy New Year SLPgirlbosses,[spacer height=”20px”]

SLP Summit

I don’t know about you but I feel like everyone’s been trying to sell me something during the holidays. And then all the post holiday sales; don’t get me wrong, I do LOVE to shop, just not constantly.

We bought the presents, opened the presents, ate all the cookies, and drank all the champagne. The holidays are over for another year. But now it’s time for some balance.

Did you make resolutions, set goals or choose a word for the year?

Work-wise what will you do to bring your best self to the therapy table in 2017?

We both know you’re already a caring, amazing SLP.[spacer height=”20px”]
But maybe you have some areas that you’d like to know more about. Have we got something for you! And you don’t have to buy anything!

SLP Summit is the brain child of my good friends Lisa and Sara from SLP Toolkit and Marisha from SLP Now. I’m so thrilled to be involved.

 This  FREE two week-long virtual summit is for school-based SLPs by school-based SLPs. You’ll get tips you can implement the next day AND get Free CEUs.
Starting January 9th and running through the 20th, it features these dynamic speakers:[spacer height=”20px”]

Come join the fun.

You can grow professionally and be your best for 2017. It’s  100% free to attend and based completely online—you don’t have to buy a plane ticket, book a hotel, or spend days away from your friends and family.

 The SLP Summit will be live, so you’ll have an opportunity to ask presenters questions and to win prizes.  But don’t worry if you can’t make all of the offered sessions, as everyone who signs up will also have access to recordings of each session.[spacer height=”20px”]
Can’t wait to see you there,[spacer height=”20px”]

Anne

P.S. You can also make an impact by spreading the word about the SLP Summit through your networks. Share it on social networks, write a blog post about it, email people. Every action takes us one step closer toward our goal of supporting school-based SLPeeps across the country.[spacer height=”20px”]
P. 
P.S. – Yes, you can earn professional development hours for attending these webinars! The SLP Summit sessions are not pre-approved by ASHA, but they do meet the standards of accepted professional development. We will be providing certificates as documentation of your participation.