Breaking News!
We've Been Featured on the
American Speech Hearing Association's Blog
We have some exciting news to share! Today, we have been featured on the American Speech Hearing Association's website, the ASHA Leader Blog. Check out our 5 Games on the Go: Prevent the Summer Brain Drain as featured on the ASHA Leader Blog, below!
5 Games on the Go: Prevent Summer Brain Drain
Over the summer, children lose 2-3 of months grade-level equivalency in reading and math skills, according to the research. When they return to school in the fall, 5-6 weeks is allocated to reviewing skills they’ve already learned, rather than pushing them to explore new challenges. Luckily, we can encourage parents to help! In addition to reading, exploring children’s museums, and playing at the park, check out these easy ways to help parents prevent the summertime brain drain!
Going on a picnic
Why it Works: This classic game targets memory, word retrieval and vocabulary. Additionally, this is a great game for listening skills.
Extra Language Twist: work in categories. For example, you must bring fruits, vegetables, clothing items, accessories, or words that start with a certain letter or sound.
Alphabet game
How to Play: start by looking for a word on a sign or billboard that starts with “A”... Once you find a word that starts with “A,” look for one that starts with “B” - go through the entire alphabet! Warning: This game can become quite competitive if you have a “race” to the end of the alphabet.
Extra Challenge: To make it even harder, make a rule that all players must use an original word - no repeats!
Why it Works: It’s not an overwhelming amount to read and it still targets articulation sounds and letter identification. It really is so much fun!
I spy
How to Play: Players describe an item they see.
Why it Works: Through this game you can work on describing, word retrieval strategies, and listening skills while still having a stress-free, enjoyable time!
Extra Language Twist: work on “wh-questions” by encouraging players to ask questions to get more information about the object. Also, you may want to limit the objects to certain categories to target categorical thinking. For added structure, remind your child to describe by category, how you use it, what it looks like, and where you find it.
Heads up
How to Play: This is both an app and a board game. In this game a player has a word on his or her head, and other players describe it. The players continue to describe the word until it is guessed correctly.
Why it Works: This game targets describing which helps children who have difficulty with describing, express their ideas in a specific, clear, and effective way. Additionally, this is a great game for listening skills and gathering information!
Twister
How to Play: This classic board game has a large “game board” with different colored spots. A player spins the spinner and depending on the color it lands on, each player has to put a hand or foot on the designated color.
Why it Works: You can help your child work on sounds by writing letters on the twister board, or reading sight words by writing words on the twister board. Additionally, this is a great game for listening skills and following directions!
Extra Language Twist: If you use a marker to write words on the colored dots, you can work on identifying sight words. You can also use words with target sounds for articulation!
