Listen & Think Brain Play - Thanksgiving

Listen & Think Brain Play is a rich activity that targets listening, following directions, auditory processing, vocabulary and comprehension skills. The more a child knows about a topic, such as Thanksgiving the easier it is to comprehend and retain the information. Background knowledge of recurring holidays and seasons is fundamental for language, academic and communication success.  This activity

• Builds a cornucopia of Tier 2 vocabulary. Background knowledge of recurring holidays and seasons is fundamental for language, academic and communication success.

• Children that are deaf and hard of hearing as well as those students with limited language may struggle to increase vocabulary because of weak auditory memory, difficulty with auditory comprehension and lack of exposure.

• Fosters back-and-forth conversation - Serve and Return interactions increases in the parts of the brain responsible for listening and spoken language processing and production.

What's Included?

• 28 Thanksgiving-related conversation starters, questions and trivia topics.

• Answer sheet with space for data collection

• Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) Tips

The Listen & Think conversation starters, questions and trivia topics can be played:

• alongside a reinforcing board game or online seasonal game. 

• using a buzzer or bell to ring in their answers.

• by beating the clock which targets auditory processing speed or the pace a child takes in information, makes sense of it, and then responds. Set a stopwatch or use an online timer or app. See how many prompts the child responds to in an allotted time.

• by choosing a card as a discussion or conversation starter.

• by splitting the players up into two teams that compete for points by answering questions.

No Prep

Thanksgiving Brain Play can be used in teletherapy

Cards can be printed and used in face-to-face sessions or lessons.

For Families

Great to use throughout the month of November or to build listening and language skills or as conversational starters at Thanksgiving dinner.

Fast Thinking Category Game - Listening & Spoken Language

Searching for an easy, fun, and engaging game? JUST SAY IT - is a Listening and Spoken Language game created to build vocabulary, classification, and auditory memory skills often needed by children who are deaf and hard of hearing.

While not age-specific it has been successfully used with kids as young Pre-K and up through middle school. This resource can be easily leveled up or down to meet a variety of children's goals. There are 32 categories of multiple levels to support children in developing category knowledge.

 Just Say It! can also be found in TPT as an interactive digital PDF or in my Listen With Lynn™ Boom Learning Store. To use Boom Cards, you must be connected to the Internet.

The LISTENER names the category, keeps the card hidden, and listens for the items named.
The TALKER names as many things they can recall until the time is up.
The players switch places and take turns as either the LISTENER or the TALKER.
1 POINT for each item named in the category
2 POINTS if the item named is shown on the game card 
WINNER The player with the highest score wins. 

View the video to see example game cards including:
Things that are yellow
Things that are round
Things in a kitchen
Animals that swim
School supplies
Things made of metal
Kinds of containers

A Retro ViewMaster Saves The Session

Have you ever saved a session or re-engaged a child with a ViewMaster? It is a real attention-getter! You may use wind-up toys, play dough, stickers, puppets but nothing works like a ViewMaster!

The child looks through the ViewMaster while the parent, therapist or teacher fosters a conversation about the topic on the reel. It’s easy to get the excited child to narrate and talk about whatever they are viewing. There are themes like dinosaurs, marine life, robots, Dora The Explorer, Handy Manny, Discovery Kids, Disney and more. It is a perfect opportunity to build language through hearing alone while the listening, language and vocabulary targets are limitless!  

While most would consider this a vintage toy it is still available on Amazon. Parents love this retro toy and most remember having it as a child. 

Let me know if you give it a try!

Other listening and language activities and resources can be found in my Listen With Lynn™ shop.

Not A Teacher - On Teachers Pay Teachers?

Teachers Pay Teacher (TpT) is a marketplace for original educator-created content. Look around and you will see fabulous content from Listening and Spoken Language Specialists, Speech-Language Pathologists, Audiologists, Teachers of The Deaf, Occupational and Physical Therapists, Mental Health Counselors, classroom teachers, administrators and others.

Little Known Fact: In addition to being an Audiologist by degree with over 35 years of experience as an LSLS Certified AVT I once held my K-12 and Special Education licensure through the Board of Education in the state of Ohio. After relocating to Illinois eventually I let my teaching licensure lapse. I still have the ❣️ of teacher and am without a doubt an educator just not in a classroom.

TpT is a treasure trove for those of us who guide families and work with children that are deaf and hard of hearing. On the 25th of each month a group of us who have connected on instagram offer select resources at 25% off. I am thankful for these creative friends and colleagues. Last Fall when I took the plunge as a AVT on TpT I knew only two out these sixteen authors. It’s the people we meet along the way that make us love the journey.

Gather new ideas, learn together and have fun shopping!