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

 
 

The Listening Brain Podcast Guest - Me! October 2020

 
 

Have you listened to the podcast, The Listening Brain? If not, here is your chance. I was a guest in October 2020, so give a listen! I share my professional journey with all its amazing twists, turns, and God Winks or diving coincidences. The Listening Brain.

This podcast celebrates listening and speaking in the context of childhood hearing loss. Hosted by K. Todd Houston, Ph.D., a noted Listening and Spoken Language Specialist Certified Auditory-Verbal Therapist, speech-language pathologist, and Professor who explores educational trends, new developments in technology, and advances in research.

Thank you K. Todd Houston, Ph.D. Co-Founder of the 3C Digital Media Network, LLC for inviting me to be your guest. Todd interviews professionals in the fields serving a child with hearing loss, and, most importantly, families who are supporting their children on this journey to listening and spoken language success. And, equally, as important, he hears from adults with hearing loss who will share their unique stories and experiences about growing up with deafness and how deafness is now being redefined for future generations.

You'll want to subscribe to hear all the episodes that focus on children with hearing loss who are learning to listen and use spoken language, their families & the professionals who serve them.

Role Playing For Self Advocacy - Hearing Loss

 
 

These Five Role Playing scenarios are tried and true activities I have used in my own practice for years. They are derived from true situations of actual kids.

Role Playing offer opportunities to make real-life connections that students face at school, at home, with peers and in their community. The scenarios help them understand the impact of their actions and reactions. They provide opportunities for kids to grapple with challenging situations and explore communication repair strategies within a supported environment. Self advocacy success requires knowledge, skills and importantly practice.

This resource focuses upon Coping Strategies including Take Charge strategies which lead to positive advocacy outcomes and Escape strategies that often lead to negative consequences.

There are Five Scenarios played in two parts.

 
 

Part One illustrates a communication breakdown due to the speaker, the topic, the environment with student using Escape or negative strategies. Talking Points follow with questions and prompts are provided for brainstorming and to lead a discussion.

Part Two is the scenario again with the new Take Charge or positive strategies Talking Points - prompts are provided for reflection and to lead a discussion on how did everything work out.

This is a Digital No-Prep or Planning with everything included. It can be easily used by parents at home, teachers and therapists both face to face and on tele-platforms.

Check out my other Self Advocacy activities for kids that are deaf and hard of hearing.

SELF ADVOCACY Tips For Communication Success (Free)

SELF ADVOCACY Sinister The Bad Listener

SELF ADVOCACY Scenarios - Turning Lemons Into Lemonade

SELF ADVOCACY Perk Up Your Ears (Ear-related sayings and idioms)

SELF ADVOCACY Listen & Draw Directions

A Retro ViewMaster Saves The Session

 
ViewMaster.jpg
 

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.