{"id":9077,"date":"2016-12-19T14:01:55","date_gmt":"2016-12-19T22:01:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.speechbuddy.com\/blog\/?p=9077"},"modified":"2023-11-08T10:33:04","modified_gmt":"2023-11-08T18:33:04","slug":"wintertime-speech-therapy-holiday-activities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.speechbuddy.com\/blog\/speech-therapy-ideas\/wintertime-speech-therapy-holiday-activities\/","title":{"rendered":"Wintertime Speech Therapy Holiday Activities"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s that time of year again: \u201cJingle Bell Rock\u201d is more ubiquitous than dust, and my kids\u2019 screams as they\u00a0watch\u00a0TV\u00a0ads get more shrill with the expectation that this time<\/em>\u00a0might be different\u00a0—\u00a0they just might get the bauble\u00a0they are nagging about. Despite that, I do really enjoy this time of year.\u00a0It\u2019s kind of like a mini-summer vacation: lots of time\u00a0for\u00a0travel, family, and special activities.\u00a0And the kids get much-needed time to just veg out. But just because this is a jam-packed winter vacation, don’t slip off track with your speech and language goals. These wintertime speech therapy holiday activities will\u00a0keep your speech student on track, and generate some\u00a0fun in the meantime.<\/p>\n

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Practice Poetry Out Loud<\/h2>\n

\"Practice<\/a>Perhaps what truly defines the holiday season is an emphasis on family. Sure, a child may fixate on the presents and the holiday baked goodies, but we know it\u2019s really all about spending quality time with family. This is why one of my true go-to strategies for holiday vacation carry-over of my speech and language goals is to pick a fun passage, e.g. segments of \u201cThe Night Before Christmas\u201d, and have your child recite this passage for uncle Fred or grandma or grandpa. So if your child\u2019s main goals are more accurate productions of various speech sounds, like S and R, you can instruct your child to really focus on those particular sounds as they appear, e.g.<\/p>\n

\u2026and all thrrr<\/span>ough the housss<\/span>e, not a crrr<\/span>eaturrr<\/span>e was sss<\/span>tirrrr<\/span>ing, not even a moussss<\/span>e.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

It course doesn\u2019t have to be this iconic poem, or even necessarily anything holiday-related. The idea here is to simply have your child present something to a relative he or she hasn\u2019t seen in quite a while.<\/p>\n

As parents we often don\u2019t realize how our own frame of reference, concerning our kids\u2019 speech and language therapy progress can be skewed; we see our kids every day and progress can sometimes therefore be difficult to discern. But a family member who last saw your child say, six months ago, would be an excellent person to poll on exactly how much your child\u2019s speech has improved in that period. And what better way to showcase your child\u2019s skills than to have him recite a classic piece of holiday verse. I would also recommend that you set up some sort of reward for all of your child\u2019s hard work here. Think of something truly motivating \u2013 probably something other than another present \u2013 that will really fire him or her up for this performance. Other ideas could be Christmas carols or other holiday songs that your child would speak, and not sing.<\/p>\n

Memory Games for Speech Therapy<\/h2>\n

I like asking a\u00a0child to recite an inventory of all the presents given and received by every family member<\/em> at your holiday gathering \u2013 only after the presents have been opened of course! This inventory would allow your child to practice target sounds in therapy, no matter what those targets are (e.g. the \/r\/, \/s\/ or \/l\/ sounds). If your child\u2019s goals are more language-oriented, then have him or her describe the presents he or she received and why he or she is so excited to start playing with those new toys or games right now. One fun thing about this idea is that it also gives your child a chance to relish on the gifts he or she didn\u2019t receive. Let\u2019s face it: all kids wish they got every last present and this allows them, albeit in a highly indirect way, to realize this wish.<\/p>\n

“Speech” Help in the Kitchen<\/h2>\n

Similarly, you can also employ your child in holiday preparation activities and have them constantly verbalize how they\u2019re helping you and why. It\u2019s also ok to juice this involvement by dangling a tangible, motivating reward (a trip to the local ice cream shop, a trip to the movies). You\u2019d be surprised how interested kids are in not only taking part in these holiday prep chores, but in describing them. Plus, as busy parents, you might even have a highly useful assistant or sous-chef at your disposal \u2013 anything to get holiday celebrations off to a smooth start!<\/p>\n

\"Speech<\/a><\/p>\n

4 Apps for Constructive Screen Time<\/h2>\n

\"4<\/a>The next suggestions I have for holiday-related speech and language follow-up work is to use an iPad or Android tablet to access some great interactive materials. As I mentioned above, kids do deserve a time to veg, to chill and they\u2019ve earned this holiday break. In this vein, I advocate that we be a bit more liberal about allowed screen time. But since we would like to keep at least some of that screen time focused on more practical ends, I wanted to tell you about a few free or inexpensive holiday apps to consider picking up.<\/p>\n