Incorporating Sensory Play into Speech Therapy
Hey speech friend! 👋🏼
Do you ever have therapy sessions where there's just a lot of movement but maybe not a lot of…actual therapy?
We've all been there!
The nature of our job means that we work with kids who have a variety of sensory needs and many of them need to MOVE.
But, we all know we also have data to collect during this time and sometimes the kids that have the movement criteria are also the ones working on speech sounds or specific language goals that require some focus or to sit in a group where constant motion isn't an option.
What should you do? Here's a few of my ideas 👇🏼
. 
. 
EARLY INTERVENTION
- Use toys that support movement: tunnels, hopping stones, blocks that can be knocked over, and bubbles are great toys to introduce in sessions. Bonus: they can be easily made out of things found in every home! Use old tissue boxes for blocks, make a tunnel out of a blanket, and hop from one piece of paper to the next.
- Incorporate songs that use motion and movement! “If You're Happy and You Know It”, “Ants Go Marching” and many others give so many opportunities while supporting language!
LITERACY-BASED THERAPY
- Choose books that describe animals or actions that can be mimicked. Eric Carle books are wonderful for this! Even acting out a book can be beneficial for sensory regulation AND comprehension for kids!
OTHER THERAPY TIPS
- Can your articulation therapy be more mobile? Think of placing articulation cards/targets under bowling pins, on the wall to be swatted with a fly swatter, or across the room where the child will have to run across, look at the target, then run back and say it to you with their sounds!
- Try alternate seating! How many of us have seen office workers praising those desk treadmills? What if you were able to have children sit on yoga balls during therapy to bounce or even stand and do squats or jumps? Think outside of the box!
- Use alternate resources! Does your school have a gym or playground that's vacant during some of your sessions? Take it over and utilize the extra room and activities there! Middle schoolers love playing a game of their choice between drills instead of being stuck at a table.
Incorporating sensory play into your speech sessions can be EASY! If you have a student who loves all things WATER 💦 be sure to check out THIS BLOG POST where I share how to use water play in your speech sessions. I have tons of blogs all about incorporating different types of play into your speech therapy sessions so be sure to check them all out if you want more!
Happy speeching!
👇🏼 Save this image to Pinterest so you can refer back to it later! 👇🏼
