Essential Items for Early Intervention Therapy: Why Books Are a Must-Have in Your Therapy Bag

There are some essentials that I always pack in my therapy bag when heading out for Early Intervention therapy sessions: Bubbles, Wind-Up Toys, Stacking Blocks, and… BOOKS! 📖

 

Sometimes I get a few strange looks when I say that, but I truly love seeing how young children interact with books and all the language that can be incorporated with them.

1. They are easily accessible to families. Many families have books already in their homes and if not, they can obtain them through public libraries or even online.
2. They provide language opportunities because you can easily modify them to fit a child’s level. Is the wording too much? Simplify it to single words or just sit and describe the pictures with the child.
3. They can be customized and chosen based on the child’s special interests. We are so fortunate to have a TON of children’s books to choose from and they can fit into any child’s interests!
4. We can incorporate tons of language strategies geared towards pre-linguistic children, such as exclamatory phrases and environmental sounds.
5. They are so interactive! I love acting out the scenes in the book by mimicking the animals we see or the faces of the characters. There’s almost always an opportunity for motion to be incorporated.