Try This Tuesday-Speech Game

I am posting today over at 5 Minutes for Special Needs. Have a good day!

Try this Tuesday

"PschMamma" posted over at 5 minutes for special needs an idea to use with a key ring. So now that you are all running out to buy key rings, buy a few more. There's a lot more that you can do with them!
For all of these you can use laminated pictures/drawings (or text), or, as in the article listed above suggests, plastic sleeves from baseball card covers
AM ring (very helpfull!) put on the ring a list of things the child needs to do before heading out the door to his school bus ride in the morning, such as: check school bag, make /take lunchbox, library book, do I have bus card, lunch money, take medicines, brush hair, brush teeth etc, etc.
PM ring - same as AM one, but with bedtime activities
Chore ring: A cute (make it fun!) picture/drawing of chores needed to be done before going out to play or to the computer.
school bag checklist: all the things I have to be sure are in my school bag.
Individual task analysis: steps to do to complete any chore.
For example, if his chore is to do the dishes, you could hang up the ring in the kitchen, so he can check when finished that everything was done: dishes to sink, perisables to fridge, bread and cereal closed and away, dishes washed, dishes rinsed, table wiped, garbage to trash can
Using pics from a digital camera, or from a picture disc like "Picture This", any task can be broken down: taking a bath , setting the table, etc. A title card will help him know where to start on the ring
steps in changing a menstrual pad (this is really just another task analysis, but I believe it deserves special mention.)(and in ring form, this fits easily in purse!) Before the first picture, put a title card, so she knows which picture to start from. This will allow more independence until she has the proceedure "down pat"
For older child with slight learning disabilities: class schuedule
Shopping list prompt: You can teach your grade school child to make the daily shopping list (ahem..or use it yourself): a ring with all those staples so easily forgotten: sugar, salt, eggs, etc. Check your supplies of these items when making the list. [don't forget to include chocolate on the ring LOL!]
For non-verbal cvhild, a mini communication board
For more ideas, click this button:

Try this Tuesday- Timer and Homework

I have found the timer useful in doing homework. On one side, Ricki wanted, as a teen, more independence. Sitting beside her only led to her turning her back and trying to hide her work. But since she is included, she does need help at times with her homework. So I now explain a task, set the timer for 5 minutes, telling her that she should work alone for 5 minutes. Then I go and do some housework in a different room, and when the timer rings, I come to check her work, give help if needed, etc.. This way I get more done during the day, and she works more independently.
Obviously, positive reinforcement for effort and good work can be added in.

Also, it is important, VERY important, to praise the child’s efforts to work independently. On returning to check the work, avoid critical comments about the results. Any corrections that need to be made should be sandwhiched between positive points. For example:
“Ricki, I can see that you sat for the full five minutes and worked very hard. You wrote in the line. Very nice! By the way, “their” is spelled “ei”. I’ll write that here on this note, and you can copy from there. I see that you crossed your t’s very nicely.”

“Try this Tuesday” #1

My regular post for today is below this one. This post is part of a "share-ideas" posts by several blogers. People who are not parents of special-needs kids, can skip (although much of this info is usefull for ANY parent with small kids....)


For learning letter names, as opposed to sounds, we baked bread dough in letter shapes. It was a fun activity, and we talked casually about the names.
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When toilet training Ricki years ago, we covered the sofa, armchairs, and the like with clear nylon tablecloth. Made it less tense…..
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Kids learn to climb up on the sofa before they learn to climb down. During that interrum, they tend to take flying leaps off the sofa, and if you have non-carpeted floors, it can be scarey! (Especially here in Israel, where the floors are STONE!)
So we went to a carpet store, and bought a scrap piece which was longer than the sofa, and about 2 feet wide. Then we took it to an upholsterer, who sewed around the edges. We slipped one long side just under the sofa legs, and we had head protection!

for more ideas, click this button, and there click the Try This Tuesday blog for today. There will be an idea there, and more at the bottom of the page: