This week we’ll chat about using books to target articulation, as part of the Mixing Up Speech Therapy series. There is a time and a place for more traditional drill therapy. Targeting articulation through literacy-based activities is another option, especially when it comes to mixed groups, students with multiple goals, and generalization.

If you have any ideas to share, please feel free to post a comment with some of your favorite activities!

Start with Visuals

It’s important for students to know what they’re working on. Depending on the students’ levels, I will provide them with a visual and/or have them select the visual for their sound.

Student Sound Identification

For some students, it’s appropriate to work on identifying their speech sound in context. While reading a book, we will use a magnifying glass (or a speech sound “wand”) to point out their sounds in a book. Students can use sticky notes to flag the sounds in the book. This is also a great opportunity to practice those sounds!

SLP Sound Identification

If it’s not appropriate for students to identify their own sounds, then I like to use speech sound charts to identify books that will give students a number of opportunities to practice their speech sounds in context. You can find these in the SLP Now Membership.

Picture Cards for Practice: Throughout the Hierarchy

The SLP Now Membership also includes picture cards to go with each book. These can be used as articulation targets. I like to pair them with phrase/sentence strips for higher level practice. I might also give students the cards and ask them to create sentences/stories about those cards.

It’s also easy to find images on Google (for personal use) or on Teachers Pay Teachers.

Use that Camera!

If I don’t have access to picture cards for a particular book, then I also like to use my phone and/or tablet to take pictures of target sounds in the book. It’s easy to email and/or print these sheets for practice at home.

You can also use them for more drill-based therapy later on!

Photo Dice
Little Spinner
• Any photo collage app!

Self-Monitoring

For my readers who are working on generalization, I will give them the opportunity to read a few pages from the book. We enjoy snapping a picture of the page using Notability so we can record and highlight sounds as we go along. I especially love this, because it allows students to replay the recording while annotating the document on the screen. The combination of audio and visual feedback is pretty amazing!


There you have it! Now, I’m curious… Do you use books to target articulation in therapy? What are your favorite activities?

marisha-mets-about-mobile

Hi there! I'm Marisha. I am a school-based SLP who is all about working smarter, not harder. I created the SLP Now Membership and love sharing tips and tricks to help you save time so you can focus on what matters most--your students AND yourself.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Share30
Pin154