The Winter Blues

Ugh.  It's that time of year.  

The excitement of Mardi Gras is over.  Lenten season is here. 

Here in Louisiana it's been yucky and rainy. No magical snow days for us.  

We sit waiting for the first signs of spring.  

Let's face it y'all...this time of year is BLAH.  

To top it off I missed work Friday due to a crummy stomach virus 

(I hate using sick days for actual sickness!!) 

In my speech room I have all of my St. Patrick's Day and Easter activities on standby but I can't pull them out yet!! It's too early!  

So what will we do for the next 2 weeks in my speech room? 

We're gonna get our game on! 

You can incorporate a game with any old IEP goal! 

My kids are competitive! 

They love to win and they'll do anything I ask of them if they get to play a game- 

and the funny thing is that I NEVER give them anything when they win.  

Any student who asks, "What do I get for winning?" will always hear the same thing ...

"You get the good feeling of winning!"  (that usually brings about a groan or a face)

Just a few games we will be playing to cure the winter blues until Spring arrives...

I'm even using this board for a little guy with behavior issues.  I just added velcro to each star and printed out a little picture of a Jedi on card stick (and added velcro to that).  The student moves his Jedi along the stars from start to finish when his teacher feels he's done something especially positive. When he gets to the end of the board- whether it takes him a day or a week- he gets a reward. 

And I made this one for one of my princess fanatics......

So whatever the goal (or the learning target) may be

making inferences, fact and opinion, dictionary skills, comparing/contrasting, 

sequencing, articulation, social skills, phonics....

my students won't have the blues. 

 look up a word, get a turn at the game

answer 2 questions, get a turn at the game

role play a social scene, get a turn at the game

say your /r/ words 5 times, get a turn at the game

read 3 word family words, get a turn at the game

follow 3 directions, get a turn at the game

If you wanna grab my pack of 11 open game boards for your students, you can do it RIGHT HERE

What are YOU doing to fight the wintertime blues? 

Until next time

:)

Mia