Hey everyone! It's Amanda from For His Glory.
I am loving all of these amazing tricks that teachers use in their classroom! This trick is primarily for all of my speech friends, so if you know an amazing speech teacher, send him/her here to read this post or enter to win for them! :)
For this next trick, we will be exploring the...
I have been using speech "take home" folders for two years and I absolutely love them. My students do as well! This take home folder is used as a tool to communicate with parents throughout the year as well as provide home practice activities based on each student's individual objectives.
At the beginning of each school year, we discuss the "anatomy" of a speech folder and how to take care of it. Believe it or not, no matter how much you stress taking care of the folder, it is inevitable that you will find one like this...
Most of my students do very well with taking care of their folder, making it a valuable resource to promote home practice and carry-over. After I stress caring for their speech folder, we explore what's inside.
The first item I place in the folder is a Welcome Back to Speech Therapy-Parent Newsletter. This letter outlines the structure of a typical therapy session as well as provides parents with suggested carry-over activities to get them started with home practice. You will find (if you haven't already realized) that parent support is one of the greatest contributors to student success in any area, including speech.
The second form I add is a Parent Contact Information form. I have thought about switching to a Google form this year, but I try to include a hard copy option as well. At the bottom of the form, there is a part for parents to cut off and have my information too. I also remind them to let me know if there are any changes in medication, health status, home environment, etc. as these factors may negatively impact the student academically as well.
The next form I DO NOT use with every student, everyday! That would be crazy! I use it most often with my language or fluency students to let parents know what we targeted during their child's therapy session and list a carry-over activity for them to start practicing at home. Parents absolutely love being informed and involved in the treatment process. I try to keep strategies/carry-over activities simple, yet effective for home practice.
The last item I include only for my articulation students. This
is a packet of all the homework activities (OVER 35 PAGES!) the student will be encouraged to
complete for the school year. Students will be assigned one page per
week to practice their speech sounds with a homework partner. Students can return
the completed page the following week
to receive a reward for their hard work!
I hope these items will help make going back to school a little less stressful! I would love to here how you use take home folders in your room and what items you include in them! Enter below for a chance to win all the items in my speech folders!
Don't forget to check back everyday for more back-to-school tricks and a chance to with the
GRAND PRIZE!!
Love this!! So cute and more organized than mine!
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