Children with language learning difficulties learn best when they can predict what they are going to be doing.  In another blog (  http://prakovic.edublogs.org/2014/05/30/would-you-turn-back-home-if-you-forgot-your-cell-phone-the-importance-of-schedules/)  I discussed the importance of a schedule.  It is also important that the child understands not just what work they need…

This is the third in a series so if you haven’t read these blogs you may want to in order to give yourself a complete picture. Developing Student Goals Some new speech and language goal examples September 2014 Developing goals is a constant process of…

    How many of you plead for one more minute when the alarm clock goes off?  This is the feeling that students sometimes feel when their break is over. They want to extend it by a little bit. We need to teach students how…

When choosing a book for speech and language therapy you want to make sure that the text matches your student’s reading level.   There are several tools that you can use that will make this easier. Scholastic has a tool called Book Wizard: http://www.scholastic.com/bookwizard/ This will…

    Writing goals can be a difficult task. Here are some more examples of good goals. In order to have a goal you need to have baseline information as well as an understanding of language development and the curriculum that is expected at the…

  In class I am using  “Text Talk”.  This program delivers direct vocabulary instruction of sophisticated words, combined with rich talk about text, to provide students with critical language and reading comprehension skills. This scientifically based program has been proven effective in raising students’ knowledge…

Visual supports can be invaluable tools in helping people with autism understand and interact with their environment. However, there is a need for standardized visuals that are used consistently to ensure optimal outcomes for those with autism. We will explore the importance of visual supports…

  Each year I establish the “rules” of my lesson using Whole Brain Teaching developed in 1999 in the small Southern California town of Yucaipa by  three instructors, Chris Biffle (college), Jay Vanderfin (kindergarten) and Chris Rekstad (4th grade). They spent a year designing a…

“Just as rigor does not reside in the barbell but in the act of lifting it, rigor in reading is not an attribute of a text but rather of a reader’s behavior-engaged, observant, responsive, questioning, analytical. The close reading strategies in Notice and Note will help you…

Super Duper Publications has a product Token Towers    (http://www.superduperinc.com/products/view.aspx?pid=chips22#.U6YPR41dUQQ) that I consistently use in my therapy sessions to visually reinforce my students. When they reach a particular mark they get a sticker for their chart and when the chart is filled they get a…