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A good idea to discuss this topic using these words and stick it into a speech and language scrapbook.

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A good idea to discuss this topic using these words and stick it into a speech and language scrapbook.

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A good idea to discuss this topic using these words and stick it into a speech and language scrapbook.

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A good idea to discuss this topic using these words and stick it into a speech and language scrapbook.

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A good idea to discuss this topic using these words and stick it into a speech and language scrapbook.

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Make full sentences using the picture prompts. For example: The boy is running/he is running.

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Speech and Language Kids | Speech Therapy for Kids

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Speech-Language Professionals Increase your confidence and decrease your stress with resources for SLPs, SLPAs, SaLTs, etc. Resources for Speech-Language Professionals Educators Boost speech and language skills for your struggling students. Help for teachers, special educators, paras, therapists, etc. Resources for Educators Caregivers

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A nice pack of activities to do at home with your child.

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If your child is struggling with a particular speech sound have a look at these tips. Remember speech sounds are different to letter sounds.

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Great free resources here for initial sound practice

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Mommy Speech Therapy - Thoughts on speech & language development

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The speech and articulation worksheets as well as the other downloads on this page have been created by Heidi Hanks, M.S.CCC-SLP, and are property of Mommy Speech Therapy. These speech and articulation worksheets are free to download as support material to the related articles found on this site, and they are intended for use in your home or therapy setting to help your child. Please do not sell these or post them anywhere else. If you have any questions on how to use the articulation worksheets, please read my post The Process of Articulation Therapy for additional information. Good Luck, remember to be patient and make it fun!

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Helpful documents and activities for you to download to help you work with your child in different areas of their speech

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Get your child to order the pictures and then talk through them in order using full and accurate sentence structure and articulation.

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Information about Auditory Processing Disorder

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Information about Auditory Processing Disorder

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Activities to Develop Expressive Language Skills

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Activities to Develop Expressive Language Skills

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Ways to incorporate speech development at home every day

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Ways to incorporate speech development at home every day

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Gross and Fine motor activities for at home. 

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Gross and Fine motor activities for at home. 

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This includes some easy recipes too!

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This could be fun to make. Children love Kinetic Sand!

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To see all of our Pinterest pins that we have put to the test in occupational therapy, click here: Pinned on Pinterest: Tested in Occupational Therapy.
(FYI - I have provided links to find some supply items. If you happen to buy from our Amazon affiliate links on this page, we earn a small commission [at no additional cost to you] that we put towards the cost of running the website. Thanks!)
This week's test was inspired by a reader who reached out to me on Facebook. She asked if I had a favorite kinetic sand recipe, and I realized I had never actually tried to make it.

I've made Cloud Dough with flour and baby oil, Floam with mixed results, and DIY therapy putty that was a little more like slime... but never kinetic sand. So, off I went to find a recipe.

Here's what I came up with:

The Supplies

Most of the recipes I found online were fairly similar, so here's the recipe I followed:

-1 Cup of Sand

-1 Tablespoon of Corn Starch

-1 Tablespoon of Water

-1 Teaspoon of Dish Soap

-A few drops (10 or so) of food coloring

(You can also add glitter if you are a glutton for cleanup punishment, or essential oils for a non-dish-soap smell.)

The Set Up

Really, you just have to mix things together. How could it go wrong? Oh, I'll be happy to tell you.

-The amount of water you add is crucial. Too much, and it's sand soup. Too little, and it's slightly wet sticky sand. Neither of which are super fun to play with and/or clean up.

-If the first tablespoon of water doesn't do the trick, you can add water a little baby teaspoon at a time until you get your desired consistency.

-I'd recommend that you mix the ingredients and let them sit for a moment before you rush to add more water. I went too fast and the mixture went from sand to soup before my very eyes. So I added in more dry sand and corn starch until (I thought) I got the consistency right. But after sitting out and playing with it for a bit, I found the sand became too dry again. I was not winning this game.

The Comparison

So, what's the big difference between the two?
Cost
A 3 pound bag of Kinetic Sand costs around $12 for the real deal, and I can get 50 pounds of sand at the hardware store for around $5 and add things from around the house.
Texture
It is similar, but not a perfect knock-off. The DIY kinetic sand does stick to itself, but also leaves a lot more residue behind. Of course, this could be a good challenge for a child working on tactile processing and tolerating mixed textures, because this version definitely scatters more.

The real kinetic sand contains fancy polymers that allow it to stick to itself, so it's more dense, more compact, and a bit more moldable. It "flows" together, where as the DIY sand was much more clumpy (or "crunchy" as the children described it).
Cleanup
Due to the fact that the consistency was a little bit different, the DIY kinetic sand required a lot more cleanup after play.

So was it fun? Yes. Did my hands turn blue from food coloring? Yes. Did it sort of resemble the original? Sure! (In those few moments when I actually had the water ratio correct!) I'll still always love the original kinetic sand, and appreciate it for its easy clean up glory, but this was a cost-effective way to create a similar sensory play experience.

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To see all of our Pinterest pins that we have put to the test in occupational therapy, click here: Pinned on Pinterest: Tested in Occupational Therapy. (FYI - I have provided links to find some supply items. If you happen to buy from our Amazon affiliate links on this page, we earn a small commission [at no additional cost to you] that we put towards the cost of running the website.

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A lovely activity to do at home. Playdough is brilliant for fine motor development.

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Some OT activity ideas from St. Joseph's Foundation

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Some OT activity ideas from St. Joseph's Foundation

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A fabulous way to develop your child's cutting skills.

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Makefine motor activities easier and simpler to do with easy materials and activities to boost fine motor skills!

Fine motor activities have been put on a back burner in this house for a bit, about a year. Now we're back on a big fine motor skills activity kick!

Which is probably a good thing.

Gross motor skills should come before fine motor skills.

Those big muscles help the little muscles!

But wow! What a difference a year makes!

You've got to try these cutting activities to build fine motor skills as well as learn to use scissors!

Last year, Henry wouldn't sit still. He didn't have any desire to do anything that didn't involve a lot of running around.

We were really into activities that promoted his gross motor skills at that time.

But recently, Henry's taken a turn and likes to focus on some of these littler things. He loves to cut especially.

Improve Kids Fine Motor Skills with 30 Materials & Activities

Now that's he's interested in these fine motor activities, what can we do?

I've gathered up some inspiration.

But, first of all, what are fine motor skills?

According to Understood.org:

"We use fine motor skills to make small movements. These movements come so naturally to most people that we usually don't think about them. Fine motor skills are complex, however. They involve the coordinated efforts of the brain and muscles, and they're built on the gross motor skills that allow us to make bigger movements."

What are examples of fine motor skills and activities?

Fine motor skills can include small movements such as:

holding a pencil

maneuvering a pencil

scissor skills

pushing Lego blocks together (and pulling them apart)

manipulating play dough

getting dressed with belts, buttons, zippers and snaps

using silverware while eating

opening and closing latches

technology/mouse manipulation

Why are fine motor skills important for a preschooler?

As you can see, many of these skills are needed in a child's (and adult's) everyday tasks.

Without having gained strength in fine motor skills, a child can suffer moving forward. They may not have the ability to do these small tasks, but they also may lack the confidence to do more advanced tasks or projects because of this inability.

You can check out the chart of fine motor development on Kidsense.org.

Are you convinced now that fine motor skills are important to focus on just a bit?

Of course, I still recommend not going crazy about it. Don't expect your kid to be able to make straight lines and hold their pencil correctly when they're two years old.

But if you notice they are lacking in their fine motor ability, there are tons of fun ways to help improve it.

The big question becomes...

"How can I improve my child's fine motor skills?"

Let's have fun with promoting their fine motor skills anytime! No need to wait until they're behind, right?

These are some supply suggestions that naturally promote fine motor through activities for preschoolers.

Materials that promote fine motor skills... and click the link (or look below) to find fine motor activities to do with them!

By the way, these would be fantastic to put together in a "fine motor kit" to have on hand.

Materials that promote fine motor skills:

Pom Poms in general are small, needing small movements to grasp them, pick them up, and move them. They are fantastic material to work on hand eye coordination.

Buttons are also small items that work great in developing fine motor skills. Picking them up works those small muscles, But the true fine motor skills comes in the act of buttoning something up, that takes some amazing finger strength and hand eye coordination.

Paper Clips are great for finger movements and manipulation. Being able to slide the clip onto a piece of paper takes a lot of concentration for kids in preschool and kindergarten.

Clothespins are a fantastic material for building finger strength. We use them a lot in our learning activities that the kids absolutely love.

Rubber Bands also work on finger strength, but in the opposite way that most materials do. These are a fantastic addition to any fine motor activity!

Tweezers take a lot of hand eye coordination to be able to operate successfully and move an item from one place to another. Try it!

Pipe Cleaners can be used as a great tool for fine motor skills. They can be threaded and poked!

Straws can be used as beads, to thread onto something! But they also work great with play dough too.

Play Dough is fantastic for building those small muscles! Kneading, pushing and rolling the dough really helps! Find out how to make homemade playdough.

Knobs and Screws (or Nuts and Bolts), any real tool from Dad's toolbox is a hit for my kids! These also take incredible hand eye coordination and concentration to be able to tighten and loosen.

Stickers are amazing! Have your child try to peel the stickers off the sticker sheet! If it's tricky, you can remove the non-sticker part of the sheet and it's still an amazing fine motor activity. And then placing the sticker on a paper also takes hand control.

Hole Punch are hard! Trust me, your child will need to work up to this amount of muscle strength in their hands before they'll be able to successfully do this. So plan to help out, but give them the chance to try!

Syringes are so much fun for kids and have the added bonus of working those small muscles in their hands with control so they don't squirt the liquid out too fast.

Eye Droppers are a fun way for kids to work on their pincer grasp. Suck it up and let it out!

Kitchen Tongs can be a great tool for working on hand strength and control. Bring them out during clean up time and I bet your child will be more willing to pick up their toys plus you get the added bonus of working on their fine motor skills.

Toothpicks are small and take a good pincer grasp to be able to hold it.

Play with these kinds of materials and your child will be working on fine motor skills without even realizing it!

Fine Motor Skills Activity Ideas

Now that you have some materials to grab and have on hand to work on fine motor skill, put them to use with some of the activities that promote them!

These activities can be done with a great variety of materials, so don't just limit yourself to what's above. Instead, use our suggestions as inspiration!

If you're struggling for younger kids to work on their fine motor skills, you may want to look into our fine motor activities for toddlers suggestions.

Below are some great fine motor activities for preschoolers to get started with.

Activities that promote fine motor skills

Certain types of activities work on fine motor skills in ways that strengthen fingers, works on hand eye coordination and helps with their precision.

Get a quick print of these materials and what to do with them here, or click the image below. Put this printout in a fine motor kit to have on hand with the supplies listed to use and you'll be set!

Check out our 32 activities that focus in on objects that help strengthen a child's hand grip.

Like I said, stock up on these fine motor materials and keep them handy. Here are some handy affiliate links to get you started: Plastic Sewing Needles for Kids, Colorful Buttons, Eye Droppers, Fiskars Pointed Scissors, Marbles, Beads.

However, keep in mind that before really you really focus in on fine motor skills, kids need to get moving and using their gross motor skills first to build up their big muscles which in turn will help support the little muscles used in fine motor activities!

What are your best tips and tricks to make fine motor activities super fun?

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Improve Kids Fine Motor Skills with 30 Materials & Activities | HOAWG

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Makefine motor activities easier and simpler to do with easy materials and activities to boost fine motor skills! Fine motor activities have been put on a back burner in this house for a bit, about a year. Now we're back on a big fine motor skills activity kick!

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Rainbow Pencil Control Exercises - The OT Toolbox

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These pencil control exercises use colored pencils to help children establish pencil control in handwriting and fluid pencil motions.

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Welcome to the Body Coach TV where I post weekly home workouts to help you get, stronger, healthier and happier.

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Its a good idea for children to write down their worries and share with someone they trust.

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The Polite Puppy, Angry Monster and Quiet Mouse. 

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The Polite Puppy, Angry Monster and Quiet Mouse. 

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I use these characters to describe assertive (polite puppy) aggressive (angry monster) and passive (quiet mouse) behaviours. I use scenarios and act out how children should behave in various scenarios. Below are the traits of each character.

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The Polite Puppy, Quiet Mouse and Angry Monster

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The Polite Puppy, Quiet Mouse and Angry Monster

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I use these characters to describe assertive (polite puppy) aggressive (angry monster) and passive (quiet mouse) behaviours. I use scenarios and act out how children should behave in various scenarios. Below are picture prompts for each character that can be printed out and coloured in by children.

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Its a good idea to have a calm corner at home. In school we have a tent with cushions and bean bags. There are posters like these on the wall. Children like to go here when they are feeling overwhelmed.

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Howard P. Wigglebottom Social Stories on YouTube. 

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Howard P. Wigglebottom Social Stories on YouTube. 

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Some excellent social stories in a lovely cartoon format. Well worth checking out.

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It is really important that children check in with their feelings daily.

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Lovely resource to fill in at home.

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Excellent guided meditation and yoga videos that are suitable for kids.

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"kids yoga" "yoga for kids" "yoga for children yoga story for kids" "children's yoga" "yoga adventure for kids" "kindergarten yoga" "preschool yoga" "kids me...

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YOGA | MINDFULNESS | RELAXATION FOR KIDS! Screentime that gives kids SUPERPOWERS! ⬇️ D O W N L O A D T H E C O S M I C K I D S A P P ⬇️ 🍏Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/cosmic-kids/ 🛍️Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cosmickids 🖥️ Desktop (great for teachers!): https://app.cosmickids.com/ 📺 Roku: https://rb.gy/44r8d -------------------------------------------------------------------- Why watch on the App?

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Welcome to our supplemental Social Emotional Learning Activities page!

As you will see below, many of the supplemental SEL activities and lesson plans include characters from our game-based, social emotional learning interventions. And when you use the online programs with your students, these activities will reinforce the learning that occurs during game play.

These supplemental resources - lessons, activities, and worksheets - are in the following SELskill areas: Communication, Cooperation, Emotion Regulation, Empathy, Impulse Control, and Social Initiation.

These resources are age-appropriate for elementary and middle school students and are typically used in a classroom or a small group setting. And in most cases, if materials are required for the activity, they are items that you already have in your classroom or office.
Note: Please share this page on your school website so other educators may also benefit.
Social Emotional Learning at Home

Additional Resources for Social Emotional Learning

Our classroom management plan is a step-by-step guide and includes proven strategies, tips and printables for elementary school teachers, and it covers four key components for establishing a successful, well-managed classroom.

These free downloadable posters will decorate your classroom and be great teaching resources, reinforcing social and emotional skills in your classroom and reminding students to practice their skills like emotion regulation, impulse control, empathy, and more.

Social Emotional Learning Quotes

For each of the topics below, we have curated a list of quotes. You can incorporate these quotes in your social emotional learning lessons, add them to social media images, create classroom posters, or write one on your whiteboard each day.

Need Something More Engaging And Effective For A Few Students?

Simply request a FREE Centervention educator account and start using our online programs!

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95 Free Social Emotional Learning Activities

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95 free social emotional learning activities, worksheets, and lessons to help students in elementary and middle school. Most are no-prep and ready to go.

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How Daniel Tiger Helps Teach Social Skills to Preschoolers |…

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Research shows kids who watch Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood have higher levels of empathy, were better at recognizing emotions, and were more confident in social situations.

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This site was created for young people, carers and professionals to pool together lots of helpful resources from across the internet that are available to help support your mental health and well-being. I hope that you find it helpful.

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This site was created for young people, carers and professionals to pool together lots of helpful resources from across the internet that are available to help support your mental health and well-being. I hope that you find it helpful.

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Duolingo is the world's most popular way to learn a language. It's 100% free, fun and science-based. Practice online on duolingo.com or on the apps!

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Take part in a variety of free training courses on our teacher development platform. Explore a range of topics, from assessing learners to planning a great lesson. Study at your own pace and communicate with other teachers from all over the world.

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A lovely resource to print out and work on.

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ESL Flashcards - Download free printable flashcards!

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We provide FREE picture cards and word cards for teaching English (or other languages) in three easy-to-print sizes. Read all about our flashcards here. Hope you enjoy!

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Check out the Green-School's Website linked below. They have activities to do at home for all of the family to get involved in.

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Following the temporary closure of schools, Green-Schools have launched their latest project Green-Schools Stay Home.

Green-Schools Officers around the country are developing new and interactive activities that students can take part in from within the home environment. Weekly activities and tips, which are suitable for a wide range of age groups, promise to be fun and educational and can be completed individually by students or involve the whole family. We've already been contacted by some of our co-ordinating teachers with positive feedback so we hope that you enjoy them too!

We love direct feedback as much as we love people sharing the creations and activities that they have made at home, based on the Green-Schools Stay Home project so let us know what you think.

#GreenSchoolsStayHome

@Greenschoolsire

Below is a schedule of what activities you can expect to see on the Projects page from each of the Green-Schools themes.

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Following the temporary closure of schools, Green-Schools have launched their latest project Green-Schools Stay Home. Green-Schools Officers around the country are developing new and interactive activities that students can take part in from within the home environment.

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Check out what's happening at the Zoo on our webcams!

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Founded by experienced speech and language therapist Jenny Lang, Speech Therapy in Real Life is a community platform for parents and educators of children with autism aged 3 to 12. Join us today for free resources such as short guides, useful videos and the opportunity to share information and ideas with other members.

Save Valuable Time: Get started right away with ideas and strategies that fit the everyday routine.

Save Money: Affordable access to specialist speech and language therapy advice.

Reduce Errors: Straightforward "How To" videos and summary sheets.

Increase Efficiency: Know that you have a wealth of resources and ideas to choose from. Never struggle for ideas or inspiration again.

Streamline: Use the suggested therapy targets in the training videos to create collaborative goals between home and school.

Course Layout

*New videos for each of the 4 sections will be added each month as voted for by our online community so that members are receiving the exact training they require. The videos listed below are what you receive access to when you first become a member of the course.

The videos are concise because I completely understand how busy parents and educators of children with autism are! They are designed with practical and inexpensive materials in mind. You can pick and choose which videos are relevant to you and the child from each of the sections below at a time and pace that suits you both.

Each video comes with a downloadable "How To" Summary sheet as well as a suggested therapy goal to measure progress in the home and school setting.
Attention and Listening Videos: Play Skills Videos: Comprehension Skills Videos: Expressive Language Skills Videos

Continuous and flexible access to concise training videos for busy parents and educators.

Targeted and effective training based on the host's years of experience of working with parents and educators of children with autism.

Downloadable "How To" and "Top Tip" summary sheets as well as suggested therapy goals for home and school.

New training videos added every month - guided by our members who can suggest what they would like to learn about most.

Affordable payment options with a choice of one off yearly payment or a subscription based payment spread across the year.

A unique support network built from a community of other learners who are developing their skills at the same time on our online forum.

It's time to make a difference... let's get started!

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About Founded by experienced speech and language therapist Jenny Lang, Speech Therapy in Real Life is a community platform for parents and educators of children with autism aged 3 to 12. Join us today for free resources such as short guides, useful videos and the opportunity to share information and ideas with other members.