Lazy Speech Therapist Virtual Friday Hints

I wrote on Facebook awhile ago that Virtual Speech therapy fridays are the best because it is “Business on top and a pajama party on the bottom.”  Today I’ve been super lazy and haven’t even changed out of my comfy red polka-dotted bottoms.

In honor of my laziness today, here are 6 fun, easy and FREE ways to engage your online student when you are TOO lazy to find an awesome website or game to share.

VIRTUAL HIGH FIVES:

Why not celebrate success with a virtual high five.  For this, you both just give your webcam and “five” and it kind of looks like you are both giving a high five.

VIRTUAL Rock, paper and scissors
Most of the time, students can work to play a fun game like Angry Birds or explore on Poptropica.  Sometimes we run out of time.  Then it is time for virtual rock, paper, scissors.  This is played like the regular version of rock, paper, scissors but there is extra hilarity as players try to position their hands correctly in the webcam.

NEAR/FAR:
For this game, practice some words while you are realllllllllly close to the webcam then move farther away.

YOU SAID IT:
This game works equally well in both virtual and traditional speech therapy sessions.  During sentence level articulation practice, I will make up a silly sentence like: “I love to eat dollars” or “Thor is my best friend.”  Once the student repeats it, then I attempt to engage them in a conversation, “Really?  I didn’t know that,” or “I don’t think it is a good idea to eat dollars.”

VIRTUAL CATCH
Who doesn’t like a game of pretend catch.  I like to pretend like the ball went way up high and I can’t catch it or that the ball hit me in the head when they throw it to me.  Since it’s virtual catch, it’s okay to throw the ball overhand really hard too.

FALL OVER
It’s pretty funny just to pretend like you fell over in the middle of a session.  If you are a trained mime, pretending to be in the “webcam box” would be hilarious.  I wonder how many trained mimes are also Speech language pathologists.  Variations of falling over include: Sinking in quick sand, riding the elevator and walking up/down the stairs.