Meet Your Classmates
Goals
- Improve social skills
- learn turn-taking
Tools
How to Play
- Send home a questionnaire for student’s family to fill out (e.g. favorite activity,
favorite food, number of siblings, types of pets, etc.) - Record each students’ information from the family onto their communicator. In class, put each student’s name or photo on the Switch Spinner.
- Choose a student to activate the Switch Spinner. The student selected by the Spinner plays their recorded information. Once the student is finished, remove their photo from the Switch Spinner. Repeat the activity until all students have participated.
Treasure Hunt
Goals
- Practice giving instructions
- Use appropriate directional words
- Remember where the object is placed and how it relates to the “finder”
Tools
- Fun objects to hide
- 7 Level Communication Builder #7075B or Cheap Talk 8 #1391Â or 32 Message Communication #3206
How to Play
- One child is the “instructor” another is the “finder”
- Record directional vocabulary into the communicator and add appropriate icons – (Example: “turn left”, “go straight”, “you’re getting close”, etc.)
- Hide the object and show the “instructor” the hiding place.
- “Instructor” gives directional messages to the “finder”
Farm Animals
Goals
- Identify farm animals and their sounds
- Match animal sounds to animal pictures
Tools
- Plastic farm animals or animal pictures and/or a book about animals
- Cheap Talk 8 – 6 levels #2391 or 7-level Communication Builder #7075B
How to Play
- On the communicator, record animal names on one level and add appropriate icons
- On communicator, record animal noises on a second level and add appropriate icons
- Read a story about animals and ask the student to either choose what animal is shown or what noise the animal makes
- If the story has a repeated phrase, record it. Have students activate the phrase at the appropriate time in the story (e.g. The book Mrs. Wishy Washy’s Farm – Repeated phrase is “Wishy Washy”)
Food Shopping
Goals
- Practice grocery shopping and life skills
- Identify specific food items
Tools
- Plastic food on shelves
- 7 Level Communication Builder #7075B or Cheap Talk 8 #2391
How to Play
- Record different phrases about food items that student can ask for in the “store” (Example: “Where is the cheese?” “Can I have the bread, please?”) or
- Show the student a food item and have them match it by playing the message
Fast Food
Goals
- Increase communication and social interaction
- Develop choice making
- Practice life skills
Tools
How to Play
- Create a fast food restaurant in your classroom with a counter, printed menu and plastic foods such as hamburgers, fries, etc.
- One student acts as an order taker and others as customers. Customers line up and take turns placing orders. Record appropriate messages: Order taker: “What would you like to order?” Customer: “I would like a hamburger and fries”
Community Helpers
Goals
- Learn about jobs that people have in the community
- Learn about health and safety
- Improve social skills and interaction
Tools
- Dolls or plastic figures and photos of doctors, firefighters, police officers, etc
- Adapted toy vehicles used by helpers Stunt Car #3092, Wheelie #9323
- Adaptive switch – Gumball Switch #782R, Cheap Talk 8 #2391 or 7 Level Communication Builder #7075B
How to Play
- Identify community helpers and their roles – Record descriptions of helpers on
the communication device and place appropriate icons on message squares. - Show one of the figures and ask students to select and play the appropriate
message. - Attach adaptive switches to helpers vehicles. Show one of the figures and ask
students to select and activate appropriate vehicles.
Simon Says
Goals
- Learn parts of the body
- Develop social skills
- Promote leadership skills
- Learn to give and take instructions
Tools
- Cheap Talk 8 #2391 or 7 Level Communication Builder #7075B
- Icons of various parts of the body
How to Play
- Record directions such as “Simon says touch your nose”, etc. on the
communicator. Place appropriate picture icons on appropriate message squares - One student acts as Simon, others respond to the directions. Change roles as
appropriate
Stop and Go
Goals
- Learn cause and effect and the concept of stop and go
- Develop basic AAC skills
- Participate in movement
Tools
How to Play
- Record “Stop” and “Go” on the Talkable 2
- Attach the Talkable 2 to wheelchair tray or swing using the EZ Mount Tray
- Child activates Talkable 2 to instruct adult to move or stop the wheelchair or swing
Go Fish
Goals
- Teach core vocabulary
- Develop social skills including turn-taking
- Encourage conversation
Tools
- 32 Message Communicator #3206
- 2 copies of Go Fish cards each with a vocabulary word and picture
How to Play
- Place icons on the communicator for each object on the playing cards. Record
messages about object. Also record three additional messages: “Do you have
a…” “Yes” and “Go Fish” on the communicator. - Deal the cards (5 to each player). Have Player 1 use the communicator to ask for a card. Pass the communicator to player asked and they choose the appropriate answer – Yes or Go Fish. Continue playing Go Fish until all matches are made.
Let’s Cook
Goals
- Improving the use of an AAC device
- Learning to ask questions and follow directions
Tools
- 32 Message Communicator #3206
- Simple recipe, ingredients and equipment
How to Play
- Record messages on the communicator related to cooking and recipe (e.g., I
need…a bowl, I need…flour) Record answers to questions such as how many
cups of flour do you need? - Record messages about food tastes (e.g., sweet, salty, hot, cold, etc.)
- After cooking, taste the food and ask students to comment on how it tastes.
Find a Word
Goals
- Improve AAC use
- Develop recognition of sight words
- Learn turn taking
- Increase social interaction and team building
Tools
- 32 Message Communicators #3206
- Variety of sight words on index cards
- Timer
How to Play
- Record all sight words on the communicator and use matching icons
- Divide students into 2 teams
- Team 1 goes first. Show a random card and start the timer. If Team 1 plays the
correct message to match the card before the timer goes off, they get a point. If the timer goes off before the correct message is selected, Team 2 gets a chance to “steal” - Continue until you are out of words or a point goal is reached
Reporter
Goals
- Improving Communication and social skills
- Asking appropriate questions
Tools
How to Play
- Record messages on communicator appropriate to the event (e.g., Interviewing students about a topic for the school newspaper)
- Reporter goes to interviews accompanied by a helper. Reporter asks questions with their communicator and helper takes notes
