Cheri Gipson
3 min
Updated: Aug 11, 2023
Use this yummy and simple recipe with your kids to target any speech therapy goals they may be working on.
Thanksgiving is right around the corner. It's one of our favorite holidays at Better Speech, because we are reminded of how thankful we are - for our colleagues and and for all of our clients. Since the spirit of the holiday is in the air, parents can start working on some Thanksgiving speech and language activities with their children while targeting any speech and language goals.
Here are some ideas to get you started.
A Taste of Thanksgiving
For anyone who enjoys the flavors of this holiday, this is a great activity. Take out some of the foods you've made during the fall season or even look at magazines from this month to see photos of many of the common holiday foods.
You can work on many different goals, such as:
Describing with Adjectives: sweet, salty, hot, cold, sour, juicy
Categories: soups, drinks, vegetables, deserts
Expanding Sentence Length: turkey > brown turkey > brown yummy turkey
Thanksgiving is a good time to teach new concepts.
It's a Family Thanksgiving
What would Thanksgiving be without the family. Even if some people can't join the festivities at your house, it doesn't mean your child shouldn't know everyone's name. Here are 2 game ideas you can play with photos of family members:
Family Bingo: print out 2 copies of each family member, turn them over and take turns matching family. You can target: memory, naming (grandma, Mary), turn taking.
Flashlight Fun: Tape photos of family members on the wall and turn out the lights. Give your child a flashlight to find the person you name. You can target: naming, giving clues ("I'm thinking of someone with a blue shirt."), following directions ("point the flashlight up")
Make a Treat
This activity is brought to you by Myia S., one of our speech therapists. She likes to make these treats with her kids and thought you would enjoy making it with yours.
You can work on:
Colors & Descriptions: orange, brown, yellow, mushy, crunchy
Following Directions: first we get the pretzels, then put the chocolate on top
Turn Taking: You get one pretzel then I get one pretzel
12 Pretzel Twists
36 Pieces of Candy Corn
12 Rolos
12 Reese's Pieces
Instructions
Preheat oven to 300. Line a baking pan with parchment paper or baking mat.
Place pretzels with the salted side down with the double rounded end pointed toward you.
Unwrap Rolo candies and place them in the center towards the top of the pretzel.
Place them in the oven until the chocolate softens, about 1 minute.
Beginning decorating by placing the candy eyeballs towards the middle, slightly towards the top, of the Rolos candy. Take a Reese's Pieces and turn it sideways and insert it below the eyes. Finally, take three pieces of candy corn and insert them along the top of the Rolos for the feathers.
Place them in the freezer to solidify. Store in an airtight container. Enjoy!
Notes
These little turkeys can be made ahead, just store in an airtight container until ready to use.
Make sure you watch your Rolos while in the oven to make sure they don't melt too much.
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About the Author
Cheri Gipson
I am a speech-language pathologist who specializes in language skills and pronunciation. I obtained my Master’s of Science degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Western Illinois University and I have worked in the field of speech pathology for over 20 years. One of the things I enjoy most is helping people learn.
In my spare time, I enjoy writing tips on how to improve online teaching for both the larger language schools and also as a private ESL teacher. Teaching is my passion, and I love seeing students make progress. Every day is a new adventure, and I am grateful for the opportunity to help people learn and grow!