Language Games/Activities/Ideas for Teenagers

Activities for Inclusion

Syntax & Morphology:
Sentence Scramble: Make a list of about 30
sentences containing clauses, phrases, after,
before, passive voice, emphatic verbs, etc.
Some examples:
He fixed the roof after it leaked.
We ate dinner after we went to the movie.
I fed the dog before I took him for a walk.
The boy was followed by the girl.
The boy gave the girl an ice cream.
Didn't you put the book up?
Use index cards to make scrambled
sentences. Using the first sentence example,
you would write "he fixed" on one card, "the
roof" on another, "after" on another, "it" on a
card, "leaked" on the last. This particular
sentence makes about 4 possible sentences,
(the roof leaked after he fixed it, he fixed the
roof after it leaked, after the roof leaked he
fixed it, after he fixed the roof, it leaked,)so on
the bottom corner of one of the cards, write a
small '4.' I paper clip each 'set' of cards that
belong together. Once you have a bunch of
these sets, 30 or so, you can place them in a
manilla envelop. On your day of inclusion, split
your kids into groups of 3. Give each group
about 5 sets of sentence scrambles. Each
group must get the same number of possible
sentences. I do it this way: First, I pass out a
set of cards that makes 2 possible sentences
to each group of kids. Second, I pass out sets
of cards that make 4 possible sentences, etc.
Then I instruct each group they will need one
piece of paper and one pen per group. Each
group unscrambles the sentences and writes
down all possible sentences. If you want to
add an element of competitiveness, you can
give points to the group that gets the highest
percentage correct.
UNDER CONSTRUCTION--- this site will
undergo additions and changes within the next
few days. I'm still adding activities... 9-4-4.
Figurative Language
Idioms Bingo: I use this in inclusion high


Language Games
Who Am I?: Each person has a piece of paper
pinned to her back or taped to her forehead
which contains the name of a famous person or
character. By asking questions which can only
be answered "yes" or "no," such as "Am I alive?"
or "Am I fictional?" each person has to guess his
or her name.
Guest of the Party: Three people are taken out
of the room and each is given a card describing
a person (personality, characteristic). A fourth
person is nominated host and must guess the
personality or characteristic as each person
enters the "party" within a certain time frame.
I Have Never...: Each person receives several
counters (pennies) and sits in a circle. Each
takes turns around the circle, telling of
something he has never done. For example, "I
have never broken a bone," or "I have never
traveled out of the country." Anyone who has
done this must give the speaker 1 of the tokens.
After going around the circle several times, the
person with the most tokens wins.
Scavenger Hunt: Split a group into 2 and give
each a list of language items to complete, find or
define, etc. For example, the list may include
"List 2 nouns." and "Define in everyday words
the word _________." or "Write a complete
sentence using the word until." Kids can use the
library, internet, teachers, etc.
Memory Game: Place target vocabulary words
or pictures on a table and cover them with a
cloth. Remove the cloth for 60 seconds and let
the students study them and then replace the
cloth. Then have each try to draw or write each
picture or word in 30 seconds.
Grapevine: Whisper a target sentence in one
person's ear, each person must whisper it
exactly as they heard it, to the next person. No
repetitions are aloud. The last person to hear it,
says it out loud to see if it matches the original.

school classrooms. I group the students in
groups of 2 or 3 and pass out idioms or figures
of speech on index cards, 1 idiom/card, to
each group. I give each group about 5 cards.
Then I give the definition for one of them and
each group goes through their cards to see if
they have the right idiom. The group that has
the correct idiom gives me their card. The first
to rid themselves of all their idiom cards, gets
the "Bingo."
Publish a Teen Magazine
Use the following ideas to publish a teen
magazine. Teen magazine sites can be
found online and some I use can be
accessed by clicking on this link.... Write a
Why-Me Story: Have your students write a
story about their most mortifying moment.
Write a So-bad story: Have your students
write a story about something "so bad" that
they have done.
Teen Quiz: Your students can answer a teen
quiz from a magazine or an online magazine.
This is a motivating activity for students that
need experience answering questions.
Write a Poem: Students can read poetry
written by other teens and then write their own.
They may even submit their poems to online
teen magazines.
Movie Star Interview: Have a student or
group of students write questions they'd like to
ask their favorite movie star. Have them then
assume that stars character and answer the
questions.
Preparing for the Real World: Have students
write an article detailing the steps in sequence
for such events as preparing for the prom, job
searching, studying for finals, etc.
Teen Fiction: Also available in teen
magazines are works of fiction written by
teenagers. Have students read these stories to
meet goals such as paraphrasing, re-telling
events, detailing characters, etc. The material
should be more motivating and usually easier
to read. Also, after reading a short story by a
teen, have them write their own short stories.
10 Tips Article: Have your teens read an
article typically found in teen magazines, such
as "Ten Types of Guys to Avoid" and then
have them write their own. Some ideas may
include: dealing with his phone dysfunction,
handling a flirtatous boyfriend or girlfriend,
dating disasters, get him/her to notice you,
finding the right guy/girl for you, ways to blow
a date, things guys/girls don't want to hear.
Song Spot Light: Have students bring the
lyrics to a song and use these to define
unknown vocabulary, explain figurative
language, paraphrase or summarize the
meaning of the song. Students can write a
critique of the song for the magazine. Students
can also play a guessing game with several
songs they've worked on. Give each student a
card with the song title written on the card and
each takes turns summarizing and describing
the song without giving the title away. Other
students have to guess which song is beig
described.
Mom Disasters: Help your students write a
story about how Mom totally embarrassed
them, spoiled thier fun, etc.
Horror-scope: Students can write tongue-in-
cheek horoscopes for their friends or a
teacher.
Pro-Con Column: Select a topic for a pair of
students to write opposing columns for. Keep
topics concrete for students with learning and
language disorders. Topics, such as the death
penalty, may be too abstract and too far
removed from their lives. Use topics such as
the dress code, lunch menu, jocks-- good or
evil?, best superhero, prom royalty, summer
vs winter break, etc.
Recipes: If you're as lucky as I am to live in
such a culture rich state such as New Mexico,
have your students bring their favorite recipes
for publication in their teen magazine. They
have to write a short paragraph explaining the
significance of their recipe, such as, "My mom,
my tia and I always make this recipe for
tamales every Christmas. It takes a lot of
practice to make tamales right, but it's a labor
of love and a family tradition."
After your articles are written and typed up,
have students then make up a table of
contents and lay-out the magazine. Artistic
students can illustrate for stories and
articles and design the cover.






Activities/Games/Ideas for Articulation Therapy
Games & Activities for
Articulation Cards
HIDE & SEEK: Clinician hides the cards and
the client finds them, says them each using
good sounds.
MYSTERY PICK: Clinician chooses a
winning card, places the card back in the
deck, shuffles and fans the cards out. Clients
take turns selecting cards, saying the word
on the card. The one who picks the winning
card gets a sticker.
BEAN BAG TOSS: Place the cards in a row
on the floor. Select a winning card. Have
client stand a few feet back and try to toss
the bag on the winning card. The client must
say the word on the card that the bag lands
on.
FISHING FOR WORDS OR NUMBERS:
You can do this two ways. Either use a
fishing pole with a magnet to pick up cards
with paper clips attached, or use the pole to
pick up fish with numbers on them. The
number indicates how many words they
have to say.
RACE FOR CANDIES: Turn artic cards
upside down in 1 row per player. The clients
have to turn over a card, say the word
correctly and move to the next card. If they
misarticulate they have to stop and repeat
the word until they get it right. At the end of
the rows of cards is a prize, such as candy
or a sticker.
GUESS WHAT!: Cover an artic card with a
plain index card and slowly unveil it. The
client has to guess (and correctly articulate
the word) before the picture is totally
revealed.
PICK 2: The client selects 2 cards from the
deck at random and has to put both in 1
sentence that makes sense and with correct
articulation.
ARTICU-BOWL: Attach cards to bowling
pins and have the client bowl over the pins.
As s/he picks the pins up, s/he must
correctly articulate each word attached to the
pins.
MEMORY LINE-UP: Place 3, 4, 5 cards in a
row, have the client say the words, then
close his/her eyes while you switch the
Other Games & Activities for
Articulation
PASS A BALL:Take turns rolling a ball back and
forth, each person has to think of a new target
word and articulate that correctly.
BALLOON BOUNCE: Bounce a balloon and try to
keep it in the air. Each time the client hits the
balloon s/he has to articulate the target sound or
word correctly.
BOARD GAMES: These are so simple to make.
Just pick a theme and draw a game board on
poster board. For example, one game board I
have is a mouse and a sleeping cat. A cheese trail
goes around the cat to the mouse hole. The kids
simply role the dice and go that many cheese
pieces towards the mouse hole. The number they
role is the number of words or phrases that the
child has to articulate correctly.
ARTIC WORD SEARCH: Use the following link to
make word searches and crossword puzzles.
Other ideas I have tried and
found to be successful!!
SOUND COLLAGE: I do this in the first few days
of therapy, when I am trying to get my kids to
know their target sounds and be able to identify
words that contain their sound. We search through
old magazines looking for pictures of things that
have their target sound. We talk about whether the
sound is in the beginning, end or middle of the
word, etc. The children then glue all the pictures
on a large piece of construction paper to make a
collage that is displayed in the therapy room for
several weeks.
DISPLAY FOR ARTIC LEVEL: I like to have a
bulletin board with a theme that displays the level
of articulation (isolation, words, sentences, etc.)
that each child is on. For example, one year I used
a rainbow with clouds. Above the rainbow, in a
banner, was a sign that said "I can say my sounds
. . ." Then on each cloud I wrote a speech level:
"in isolation, in words, in sentences, while reading,
in the therapy room, all the time!" Each child has
his or her name on a rain drop which can be
moved from cloud to cloud as s/he achieves a
level.
order. S/he must put them back in order and
say them again.
ARTIC AIM: Use a gun that shoots spinners
(plastic ones are about a dollar at major
discount stores) to try and hit a card. The
client has to correctly articulate the one s/he
is aiming for and then hits.
TWISTER ARTIC: Toss several artic cards
in the air. Instruct the client to place as many
body parts (elbows, hands, fingers, nose,
etc) on as many cards as s/he can. S/he
must say each one that s/he touches.
PICTURE GUESS: Two teams take turns
selecting a card from the deck and then
drawing the picture. The other team must try
to guess what the target word is and
correctly articulate it.
PSYCHIC ARTIC: Show clients 2 or 3 cards,
shuffle these and pass them out. They each
must each take turns trying to guess which
card you or the other players have. (this can
be a good language-naming game too)

















Fluency Disorders

Definitions
Stuttering: speech
characterized by an abnormal
frequency and/or duration of
stoppages in the forward flow
of speech.
Characteristis
Repetitions: of sound,
syllables, or one-syllable
words, such as "Too-too-too-
tooth."
Prolongations: of sounds,
such as "Sssssssound."
Blocks:of airflow and/or
voicing in speech, such as
"happy-----------birthday."

Fluency Therapy

CLUE: Place several cards in a row. Give one clue at a time about a
card. The client that guesses it with the fewest clues wins.
CIRCLE GAME: Place cards in a circle and have clients sit at a card.
A bean bag is tossed to a player who says the word or a description
of the card in front of him/her and then tosses the bag to someone
else.
LOW LEVEL CATEGORIZING: Display cards of a category, clothing
for example. Then say a sentence that the client has to finish by
selecting the correct card. For example, the client should pick the hat
picture if you say "I am looking for a piece of clothing you can wear
on your head!"
CROSSWORD PUZZLES: Use the following link to make a
crossword puzzle using descriptions for clues.
SPIN AND DESCRIBE: To make the spinnner: Cut a large circle from
cardboard. Use a marker to divide the circle into 8 triangular parts like
a pie. Repeat this process on a white piece of paper. Cut out one
triangle from the paper to use as a pattern. Use the pattern to make
triangular "pie pieces" from different colored construction paper. Glue
the colored pie pieces onto the cardboard circle. Use pointed scissors
to poke a hole through the middle. You can then make a pointer out
of lamenated construction paper or cardboard. In the office supplies
department of your grocery store you will find metal (usually gold)
tabs with bendable "legs." Use one of these to attach your pointer to
the spinner. Now label each triangular pie piece with the following:
use, category, color, smell, taste, size, etc. Or any type of descriptor
you want your students to learn. Have your students select a picture
card and then take turns using the spinner and giving the appropriate
answer.
HIDE-N-SEEK: Place a number of picture cards in front of the
student. Show them a sticker and instruct the student to close his/her
eyes while you hide it. Give the student clues (descriptions) one at a
time until s/he selects the correct picture. For a group of students
simply have them take turns. Once the correct picture is selected the
student wins the sticker underneath.
Semantics & Word Relationships
OPPOSITES & SYNONYMS: Using a puppet, tell the student that
you have a grouchy puppet and whatever you say he says the
opposite. "If I say it's big, he'll say it's little!" Let the student be the
puppet and then say "If I say it's good, what does the puppet say?".
(Rhea Paul, Language Disorders, 2001)