If you’re a pediatric Speech Language Pathologist looking for fun Garden themed speech therapy ideas, keep on reading!
There is something about digging in the dirt and watching something grow that preschoolers, kindergarteners and early elementary students just LOVE.
Putting together a themed speech therapy session doesn't have to be expensive or time consuming. A combination of book, game, toy, movement activity, and hands on activity can make a quick theme come together!
Here are some fun and engaging therapy activities you can use in your speech therapy sessions.
Games:
Jumping Jack: This game might not have come straight to mind when you think of a preschool gardening theme, but it has carrots - and that's good enough for me! Remember, you don't have to overthink when creating a theme!
You can pair this game with my Speech Therapy Game and Toy Companions so you can target ANY goal (over 60 goals included, covering articulation, phonology, apraxia, language and more!) .
It includes all of this games (and waaayy more- over ONE HUNDRED) as well as some of my favorite toys!
Books:
Plant the Tiny Seed: A fun and interactive book that keeps even the busiest preschoolers engaged in story time.
Lola Plants a garden: A cute book all about planting and creating a garden,
Sensory Bin:
A Garden Themed sensory bin will be a hit in your therapy room! A mix of seeds, rocks, and soil (if you're brave) will create an inviting play based activity for your students. I like to throw in some little pots and gardening toys (you can usually find these at Dollar Stores).
If you want to start using sensory bins in speech therapy, but have no idea where to start, make sure to check out these blog posts “Making Sensory Bins on a Budget” and snag this free list of sensory bin fillers!
I also have a one stop product that includes labels, manipulatives, visuals and open ended scenes for over 30 themes - including gardening!! You can check out my Thematic Sensory Bin Product here.
Drill Activity
If you need a little bit of structure to get loads of trials - make sure to incorporate an activity that keeps your students engaged and encourages lots of practice. One of my favourites is this Themed Drill Sheet. Paired with mini erasers, mini objects, or a dry eraser maker this activity will keep your students practicing and engaged the entire time (honestly, I don’t understand why - but it’s true!). You can write in your own targets or use any of the over 60 goal strips included covering receptive language, expressive language, articulation, phonology and more!
Speech Therapy Spinners: Includes over120 and 180 spinners, including ! Includes themed vocabulary and loads of expressive langauge, receptive language, articulation and phonology goals!
Movement Activities
If your preschoolers are anything like mine, they NEED to move in speech. Here are some of my favorite preschool movement activity to use in speech therapy.
Flower Says: One of my easy (and no prep) ways to incorporate movement is to play a variation of “Simon Says”. For a Garden theme, you can play “Flower Says”. You can make the game as complex or simple as suitable for your student.
Spring Feed and Move: A feeding game with a twist! You and your student take turns spinning the spinner and doing the action towards the garden items to feed them a themed snack! Don’t drop the snack or you will have to start again! There are loads of therapy ideas included so you will be able to use it with your entire caseload! It also includes other winter characters so you can use it for a long time! I love to pair this game with any Garden themed book and pretend to feed the Garden characters!
Hopefully you find this list of ideas helpful and you can put them into use in your therapy room!
Interested in more play based therapy ideas, access to freebies (like the ones below) and special offers?
