Search
User login
Topic “Small group”
Contains activities or strategies suitable for a small group.
Activities to develop use the pronoun 'I' to refer to self
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Mystery bag of objects - Bag - Different objects | 1. Offer the bag of objects to the child to choose an item. 2. As the child pulls out an object, model the phrase the child needs to use e.g. 'I have got the ...'. 3. You take out an object. Say 'I have got the ...'. 4. You want the child to copy your phrase and use the word 'I'. You may need to tell the child 'Copy my words'. 5. Keep doing this activity until the child can use the standard phrase 'I have got the...'. Reward the child for success with a smile or a sticker. | You could say to the child 'this is a copying game!' Keep the pace up during this activity and keep the phrase you want the child to copy the same each time to make it easier for the child to remember and get it right and so get the reward. |
| Pretend to visit a shop | ||
| Copy the action! |
Activities to develop sentences containing a subject + verb + object
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Tea party - Soft toys - Play food and kitchen items - Optional camera | 1. Start by playing with the cutlery and play food. Eat some food yourself and say 'I'm eating banana/ apple/ bread' etc. 2. Let the child play with the food. As he/she eats say 'Sally's eating a banana/ an apple/ some bread' etc. 3. You take photos of the child, you, or the soft toys eating/drinking different items. 4. Print the photo and put it in a book. Show the child the book. Can he/she respond when you ask 'What's happening?' You may need to model the answer for the child for example 'Teddy's eating an apple/ banana/ bread' etc. | Keep language repetitive - emphasize structure It is OK to have silence between repeats of the phrases. If the child makes a sentence and puts the words in the wrong order try to model the correct sentence in a conversational way rather than correcting them (e.g. if they say, 'Teddy apple eat' you say 'Oh, Teddy's eating an apple!'). You are working on the child getting the words in the right order here, don't worry if they miss out endings (like "ing") or small words (like "a"). So the child saying "Teddy eat apple" is fine for this activity. The child may need to hear correct versions of the sentences many times before they are able to use them themselves. Using signs with the key words (e.g. Teddy, apple, eat) can also help the child to develop this skill. |
| Posting | If the child makes a sentence and puts the words in the wrong order try to model the correct sentence in a conversational way rather than correcting them (e.g. if they say, 'She hair brush' you say 'Oh, she's brushing her hair!'). You are working on the child getting the words in the right order here, don't worry if they miss out endings (like "ing") or small words (like "a"). So the child saying "She brush hair" is fine for this activity. The child may need to hear correct versions of the sentences many times before they are able to use them themselves. Using signs with the key words (e.g. she, brush, hair) can also help the child to develop this skill. | |
| Dice Game |
Use picture and verbal information to answer questions
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Everyday situation with a picture and a story A picture of an everyday event, or social setting e.g. crossing the road, or going to the cinema. A story to go with the picture (no more than 5 or 6 sentences). Or See the resource sheets in 'Language for Thinking' (LfT) by Parsons and Branagan (Published by Speechmark). If using this publication, use Module 1 and level A questions. This programme has questions for a range of ability levels. | 1. Choose a scenario picture. 2. Show the children the picture and read the story to them. 3. Focus on questions where the child looks for the answer in the picture and just uses a little background knowledge. E.g. 'Find one that is....', 'When did...', 'What does this do?' 'What else is an X? etc. | If a child gives a short answer, prompt them to expand it. If the child finds these questions easy, use some questions that require more working out and understanding of the context e.g. 'What will happen next?' 'How else could he do it? ("LfT level B" questions if you are using this publication). |
To be able to name items from different categories
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Think of a... Game - category dice - click here to print or - category cards - click here to print - if you do not have a printer you could make your own. - normal dice (optional) | 1. Print and cut out the catgeory cards and/or dice. You can make your own if you do not have access to a printer. 2. Explain to your child you are going to play a game where you think of items from different categories, e.g. 'animals' - you might say 'cat'. 3. Choose either the category dice or cards to play with. 4. Roll the dice or choose a card. The person has to name an item from that category. If the same category comes up later in the game, you need to think of a different item. You may want to keep a list of the items that have been named as a reminder.
| To make the game harder, when you roll the category dice, or choose the category card, roll a normal dice to give you a number of item to name from that partiucalar category. |
| How many can I think of? - Pen and paper | Count up the number of suggestions the child has made. Next time you do the activity, the child can try to beat their score. |
Three key word expression
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Shopping games: Everyday objects, bag. | The child is asked to go and 'buy' two and then three items. He/she must name or sign each item he wants. Use pictures or symbols as a 'shopping list'. | |
| Posting Two boxes, one with a picture of a monkey, another with a picture of cat. Cut a posting hole where the mouths are. Play food. | Introduce the monkey and cat saying they are very hungry. Give instructions to the children such as 'Give Monkey the apple', 'Give the cat the banana and the ice cream'. Comment on what happened, for example 'Monkey ate the apple'. Give the child a go at saying what you should do. | Encourage the child to give up to three key words by simply looking puzzled if you haven't got enough information. You could also ask questions such as 'Who shall I feed the apple to?', 'What shall I give the monkey?' if he doesn't give enough information. |
| Picnic Tea-set, play food, doll, teddy. | ||
| Animals and actions At least two toy animals or dolls, for example a doll, a teddy, a rabbit. Prompt cards for actions the animals can do if needed. You can make symbol prompt cards using the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint. | If the child doesn't use all three key words, you can try saying what the animal is doing but getting a bit wrong (so they can correct you), for example, if they say "rabbit's jumping", you can say "oh...rabbit's jumping on the banana?" (there is no banana). The child may correct you, e.g. "rabbit's jumping on the table!" - though they might say "no, table!" - which conversationally is equally OK. They are more likely to use more words if you get more of it wrong, e.g. "oh, Teddy's sleeping on the banana!" To make this easier you could ask for example "Is rabbit jumping on the banana" or "Is the teddy sitting in the house" (here you've changed all the words for your alternative choice, but you could try having less differences in the choice and see what happens. If the child just accepts your incorrect statement, you can pretend to pause and think for a while, and then say "Oh, rabbit's jumping on the table!" (Getting it correct this time). IMPORTANT: you should try and use as many different verbal support strategies as you can in order to help the child say the target sentence. In general, you should try and avoid getting the child to simply repeat what you say as this will be much less effective for helping them to learn how to create the target sentence for themselves. | |
| Cafe Dolls/ teddies, tea set, play dough in two colours, cutters. | When the child is the waiter if they don't select the right cookie repeat the key information that has been missed. When the child is ordering look puzzled if they don't give you enough information. When the child can do this easily try asking for big, blue square cookies etc. | |
| Stories using miniatures Play people, bricks, etc. as required Can be done 1:1 or in a small group Suggestions for stories: 1. dad, mum, baby, bike, bricks: dad: bye bye baby, bye, bye mum, etc., gets on bike, drives into bricks, falls off; 2. helicopter rescue: helicopter comes and rescues those on an island; 3. dog eats picnic when others aren't looking; 4. fire!: children spot a fire in a building - make a story about what they do next; 5. swim across crocodile infested river. | Give minimal prompts to help the child keep the story going. See also activities English Reading and English Writing P8 for picture sequencing activities. | |
| News Paper and pen/pencil for adult. | ||
| Big/little (or small) food Big and small pictures of food items (for example from board maker, clipart, etc or enlarge/decrease pictures on the photocopier) 2 posting boxes, each with a picture of an animal on the front - you could use the animal's mouth for the slot; or 2 hand puppets with opening mouths | Check to see whether the child uses the word "little" or "small", then use the same word. Don't have too many different foods available at once, as that will be confusing. You can put more pictures out as the foods are 'eaten'. |
Three key word expression with adjectives
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Develop use of adjectives in 3 word phrases: wet/dry Symbols for the above adjectives Pens, spoons, bricks and a bowl of water You can find symbols for adjectives in the Commtap Symboliser. | 1.Start by using objects. Collect a group of things which can get wet safely e.g. pens, spoons, lego bricks and put some in a bowl of water and some on the table near by. 2. Use the symbols for wet/dry and categorise the objects according to whether they are wet or dry. 3. Make a mistake sometimes and see if the child can catch you out! 4.Point out things in the child's everyday environment which are wet and dry 5.Can you give the child choices e.g 'Do you want a wet or a dry plate at dinner?' | The child needs to learn by experiencing real things which are wet and noisy etc. Move on to using pictures of the adjectives when the child is familiar with real life situations Teach adjectives in their pairs by pointing out the contrast between one and the other. Extend understanding by generalising the target words into the child's everyday environment. |
| Develop use of adjectives in 3 word phrases: More/less Soft toys Pretend food Cups of juice Cups and a jug of water Pasta/beans Blue-tak and pictures Play-dough and pots | ||
| Develop use of adjectives in 3 word phrases: Quiet/noisy Drum and shakers and bells Symbols Picture books You can find symbols for adjectives in the Commtap Symboliser. | ||
| Develop use of adjectives in 3 word phrases: Wet/dry, More/less, Quiet/noisy Miniature figures for role play |
Use and understand regular plurals
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Understanding of plurals Use not more than 6 items of things that have regular plural forms, for example, key(s), cup(s), ball(s), sock(s) | 1. Put groups of each of the objects on one table, and single items of each on another table. 2. Point to each item or group of items, and name each, saying, for example, 'Here are the keys,' 3. Get the child to respond by indicating (eye/finger/head pointing or gesture) when you ask 'Where are the cups?' 4. Praise him when he does this correctly. 5. Then move on to the next item, e.g. 'Where is the Key? ' | Ensure that you use the full sentence when asking the child to respond, even though you are only wanting the child to respond to the actual noun plural / singular. |
| Pen and paper game Sheet showing a mixture of single items and groups of the same items (if laminated, this can be reused) Pen or pencil (use a whiteboard pen if your sheet is laminated) | ||
| To use singular and plural regular nouns correctly Follow on from the previous activity where the child is indicating his understanding of which objects are plural / singular. Not more than 6 different objects, as above The things should be laid out as for the comprehension exercise above. | Don't worry about whether the child uses a full sentence: the focus is on getting the word with the correct plural ending. |
Make phrases in past tense
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| What have you done today? Paper, pens or pencil (for adult only) | 1. Go round each person in the group including the adults asking them for two things they have already done that day; 2. For each person write their name on the sheet and a key word for each activity they have done along with a very rough picture to help the children remember what each person did; 3. Each person then takes it in turns to recall what one other person has done today - using the pictures to help them to remember. | If a child does not use a correct past tense, for example "Terry do writing", just feed back the correct way of saying it in a conversational way, for example "oh, Terry did some writing?". |
| Picture sequencing activities See target sheet "sequences three or more pictures" Note - the activities shown there are at a slightly higher level than this one - so only use them if appropriate for the children you are working with. | Correct mistakes in the past tense in the same way as above. | |
| Action description Set of cards with simple present tense verb pictures on (e.g. "jumping", "writing"). | As above. |
Make phrases in past tense using irregular verbs 2
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Picture sequencing activities See target sheet "sequences three or more pictures" Note, the activities there are at a slightly higher level than this one - so only use them if appropriate for the children you are working with. Focus on actions which uses a selection of the verbs from "common irregular past tense verbs" on www.commtap.org - or verbs which the child is having difficulties with. | Ask the child to recall parts of the sequence they have been working with. | If a child does not use a correct past tense, for example "Terry do writing", just feed back the correct way of saying it in a conversational way, for example "oh, Terry wrote something?". |
| Action description Set of cards with simple present tense verb pictures on (e.g. "cutting", "writing"): try to include some verbs that you know the child needs to work on. See: "common irregular past tense verbs" on www.commtap.org for a list of irregular past tense verbs. | If a child does not use a correct past tense, for example "Terry do writing", just feed back the correct way of saying it in a conversational way, for example "oh, Terry wrote something?". | |
| Reading books Reading book | ||
| Reading verbs This activity is for children who can read. Set of cards with the present tense on one side (e.g. run) and the past tense on the other side (ran). Symbol software (such as the Commtap Symboliser) which illustrates the verb and adds an extra qualifier for the past is very useful. See: "common irregular past tense verbs" on www.commtap.org for a list of irregular past tense verbs. | ||
| Write sentences This activity is for children who can write.
Pictures (to be stuck in a book) which show actions using verbs you want to work on: for example from Flash-pro CD, clip art, Google or Yahoo images See this list of common irregular past tense verbs on www.commtap.org. Book Glue Pen/pencil |
Make phrases in past tense using irregular verbs 1
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| What have you done today with visual timetable Paper, pens or pencil (for adult only), photos of events that have happened during the day (optional) See this list of common irregular past tense verbs for some examples. (http:en.commtap.org/content/common-irregular-past-tense-verbs) | 1. Make a visual timetable by writing or drawing each past day's activities on a board/sheet so that the child can see what happened. It can bring the past tense more alive if you use photos of activities that did actually happen on the previous day or earlier in the current day. 2. Ask 'What did you do here?' as you point to a picture/photo. The child may say 'Rided my bike.' You can confirm with 'Yes, you rode your bike.' Add emphasis to the correct form of the verb. You can invite the child to say rode. | It is very common for young children to acquire a few irregular past tenses for very common verbs (e.g. went). Then they seem to pick up the -ed rule and suddenly the went becomes wented. This will normally sort itself out. You will also hear goed. However, many verbs with irregular past tense forms don't emerge and some concerted practice is needed. Don't correct all day long - the child will often be quite sure he said it right! Until you have done the practice in the special activities, you can use the correct form yourself in confirmation e.g. the child says 'I eated all my cabbage' and you can say 'You ate all of it? That's fantastic.' |
| Lotto Lotto boards with pictures of activities the children have done recently - say four or six pictures per board. One board per child. Matching set of picture cards. If the boards are in black and white and the picture cards are in colour, this makes the game more rewarding. | You can vary how you play this game - this is one way you can do it. For the first game, you can be the caller, for subsequent games a child can have a go. 1. The caller takes a card. Ask the child to complete this sentence at each turn (using the verb in their picture): 'Yesterday, I ...' (For example: 'Yesterday I rode my bike.'). You could use a question, such as "What did you do yesterday?", "What did Max do yesterday?" 2. The child who's got it says they have got it, and they get the card; 3. Continue until all the boards are covered up. | The child may say 'Rided my bike.' You can confirm with 'Yes, you rode your bike.' Add emphasis to the correct form of the verb. You can invite the child to say rode - be sensitive if you do this, and don't repeatedly ask the child to say this. |
| Pairs Two matching sets of pictures of activities the children have done recently - say 20 cards in all. | You might need to prompt with a question, such as "What did you do yesterday?", "What did Max do this morning?". The child may say, for example, 'Rided my bike.' You can confirm with 'Yes, you rode your bike.' Add emphasis to the correct form of the verb. You can invite the child to say rode - be sensitive if you do this, and don't repeatedly ask the child to say this. | |
| Simon Says See this list of common irregular past tense verbs for some examples. (http:en.commtap.org/content/common-irregular-past-tense-verbs) | The child may say, for example, 'falled' You can confirm with 'Yes, you fell.' Add emphasis to the correct form of the verb. You can invite the child to say fell - be sensitive if you do this, and don't repeatedly ask the child to say this. | |
| What have you done today? Paper, pens or pencil (for adult only) See this list of common irregular past tense verbs for some examples. (http:en.commtap.org/content/common-irregular-past-tense-verbs) | If a child does not use a correct past tense, for example "Terry do writing", just feed back the correct way of saying it in a conversational way, for example "oh, Terry wrote something?". For this activity, when it is your turn, try to use an example with an irregular past tense verb (see below) particularly one which you know the child is having difficulty with. However do NOT force the child to think of something they have done which involves an irregular verb - accept, and conversationally correct whatever they say. You can do step 1 with one child as well as in a group. | |
| Retell a sequence Props to support a sequence of actions you will perform (optional) See this list of common irregular past tense verbs for some examples. (http:en.commtap.org/content/common-irregular-past-tense-verbs) | To make this activity a bit easier, you could make a memory jogger with action pictures lined up. The child may say, for example, 'you buyed milk' You can confirm with 'Yes, I bought some milk.' Add emphasis to the correct form of the verb. You can invite the child to say bought - be sensitive if you do this, and don't repeatedly ask the child to say the word. |
Contribute information appropriately in one to one or in small groups
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Dice Games A selection of pictures of different items, stuck on card A large dice | Play in a small group of children. Each child takes a turn to pick a card. S/he rolls the dice, and then tells the group as many points about his/her picture as the number on the dice. (e.g. if s/he has a picture of a train and rolls a 3, s/he tells the group 3 things about a train) | Choose items of interest to the children. Instead of talking about a picture, the children can talk about themselves, or each other, or things they did yesterday. |
| 'Who am I?' game Strips of paper/card to make headbands Sticky tape Blutac Pictures of clothes, animals and toys / furniture stuck on card | You may need to help the children think about the questions they ask, so that they don't just guess at what they are. E.g. have a photocopied sheet of all the pictures, put into their groups - clothes, animals and toys. Prompt the children to ask first e.g. 'am I an animal?' If you want to make it harder, you can put a limit on the number of questions each child can ask. |
Use facial expression to support meaning
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Role Play with finger puppets Finger puppets Pictures of people using facial expressions for: -arguing -angry -comforting -directing -instructing -questioning | 1. Sit children in a circle; 2. Show children the arguing face card and ask them to copy it. Explain that this is an arguing face and demonstrate this with the finger puppets; 3. Repeat with all the other cards one by one; 4. Children select a finger puppet. Ask pupils to show the appropriate facial expression to the finger puppet when a card is selected. | Some facial expressions look very similar, so they will need to be supported by the appropriate gesture, e.g. pointing |
| Matching facial expression cards Multiple copies of cards showing: -arguing -angry -comforting -directing -instructing -questioning | Some facial expressions look very similar, so they will need to be supported by the appropriate gesture, e.g. pointing | |
| Match facial expression cards to actions the puppets are doing Finger puppets Pictures of people using facial expressions for: -arguing -angry -comforting -directing -instructing -questioning | Some facial expressions look very similar, so they will need to be supported by the appropriate gesture, e.g. pointing |
Act out and name simple actions.
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Lotto games Cards of simple actions Action lotto boards | The children have a lotto board each. You pull out a card, or have them take turns to pull out a card. If they have that action, they must say it or act it out to claim the card. The child who fills their board first wins. | |
| Posting games pictures of simple actions, post box | Take a picture of an action, say or act out what it is, and post it | Give the pupil time to name the action. Help them by giving a prompt (e.g. a forced alternative, the first sound. or the word or sign to repeat) |
| Fishing game pictures with paper clips attached, magnetic fishing rods, 'pond' e.g. a flat box | Give the pupil time to name the object. Help them by giving a prompt (e.g. a forced alternative, the first sound. or the word or sign to repeat) | |
| 'Hide the fish' Eight picture cards, small piece of paper with a fish drawn on it | ||
| Guess the mime Picture cards of actions | ||
| Story books and pictures | ||
| Do the actions Symbols or pictures of four or six actions, such as 'jump', 'stand up', 'hand on your head', 'make a big smile'. You can get picture symbols from the Commtap Symboliser. |
Joins in small group for rhyme or stories
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome | Sing a welcome song or gently tap a drum and say the names of children as you welcome all the children to the group or use a puppet to welcome children with a wave etc. | Being a good singer is not important. You just need to enjoy the activity ! Other forms of welcome are fine if singing is not for you! |
| Define group rules | Use pictures to make things clear. | |
| Singing a song A song choosing board with pictures to represent the songs you want to sing velcroed onto a board | Use lots of gesture and facial expression. Repetition is important and children like it. | |
| A story activity | Same approach as for the singing activity. | |
| Good bye time |
Use two key word phrases to give instructions
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Barrier games Felt sheets (e.g. "Funky Foam") in basic colours. Digital camera. Examples of other materials you could use: small coloured bricks in different shapes with some proportionately sized cars or animals; small soft toys with plastic food items. How to make the game: 1. Choose your subject e.g. house & setting; face; person with top, trousers & shoes. 2. Make a simple pattern and cut the main features from the felt in two or more different colours e.g. 2 walls, 2 roofs, etc. (with garden items too if required). 3. Set up one house on a neutral background and photograph from above. 4. Change one feature and photograph again. Carry on until you have a set with a variety of combinations (10 cards or more). It is much easier to take the photos with extra background and edit them to fit 4 per A4 page afterwards. Avoid flash if any of your items are shiny. 5. Do not make the pictures too complicated and have some really simple ones, for example one just consisting of a red car, or one containing a flower and a tree; 6. Print your pictures on lightweight card. 7. Keep pictures and the materials used in a box together! | 1. This game is best played in pairs; 2. Introduce the game by turning over a picture so the child/children can also see it; 3. Show them how to copy the picture using the materials: describe the picture using two word phrases as you do it; 4. Turn over another picture for a child to have a go; 5. Once you are sure the children understand how to make their "picture", turn over another card but this time describe what's on the card (with two word phrases) for them to make a picture/scene; 6. Players take it in turns to take a card and say what is on it so the other person can make it with their materials; 7. Many pictures can be described with two-word phrases e.g. blue eyes/ smiley mouth; green house/ yellow door; big brick/ car | Make sure that the children understand all the vocabulary you are using before starting this game. A barrier game like this (where one player gives essential information to the other) demands that the speaker gives clear instructions. The listener has to understand, and do something (which the speaker can assess as being correct or not). The game lets the adult judge just how clearly the child is speaking! As the adult player, be careful you construct what the child is describing facing the child. Most young children cannot check the construction against their photo if it isn't facing them - the adult must make the adjustment! This idea can be adapted to work on: colour and noun; size and noun; number and shape; preposition and shape; and increased in complexity by adding in more detail e.g. if there are big blue eyes and small blue eyes; a metal car and a wooden car. |
Support Commtap to keep it online
Thank you for visiting Commtap.
Commtap needs £5,000 per year to cover its basic running costs, we only have £1,000 left. Please make a donation now.
Please read this message as it is extremely important.
- Visitor donations mean we can continue to host over 1,000 free activities to support speech, language, and communication development.
- Visitor donations mean we can continue to provide free resources to address a wide range of communication needs, including limited speech or language, interaction challenges, and needs associated with conditions such as developmental language disorder, autism, and cerebral palsy.
- Visitor donations mean we can continue to provide resources to support the work of speech and language therapists, teachers, teaching assistants, parents, and carers.
It costs £5,000 a year to cover Commtap's basic day-to-day running costs. We have £1,000 left.
Right now, less than 1% of Commtap's visitors pay anything towards the running of the site.
We know that not everyone is able to afford to pay to access these resources, however, if you can, please make a minimum donation of £10 to keep the site going.
Thank you
Google ads on this page are provided by Google Adsense - and their presence does not imply any endorsement by Commtap. Report a problem with an ad on this page. Log in (for free) to avoid seeing Google ads.
