Topic “Expressive Language”  

- adjective symbol boards - click here to print

- a variety of objects or pictures - click below for a selection of pictures:

     - clothes

     - animals

     - food

     - transport

     - toys

- a bag

1. Print out the adjective symbol boards.
2. Explain to your child/student that you are going to take turns to put and object/picture in the bag and give clues to the other person to guess what it is. Explain you are ging to practice using lots of different words to describe the item.
3. You go first to model how to carry out the activity. Choose and object/picture to put in the bag.
4. Give a description of the item - model using the symbol boards to find words you could use to describe the item.
5. Encourage the child to guess and then swap roles.

- A selection of photographs or pictures of objects - you could cut them out from a newspaper, magazine or catalogue.

- Paper

- Glue

- Optional - adjective symbol charts - click here to print.

- Things that go together cards - click here to print.

1. Print and cut out the things that go together cards.
2. Split the cards into two piles, making sure one of each pair is in a different pile. 
3. Lay one pile of cards on the table in front of you.
4. Explain to your child that you will take turns at choosing a card and then searching for the item that goes togeher with it.
5. You may need to model a turn.
6. When you turn the card over, name the item.
7. When you find the item that goes with it, name that item too and explain why they go togeher, e.g. 'fork and knife - you use them both to eat your dinner.
8. Continue until all the pairs have matched up.

- printable picture cards - click here

1. Print and cut out 2 copies of the picture cards.
2. Lay them face down in front of you.
3. Explain to your child that a boy is called a 'he', a girl is called a 'she' but when there is more than one person we use the word 'they'.
4. Take turns at choosing two cards to see if you have a matching pair. Name the picture according to whether it shows 'he', 'she' or 'they'.
5. When you find a matching pair, you have an extra turn.
6. The winner is the person with the most pairs at the end of the game. 

- Male female sorting symbols and pictures - click here to print

- You could also use photographs of family members, pictures from magazines/newspapers.

1. Collect together a variety of pictures showing different male and female people.
2. Cut out the sorting symbols - choose which ones you are going to start with. Some children find it easier to start with one concept at a time, e.g. boy/not boy rather than boy/girl, and adding the opposite concept once confident with the ones that have been worked on. Choose the words you are going to use with your child and stick with the same words for all the activites, e.g. boy/girl, male/female.
3. Place your pictures in a pile. Take turns at choosing a picture and sorting it into the correct pile. 
4. If your child sorts the picture into the wrong pile, talk it through with them and model placing the picture on the correct pile.
5. Play a turn taking game alongside sorting to make the activity fun.

- he/she plus action picture cards - click here to print

1. Print and cut out the he/she pictures. Choose one each of an action, e.g. don't have both the boy and girl running.

2. Spread the pictures out in front of you. You may like to play a turn taking game alongside using the pictures.

3. Ask the child a question, e.g. "who is cooking?"

4. The child points to the correct picture and says, for example, "he is" or "he is cooking".

5. You can sort the pictures into a pile of he/she.

A male doll

A female doll

A selection of different objects e.g. cup, ball.

- he/she plus action picture cards - click here to print

- he/she plus action picture cards - click here to print

- He/she lotto game boards - click here to print.

- Desired and undesired toys, other objects

To begin with hold out a liked toy and a neutral object like a piece of paper - encourage the child to reach for what they want.

When they can do this consistently hold out two toys - encourage the child to reach to choose.

- Two types of food

A male doll

A female doll

2 identical sets of items, e.g. toy food, counters, any small items.

1. Explain to the child that you are going to play a game that will help them learn 'him and 'her.

2. Set out the dolls and the items. Explain that you call the male doll 'him' and the female doll, 'her'.

3. Give you child instructions - e.g. give the cup to him, give the plate to her.

4. After a few turns, ask your child to give you an instruction using the word 'him' or 'her'.

- printable him/her sorting game - click here

Writing tools and paper

Washing up brush and bucket of water

Sand tray

Play dough

(1) Start by making big vertical strokes with a washing up brush and a pail of water outside on a fine day. Say "Down ... down"

(2) Give the brush to the child

(3) Reward any attempts to make a downward stroke for example with clapping, praise etc.

(4) Follow this procedure in the sand or in a rolled out piece of play dough etc.

(5) Use a chunky crayon (not too long) and a piece of paper. Say 'Down ......down.'

(6) Give the crayon to the child

(7) Reward success with praise or reward toys.

(8) Use a ruler to make two vertical tramlines on the page and then help the child draw between the lines in a downward motion.

(9) Draw two or three tramlines on a page well spaced - and see if the child can start at the top and draw down.

(10) Draw big dots in a downward line and make the starting off dot big and red. Model for the child drawing a downward line roughly along this line of dots. You may need to start the child off and stop half way down the line for the child to complete.

(11) Use different colours and writing tools to make the task more interesting. Reward attending to the task with social praise or a reward toy.

The materials you had in the lesson.

Picture prompts for the activities that were carried out.

Piece of card to stick the prompts onto as you do the activities in the lesson.

1. As you do the lesson, each time you do an activity, get the prompt card for the activity and put it on the card - so that the activities appear there in the same order that you did them;
2. At the end of the lesson get the students to say what activities they did;
3. Ask them which came first, then which was next, and which was next again (etc.);
4. Use the prompt cards if students are having difficulty recalling the sequence.

Breakfast food and implements, rough sketches or photos of each stage in the sequence to use as prompts.

Ideas for sequences:

Toast

1. Get the bread
2. Open the packet
3. Take out two slices
4. Put them in the toaster
5. Push down the lever
6. Wait for it to pop up
7. Take it out
8. Spread butter on them
9. (Spread jam on them)
10. Eat

Note: you can simplify the sequence - e.g. bread - toaster - spread butter. Or you could make it more complex.

Make a cup of tea

1. Fill the kettle with water
2. Switch it on
3. Wait
4. Put the teabag  the cup
5. Pour in the water
6. Wait
7. Take out the teabag and put it in the bin
8. Add milk
9. Drink

As with the toast, you can simplify this or make it more complicated!

1. Ensure that the student already knows how to do the activity - for example that they are able to make toast and spread it.
2. Get them to tell you what to do/show you what to do: initially start with a simplified sequence with 3 or 4 steps (see ideas on the left);
3. Respond to what the student indicates that you should do - but look confused if it won't work - for example if they ask you to put cold water in the tea (yuk!) to help encourage them to correct themselves: use the pictures or photos if necessary.
4. Over time, see how much of the sequence they can describe without any prompts. 

Camera to make the picture sequences (or alternatively you can draw them or use a commercial resource).

Resources as appropriate to carry out a simple sequence

Examples of sequences (with suggested steps to make pictures for):

Putting on a jumper (get jumper, put head through, put arms through);

Drinking a drink (jug and cup, pour water into the cup, drink it)

Peeling and eating a piece of fruit (fruit, peel fruit, eat it)

Sitting down and eating dinner

Drawing a picture (pencil and paper, child drawing, finished picture)

Looking at a book (get it, open it, look at it)

1. Carry out the activity without the pictures;

2. Do it again, showing the relevant picture for each part of the activity as you do it;

3. Get the child to do the sequence, tell them what to do by showing them a picture for each part of the sequence;

4. Get them to show you what to do by giving you a picture for each part of the sequence. Try to do exactly as the picture you are given indicates, for example if they give you a picture of someone blowing bubbles without having given you the step for opening the bubbles container, try to blow the bubbles anyway (and act being disappointed when you don't get any bubbles).

Sheet of paper with 3 boxes drawn on them for yesterday, today and tomorrow.

A counter.

Optional: sets of symbol cards or pictures showing a variety of activities - including activities the student may have done.

You can create symbols cards using the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint.

1. Talk about each day, one at a time. Get the student to draw or write things they have done or will do in each box. Use the picture symbols if the student is having difficulty coming up with things.

2. When you have finished, explain that there is going to be a quiz. Describe an activity and the student must say if they did it yesterday, did it today or will do it tomorrow.

3. Have them step the counter over onto the right day.

Set of three pictures - one showing a picture of a child, one showing a picture (preferably of the same person!) at a similar age to the student and one a picture of an older person. These could be photographs or drawings.

Choose three ages which are appropriate/relevant for the student.

Large 'thought clouds ' on A3 or A4 paper:

Sticky tape

Pens

Picture symbol prompts if required.

You can create symbol prompts using the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint.

Calendar

Pens

Any activity or set of activities where the student might use a schedule or have a visual timetable.

You can create a visual timetable/schedule using the Commtap Symboliser for PowerPoint.

Camera to make the picture sequences (or alternatively you can draw them or use a commercial resource).

Resources as appropriate to carry out a simple sequence

Examples of sequences:

Clean teeth: get toothpaste, open lid, get brush, squeeze toothpaste onto brush, put lid back onto toothpaste, brush teeth, spit out, put brush under water, repeat, clean brush, put brush away.

Wash hands: turn on tap, rinse hands, put soap on hands, scrub hands, rinse under water, turn tap off, dry with towel.

Brush hair: get brush, brush hair, put brush away.

Deodorant: get deodorant, take off lid, spray at appropriate area, put lid back on, put away.

1. Carry out the sequence without the pictures;

2. Do it again, showing the relevant picture for each part of the activity as you do it;

3. Get the student to do the sequence, showing them a picture for each part of the sequence as they do it;

4. Get them to show you what to do by giving you a picture for each part of the sequence. Try to do exactly as the picture you are given indicates, for example if they give you a picture of scrubbing your hands before the tap is turned on/before you have the soap, try to do this - but appear confused when this doesn't work.

Describe and look for things and actions in story books and pictures.

pictures with paper clips attached, magnetic fishing rods, 'pond' e.g. a flat box

Put cards in the box, take turns to fish for a picture, say/sign what is fished out.

Eight picture cards, small piece of paper with a fish drawn on it

Pictures of everyday objects, background pictures (Black Sheep Sentence Builder and Narrative Packs have some good ones)

Pictures of everyday objects from class and outside. A blank jotter book

Pictures of everyday objects from class and outside

Optional - way of recording students responses - e.g. paper/pen, whiteboard/marker

1. Go round each student in turn asking what they have done today - e.g. "what did you do this morning": ideally one or two things each.
2. Write and/or sketch something (very roughly!!) under each student's name on the sheet of paper (you can use this as a prompt later).
3. After all students have said something, pretend to have "forotten" what they'd said - ask individual students to remind you, for example "Karen, what did Abdul do?" - use the prompt sheet if necessary.

Optional - way of recording students responses - e.g. paper/pen, whiteboard/marker

Soft ball or beanbag