October 2021: "Monster Madness"

by Heidi Martino January 18, 2022

TPT Seller of the Month

Our October TPT Seller of the Month is Katja @bohospeechie! Purchasers of the Monster Madness received this fun AAC monster-themed Boom Deck from Katja in their inbox! Don't worry - if you missed it, you can grab one for yourself by clicking the image below!

Half Match: Monster Edition

My students (and my own kids!) loved this fun Monster-matching game from @mindsthatplay well past Halloween! Monsters are a year-round kid-fav, let's be honest. There are so many fun ways to use this product for a variety of ages and goals, in small groups or individual sessions.

- Preschoolers: Each child has their own card. Lay out 3-5 other cards and tell how each one is the same or different than their card (or their friends' cards). Practice describing colors, shapes, body parts, type of designs, etc.

- School Aged: Play like "Go Fish" - Each player has 5 cards and had to ask other player questions like, "do you have the green monster with one eye?" in order to make as many matches as possible.

Target goals like: asking questions, describing, and listening for details. This activity could easily be used to target AAC goals, too!

Speech Circle - Monsters

There are few things more motivating to a preschooler than using a magnifying glass, right? The ladies at @sparkleofspeech included 10 digital activities to use with the Speech Circle, just for purchasers of the Monster Madness Cube! Which one was your favorite? We'd love to hear!

Mini Monster Highlighters

They're tiny. They're scented. They have monster faces. Your students will absolutely love to use these mini monster highlighters from @weareooly as a motivator when working on that articulation worksheet!

Monster Snack Keeper

The ways to use this cute monster container are endless! You can use mini objects or small pictures to practice:

- Core words: in, out, like, eat, more, yes, no
- Labeling and expanding sentences: "Monster eats a ____"
- Giving opinions and asking questions: "The monster likes pizza. Do you like pizza?" or "I don't like onions. Yuck!"
- Articulation: the monster eats the words with your sound!

Sequencing Cards

This month our @thesparkinnovations sequencing set is "Raking the Leaves" or "Carving a Pumpkin." These are perfect fall topics to get students to access their background knowledge and share what they know. Cards come with WH or inferential question prompts. Sequencing cards are great activities for warm ups, or as an independent activity for one student when you need individual time with another group member. I love using these cards for quarterly language samples!

Fisher's Pumpkin Spice Caramel Popcorn

Was this the first thing you opened in your Monster Madness Cube?? No, just me? There is nothing better than Fisher's Popcorn. Unfortunately this snack didn't transport me right to Ocean City, but a Maryland Girl can dream. Enjoy this treat!

"Same" and "Different" Visuals

These "same" and "different" visuals are a great companion to both the Half Match: Monster Edition and the Speech Circle - Monsters games. You can grab some for yourself by clicking the image above!