Speech Therapy Review For Students

As the school year draws to a close, it is a good time to review with our students. I like to take time to fill out an end of the year review form with each student who can do so. This information helps me get a better understanding of the student's thoughts and feelings about therapy. 

Can the student define at least one of their therapy goals? Can the student tell me one thing they can do to help maintain progress over the summer? 

A year in review sheet is a great way to gauge the student's favorite and least favorite part of therapy. We cannot always change things that students don't like, but at least we can have this information and try to make things more positive for all involved. 

I hope you enjoy this year in review form! I will be using it with my students soon!! To grab your copy just fill out the form below. 

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What I am thankful for this year!

Wow what a whirlwind year it has been for me. I am sure that many of you feel the same way. Working and being a mom to three little ones makes the days whip right on by. I am so very thankful for a loving family and for a career where every day my goal is to help others.

I am thankful this year for so many things, but wanted to share the top 5 things I am thankful for.

1.  I am thankful for my loving family. I have three little ones and seeing them grow everyday has been such a blessing and joy. One highlight was taking them to the beach this summer on an airplane. It was quite the experience. Stressful for us but something they still talk about often, even after the sun has faded away. Going to every soccer game, basketball game and gymnastics class is a joy!

2.  I am thankful for the opportunity to live close to family and see them often. We lived for 3 years in Austin, Texas. While that was a wonderful experience and I made many friends while being there, I missed being close to my family. Watching my kids bond with my parents, brothers, sister, nieces, nephew and other family has been so wonderful!

3.  I am thankful for the opportunity to collaborate with other professionals, some from very far away. I have been working with groups of speech language pathologists here in the United States and some in countries far from Ohio. Being able to talk with and discuss effective communication services for students with autism has been very rewarding. We all want to help our students become more independent communicators and I feel lucky to have the opportunity to help in this way. Learn more about these services here.

4.  I am thankful for the journey I have been on with creating the action builder cards. Having an idea that would help other professionals provide systematic language instruction with ease has been a dream of mine for the past year. Sticking with the process and developing this product has been a dream come true! I have learned so much in the process. Thinking of that first promo video I made and the first samples I created makes me cringe!! I have come a long way in a year- but know that I have much more to learn. Knowing that other professionals are using this product to help their students is beyond words!! Learn more about the cards here.

5.   I am thankful for the support of my husband. For he knows a lot more about webinars, product development, blogs, Facebook live and TPT then he ever really wanted to learn!! I love sharing what is going on in my therapy room with all of you. Collaboration is key to life long learning! Thanks so much for being on this journey with me. You are appreciated!!

What are you thankful for this year? Pop on over to subscribe to my email at www.abaspeech.org and leave me a message J

Halloween Therapy Ideas

I love Halloween! I am sure that most of you reading this also love the holidays. There are so many fun ways to work on communication around Halloween. I wanted to take some time today and give you a peak inside my Halloween inspired therapy activities.

I am a big fan of using real pictures in therapy. So whether I am working with younger or older students, I always make sure that the pictures that I use are real photographs. I find that for younger and older students alike, these types of pictures are often times more engaging. Also when I am working with older students who may have more intense language needs, they are an age appropriate way to deliver services.

One adapted story that my students have really enjoyed using is Let's Talk About Halloween. This story can be printed out and bound like a book, shown on an ipad, used on a computer or put on a smart board. It is so wonderful because it allows the students to fill in the blanks along the way for shared reading. After we are done reading the book, I read aloud fill in the blank phrases about the story. The students can practice using the vocabulary from the story to help recall details. If I am working with students who are working on answering and asking social questions, I ask them the questions at the end of the story. Having a conversation about what we will be for Halloween and what candy is our favorite is always fun to do during therapy.

When I am working with younger students or my own children at home (I have 3), we love to read Llama Llama. This is such a delightful and easy read, especially for younger students who may not want to sit for an entire book reading. 

When I am finished reading this story, I like to play The Monster Mash. This is an oldie but goodie and one that my students seem to enjoy. I like to play this version. 

One last activity that is great for labeling and sentence construction involves some pictures and a 99-cent pumpkin from the dollar store. I put the pictures in the pumpkin and tell the students that we will take turns picking and describing what we pull from the pumpkin. This activity works on so many skills: taking turns, cooperative group work, labeling an item (pumpkin), sentence construction (I picked a pumpkin, I have a pumpkin), waiting, etc.… And who doesn’t love any activity with this super cute pumpkin!

Hope these ideas infuse some fun into your therapy sessions. Happy Halloween from my therapy room to yours!

ABA and Speech Pathology- My Journey and a ABA Glossary

Hello everyone! Thanks for stopping by. If you are new here, my name is Rose Griffin. I am a speech language pathologist and a board certified behavior analyst. This is my very first blog post and I am so excited that you are here! * I hope that when you get to the end of the article that you will download the free applied behavior analysis glossary I have developed for all of you! *

I wanted to start my first blog by discussing my professional journey. I get asked a lot about that and wanted to tell you a little about me and how I can help you in your every day practice.

I remember working with my graduate school mentor during my school experience like it was yesterday ( it was about 15 years ago!). I loved working with all of the students, but especially the students with autism. There was something so challenging about getting the students to attend, but when they did and you were able to help them learn something new, the feeling was so amazing! Ever since that part of my journey, I have picked positions along the way that allowed me to specialize in working with students with autism and other complex communication disorders.

I made life long friends in my 3 years working at the Cleveland Clinic Center for Autism. I loved my time working down in Austin, Texas as an Autism Facilitator and Support Specialist. It was in this position where I was able to collaborate with an amazing staff of SLPs. I would speak at their monthly staff meetings about topics related to effective treatment for students with autism. I would also visit and work with them in their individual buildings. I loved seeing all of the great things they were doing for kids and being able to share this with and among therapists. It was during this time that I completed my coursework for my BCBA through UNT. I was supervised by a wonderful BCBA, took the dreaded BCBA exam and passed! Hooray I was elated. And so it began this journey as a SLP/BCBA.

Fast forward six years later and here we are! I am now a proud momma of 3 little ones, wife, slp/bcba, creator of the action builder cards and newbie TPT store owner. I started this blogging journey because I wanted to get good information out to other professionals who may be feeling frustrated or overwhelmed by working with students with autism and other complex communication disorders. So know that the information that I post in my blog will be relevant, effective and functional for your caseload. Let me help you provide systematic language instruction with ease!


A great first step on this journey is learning more about the basic concepts involved with applied behavior analysis. I hope that you will sign up to receive an aba glossary I have created. Sign up below.

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