Go – Have your student say “go” to ask you to blow up a balloon.
Stop – Have your student direct you to “stop” when the balloon is big enough.
Big/Little – Allow your student to make choices about how big he/she wants you to blow the balloon.
Go up/down – Have your student direct you to let the balloon go in different directions. "Go fast/slow." – Allow your student to direct the speed of the balloon-blowing by using these simple adverbs.
Pop it – If your student likes the noise, let him/her direct you to pop the balloon. (e.g. “1, 2, 3, Go!”)
Help - Model for you student how to ask for help. Throughout activities, have the student ask for help when needed.
Read the book “Up, Up, Up!” Encourage your student to find the words as they appear in the story.
Red words are from the 25 Core Word Starter set; yellow words are others you may decide to teach as well. Model the words the student can’t find.You can also encourage them to ask for help when needed.
Have your student use the writing template to create a book all about balloons. They can use target vocabulary or find other words on their device to complete the story. Be sure to have your student use their device to read their story out loud to someone.
Connect the device to the computer using a USB cable or Bluetooth adaptor. Let the student use his/her device to write the target vocabulary. Be sure to make the font large. Print out the words for your student.
If you are using WordPower (Saltillo or TouchChat), save the person’s writing using Stories and Scripts within the vocabulary. Learn more about this feature here.
Bubble Wrap Game - Print out the game board and cover with a piece of bubble wrap with the large bubbles. Ask your student to find the icons on his/her device. The student gets to pop each bubble once he/she finds the word. The student can ask for help if they can't find a word. Model the word and then ask them to try again.
Balloon Model Rockets - Start by tying one end of the string to the back of a chair. Thread a drinking straw onto the other end of the string, and then tie the string to the second chair. Attach 2 pieces of tape (about 2 inches in length) to the center of the straw. Next, inflate a balloon. (Don’t tie the end.) Holding onto the opening of the balloon (so the air doesn’t escape), attach it to the straw using the tape. Pull the balloon to one end of the string (so that the opening of the balloon is touching one of the chairs) and let go. Observe what happens. The balloon should start to move as soon as you let go of it. Have the student practice the target vocabulary during the activity. He/she can say “go” when you let go, “stop” when the activity is over, “up” if you move the string up high, and “down” if you try it with the string going down.
Water Balloon Words – Fill the water balloons. Write one target vocabulary word on each balloon. Print out the target icons. You may want to put the pages in page protectors or laminate them so they last longer. Take the balloons outside. Find a nice place to play, like on a lawn, that can get wet. Spread out the hula hoops and put a target icon in each one. Have your student choose a balloon and read the word out loud to him/her. Have the student determine which icon goes with the word. He/she can then throw the balloon and try to hit the icon. This is a fun way to practice core vocabulary. You can give the student a variety of icon choices based on his/her ability. One student may get two icon choices, another may be able handle more. If you don’t have hula hoops, you can use other materials or just attach the icons to the ground.
Watch “Pocoyo’s Balloon.” Have the student use his/her device to describe what is happening in the video.
Here is another fun video your students can sing along with up/down as target words. Up, Up, Up in my Silver Balloon.
Can-Do Cards are fun, motivational activities the entire family can do to help your child improve their communication skills. Most activities will fit nicely into your daily family routines.
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Common Core Standards
Below are references to the Common Core Standards organized by grade level and associated with the goals and objectives of this lesson plan. When considering which standards to target in your lessons with students, begin by looking at the standards at your student’s grade level. You may need to refer to that same standard at a lower grade level to adapt your lesson to best meet the needs of your student.