Homework. Such an ugly, necessary thing. Children dislike it for obvious reasons and adults spend much time creating and copying sheets to coincide with lesson plans. I don't know about you, but I grew a few more gray hairs last year making copies, writing down last minute lists, emailing and calling parents about missing assignments, and following some students around to make sure speech and language folders made it to and from backpacks. Of course, this wasn't true for all my clients. Some students asked for extra assignments to obtain bonus points for prizes. I even heard requests for homework over holiday breaks. So, back to the copy machine.
This year, I have been trying something new: I eliminated speech and language folders and created monthly homework lists instead. I made one list for speech/ articulation and another for language drills, which I aligned with seasons and holidays since my school lesson plans are based on these topics. Our private school sends home a Wednesday envelope with notices to families, so I have been including my applicable homework paper in that folder and then asking that homework be returned with parent signature and all writing/ drawing tasks stapled to the cover page the last Wednesday of the month. You will notice that I included some numbers (4, 6, 8) at the top of each page. I thought that my younger students (Kindergarten and First Graders) could complete four activities in a month, while the oldest (Fourth and Fifth Graders) must finish eight tasks. If the directions are followed accurately, then my students pick a prize from the prize box. I had to send out email reminders the first month, but by October, I was getting some assignments turned in well before deadlines! Parents, teachers, and even students seem to enjoy this new approach. In fact, I have some students who didn't consistently turn in homework last school year completing assignments on time now!
Here are the links to my December-February Homework plans. I tried to create activities that would suit my clients in Kindergarten through Fifth Grades. This is a work in progress, so I welcome all comments and suggestions for improvement!
December Articulation Homework
December Language Homework
January Articulation Homework
January Language Homework
February Articulation Homework
February Language Homework
Happy Holidays! Hope this makes your speech life a little easier!
