I love teacher workdays or any day when there is an assembly (usually I'm the last person to know about them) or field trips (again, last person to know). Why?
I actually manage to get quite a bit of paperwork done and organize my room a bit. I spend roughly an hour and a half getting therapy materials straightened, re-organized, and cleaned on workdays. I use the rest of the day to listen to children's music as I try to get through as much Medicaid billing as possible. When I was doing my school placement, I really didn't get the opportunity to do much of the paperwork beyond writing the daily session notes. The amount of time it takes to bill Medicaid, write the various IEP/evaluation paperwork, update SOAP note forms, update Plans of Care, and review the upcoming due dates is still astounding to me. You could probably have a full time job just doing the paperwork alone as sad as it is to say. If you are still a student, enjoy this time wisely as it will pass all too soon and you will learn the realities of being a "grown-up" CCC-SLP quickly.
Today, I managed to get the majority of my Medicaid billing done (yay! Only 4 more students to go over Thanksgiving). I also updated all of my SOAP note forms, changed Plans of Care to reflect 3 new IEPs, wrote an evaluation report, doubled checked a DEC 3 (evaluation form for a meeting), and wrote up a new IEP. My manipulatives are happily sorted out again and my closet looks in much better shape. I consider all of this to be easily worth a victory dance considering how badly my room was looking pre-workday and post-ASHA. It really doesn't sound like much in a list, but that is how life goes sometimes in the schools. I'm quite thankful for the rare opportunities I have to catch up on some of this stuff.
I decided to try another recent EC teacher inspiration and write down all of my upcoming IEP dates on a laminated file folder. I labeled sticky notes with the months and simply wrote down names under the month they are due. It's a great and easy way to get organized if you don't have the tendency to stress out.
Coming this April/May 2013 courtesy of 16 IEPs. Images
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! My thoughts go out to everyone traveling or unable to spend the holiday with their loved ones.
As someone who enjoys articulation therapy, I have wanted a decent visual of the mouth that no mirror can truly provide for some time now. Brilliant ideas of making one out of felt have crossed my mind multiple times over the past year and a half. I'm afraid the results would probably be a disaster so I decided to wait until I could find something on ebay or on sale.
Super Duper offered a 20% off discount at ASHA. I'm still a little irked about the 50% sales decreasing to 30% off sales. However, I found a mini version of the Mighty Mouth that was within my $10 and under budget. (It actually ended up being cheaper than the knock-off versions on eBay.)
I practiced with it after school hours today just to get used to the different hand positions I'll need to use during sessions. The great thing about this product is that it is small. I can easily transport it in my cart and it fits my hand well. You also receive instructions on how to position your hand in the puppet for different sounds. The positions are a little awkward so I did end up using it more like a model than a puppet towards the end. It really didn't matter much to the students. They found it immensely fascinating and couldn't wait to touch it. In a perfect world, I would probably have the Mega Mighty Mouth version and use this for my inclusion groups. However, this puppet can easily stand alone. Thank you, Super Duper!
Another cool thing I saw at the Convention is a product by Creative Speech Products. It's called Teddy Talker. It basically is a felt board of a bear with different mouth pieces that you can use to show how our mouths look when we make sounds. You can also get mouth position cards and reinforcement rhymes. I loved the concept and think it's perfect for the preschool population. It also aligns with kindergarten Common Core standards according to the website. Again, it was way out of my budget but I enjoyed the demonstration.
P.S. I pretty much drooled over Super Duper's new Ring Bling game. It looks great, but I was terrified that I would run out of money for food in Atlanta. (Did I mention that they charge for everything?) It may just be the jewelry geek in me but I think my students would really love that game. The colors are very vibrant and the tasks that I read are fun things that my frazzled brain can't figure out. Here's to hoping that Super Duper will offer it on special in the near future.
I'm happily back from my "once in a lifetime experience" (depending on the district's future budgets) in Atlanta. I thought I would take a break from playing with my sulky cats to share some of my thoughts on the event.
We stayed at the Marriott Marquis
Outside though I never really got to see it from this perspective.
Inside looking down at the lobbies. (Yes, multiple lobbies which was confusing)
General Observations about Atlanta:
1) Almost every street in downtown seemed to have Peachtree in the name.
2) It's very easy to get lost in downtown even with a GPS and directions from the hotel.
3) There are lots of homeless people. Didn't appreciate two of them calling after us with the following "Hey, you think you're Sex in the City...." Ugh. Always walk with a group of people.
4) It's really pretty at night but rather ugly in the day.
5) It's REALLY expensive.
The Convention
I hate to say it, but I was really disappointed on the first day of the convention. The courses that I went to were more like sales pitches than useful information. Products are not the reason why I wanted to go to the convention. I want information that can help me as a practitioner, particularly as a young clinician. I wasn't the only one in the group to feel that way either. I guess next time I know to avoid the classes that aren't packed full of people. The best part of that day was going to the exhibit hall with our contract CF and grabbing lots of freebies. The majority of the things we collected were bags (I will probably never need another bag in my life) and pens. We got a thumball from one booth that I can't wait to use in therapy for adjectives and these stretchy yo-yo things that will be good for the calm down kit.
The strangest thing I saw at the exhibit hall. You can tear along the perforation to give your nose room. It's clearly geared towards the medical crowd but I thought I would share. You can see all sorts of things at the Convention.
The second day was much better and I did feel like I learned useful information. I particularly enjoyed the course on pediatric voice disorders as that is something that I don't have much knowledge about. It is rare to run across those students in the schools but having more knowledge about strategies makes me a happier person. I also loved the Building Better Readers course with Shari Robertson. It was chalked full of awesome ideas and makes me feel better about loving books so much for all of my groups. I found a link to handouts here that are similar to what she shared at the convention.
We had the opportunity to talk to another North Carolinian at dinner on Friday. It was her 4th convention and she shared some helpful advice. Go to sessions on things you know nothing about to avoid being disappointed. I wish I had known this sooner, but it's definitely advice I plan to use in the future. My biggest piece of advice is to bring plenty of Germ-X and some cold medicine as germs are rampant (and I definitely have a sore throat now). Go to the classes that are full and avoid the ones that aren't like the plague.
P.S. The boxed lunches at ASHA were kind of weird. I definitely would not have picked that food given a choice. In fact, I would suggest buying something else for lunch as that gives you freedom even though it might take away some of the convenience.
I'll be gone for ASHA the rest of the week. Before I leave, I wanted to share some of the recent goodies I picked up at the Dollar Tree....
1) First up, fake cell phones to work on social skills and articulation. I envision my groups using these to "phone a friend" and practice either their sounds or greetings/closures/information gathering. My students enjoy role play and I love the fact that these phones look somewhat realistic versus my Disney princess phone (the boys usually make a fuss when I pull it out lol). They have two types in several different colors (black, purple, and bright pink). My only suggestion is to tape the tie cord in the back rather than pulling it out as the sounds they make are annoying. I learned the hard way with the first one I opened.
2) Pirate figurines. I figured these will be good for pirate social stories for my older students. (You could also do superhero social stories, which I hope to do once I gather up enough of those.) Pirates have to find ways to get along on those long journeys in between raiding ships after all. The fact that they all look angry is a bonus...well, guys Interrupting Issac bothered the Captain while he was busy giving orders for the next raid. Captains are very busy and do not like being interrupted.
3) Bendy puzzle for my calm down box.
4) Disney Princess figurines which will go into the phonics box collection. (I sense that figurines have become my latest "toolbox" obsession. They can be used to describe similarities and differences if the student is familiar with the stories.
5) Magnetic words/letters/numbers. I plan on using these on the school's MagneTalk board.
They also have echo mics in stock if you are on the hunt. I picked up a spare pink one to end the perpetual fighting among the girls.
P.S.
Walmart has hedbandz on sale for those of you who haven't seen the sales ad yet. I scooped up that along with the fibber game at my local Walmart.
It's a bit more than my preferred price of $2-4 dollars, but I couldn't pass up the chance to buy them new for under $10 a piece. (Plus, my local goodwill has decided to up the price of their games to $5 a piece which means I won't be buying as many.)
Can't seem to get this song out of my head. However, I did have Chicka Chicka Boom Boom stuck on replay last week so I guess my tastes have at least reverted back to adult.
The thankful statuses are trending on Facebook once again...I decided I would just post mine to the blog.
1) I'm thankful to have a job when so many other people are struggling to find one and make ends meet in the meantime.
2) I'm thankful to have a job that I enjoy (asides from billing Medicaid).
3) I'm thankful for my college & graduate school education.
4) I'm thankful for my parents who have suffered through the good times & the bad. They have gone above and beyond to make sure I managed to find my footing in this world with a good head on my shoulders.
5) I'm thankful for good friends who bring me out of my work-driven mindset and inspire me with their aspirations.
6) I'm thankful for my cats, particular my best kitty buddy, who take my mind off of work.
7) I'm thankful for my blog. It's nice to be able to record my experiences and track my growth. I also love the fact that I get to interact with other SLPs.
8) I'm thankful for the veterans and soldiers who have put their lives on the line for this country.
9) I'm thankful for electricity.
10) I'm thankful for cookbooks with lots of yummy recipes (though not so thankful for their ability to increase my pant size)
11) I'm thankful for doctors.
12) I'm thankful for teachers.
13) I'm thankful for Realtor.com enabling me to dream about my future house (whenever I actually manage to earn enough money to buy a house)
14) I'm thankful for books.
15) I'm thankful for libraries.
16) I'm thankful for music (with the exception of rap & country music)
17) I'm thankful for HGTV. You helped me survive graduate school.
18) I'm thankful for vintage costume jewelry.
19) I'm thankful for national landmarks & historic sites like the Blue Ridge Parkway and Old Salem
20) I'm thankful that I live in North Carolina where the beach and mountains are never far away.
21) I'm thankful for getting the chance to go to the ASHA convention
22) I'm thankful for thrift stores.
23) I'm thankful for construction paper and washable markers.
24) I'm thankful for glasses even though I hate wearing them.
25) I'm thankful for good and bad experiences alike as both teach important lessons.
26) I'm thankful for having something to believe in that is greater than me.
27) I'm thankful for the right to vote no matter the outcome.
28) I'm thankful for Grey's anatomy.
29) I'm thankful for fleece p.j.s
30) I'm thankful for Blistex.
My beautiful alma mater in the heart of Old Salem.
One of my all-time favorite movies that I watch to relieve the stress.
For those of you who may not have noticed, I don't really talk much about my facebook page even though one does exist. It's just not high on my priority list unlike most bloggers. I prefer to focus my attention on the blog and my pinterest page. Recently, I reached the 600 follower mark on pinterest and decided that a celebration was in order. What's more perfect than cupcakes that will just so happen to go along with the wonderful "If you give a cat a cupcake" book?
Cupcakes!
Includes:
star cupcakes for categories
white cupcakes for multiple meaning words
cherry cupcakes for wh- questions
red cupcakes for /k/ articulation tasks using pictures.
These cards look perfect in my latest Goodwill find....
It's a cake from Edible Arrangements. I'm not sure what treats were originally stored in the container, but I could not resist the 1.99 price tag. What kid doesn't love cake? (Perfect to hold manipulative objects for all of my friends learning to produce the /k/ sound or categorization.)
I have quite a few students who love animals of all kinds. It is so funny to see their little faces light up when I pull out animal books, puppets, & figurines. Motivation= success.
You can buy a copy of the book at Amazon or look for it at a thrift store like me.
