Deck of Cards DIY Fun!

During the summertime, I try to browse dollar stores, Target Dollar Spot, and other discount shops for fun finds and to get inspiration.  Well...I was just browsing my local CVS Pharmacy and spotted a display of card decks.  Of course, I thought of some summer fun that could be had with grabbing a fun, full, and new deck of cards.  But then I wondered...can I use cards in my speech room without the "gambling" aspect?  YES!!

Here are some ideas that I came up with...

Drilling:

• Students can pick a card, the number can represent the amount of times they must produce their target sound.
• You can make a "key" and each number, color, or suit can represent a different task.  For example:
• Diamonds represent expressing at the sentence level.
• All reds represent that students must express a synonym pair and blacks represent antonyms.
• Following directions: it can be the amount of steps in the direction or how many times a student must complete that task.
• Reinforce with points.

Create Your Own Game:

• Great for groups if you have minutes to spare at the end of a session.
• Great for also addressing social skills.
• Great for turning drilling into a competition...always motivating.
• Pass out a certain amount of cards per student.  Students can take turns "one up-ing" each other.  For example, I can say my sound "5x with this card #5" then the next student can place a card down that is higher and say their sound that many times.  This can keep going until no one has a higher card.  That last student can get a point.
• Again, you can make a key and have each number, color, or suit represent another task.  Each student can flip over their cards and complete the tasks based on the cards they have, then they can receive those points.
• Find a cheap deck?  Write on it!  Write synonyms, vocabulary words, articulation targets, etc. on each!

Some other ideas?

• Have students learn magic tricks!  Great for following directions, social thinking, and problem solving.
• Hide the card:  Place the cards in various places around room and have students locate them using prepositions and or answering/asking questions.  
• Conversational turn taking: students can take turns with each other or with you placing a card down as they ask/answer a question.  The cards can just remind them of their turn and the task.  You can have students work to earn a prize if they can keep the conversation going for the duration of the card deck.

Can you think of other ideas?!  Leave a comment below!