Not sure what’s going on in your household but WOW!  We are noticing a lot of kiddos are getting sick right now!  And sick kids means staying at home and likely battling the “I’m bored” statement.  One solution the speech therapists at Emerge have?  

Books!

Books are not only entertaining, but they can also support your child’s literacy and speech/language skills. We asked our speech therapists what some of their favorite books to use in therapy are and they delivered! Click below to see some of our favorite books along with recommendations for ways to target speech and language skills while reading.

 

“Five Little Monkeys” by: Eileen Christelow

These books do a great job supporting early literacy skills because of their predictable and repetitive text. While reading this book with your child, you can practice sequencing, describing actions (can target verb tense), pronouns, counting, and rhyming (an early skill important for phonological awareness).

“Curious George” books by: Margret and H.A. Rey 

This collection of books chronicles the many adventures of Curious George. Because each book has a clear storyline, it is great for practicing “story grammar” (setting, theme, plot). It can also be used to target story retell and inferencing.

Miss Nelson is Missing” by: Harry Allard

This classic is about a poorly behaved classroom of students whose teacher does not come to school one day. Their substitute for the day is the polar opposite of their teacher and is determined to straighten them out. With this book, you can practice inferencing and compare/contrast concepts.

“Pancakes for Breakfast” by: Tomie DePaola

This wordless picture book is about a woman who wakes up determined to satisfy her craving for pancakes. It provides a great opportunity to practice the following concepts: describing actions (can target verb tense), answering “where” questions, pronouns, and inferencing.

Tuesday” by: David Weisner  

This is another silly, wordless picture book about flying frogs. It is great for practicing the following concepts: describing actions (can target verb tense), story retell, and inferencing.

“Max and Ruby” books by: Rosemary Wells

These books cover a variety of topics that can help support early-developing vocabulary. Additionally, these books can be used for describing actions (can target verb tense), inferencing, identification of emotions, sequencing, and pronouns.

“Stop that Pickle” by: Peter Armor

This book is about a run-away pickle and the different food items that step in to stop it. It can be used to practice early-developing vocabulary, inferencing, and sequencing.

The Mitten” by: Jan Brett 

This classic is about all of the winter animals who try to fit inside of a lost mitton. It provides a great opportunity to practice the following concepts: describing actions (can target verb tense), sequencing, and inferencing.

“Who Sank the Boat” by: Pamela Allen 

This is yet another book that contains early-developing vocabulary and can be used for describing actions (can target verb tense), sequencing, and inferencing.

 

“The Gruffalo” by: Julia Donaldson 

This book tells the story of a mouse who runs into a variety of dangerous animals while walking through the woods. While reading this book, you can target the following concepts: rhyming (an early skill important for phonological awareness), sequencing, inferencing, and describing actions.  

“Rosie’s Walk” by: Pat Hutchins

This book is about a chicken who leads a preying fox into several tricky situations. This book can be used to support understanding of location concepts, inferencing, and sequencing.

“Too Many Tamales” by: Gary Soto

This is a great book for practicing “story grammar” (setting, theme, plot). It can also be used to target story retell and inferencing.

“Wilma Jean the Worry Machine” by: Julia Cook

This book provides a great visual representation of “worry” — an emotion that many kids struggle with and that can be hard to explain.

“Llama Llama Red Pajama” by: Anna Dewdney 

This is another book that can be great when discussing/teaching feelings (worry, fear, anger) with your child. It can also be used to practice articulation of the sound /l/, which is a tricky sound for many kids.

“Big Nate and Friends” by: Lincoln Pierce 

This is a graphic novel that will grab the attention of older children without the text being too complicated for struggling readers. It’s a great book for working on “Social Thinking” in general — inferencing using both context clues and non-verbal information, understanding social communication breakdowns, sarcasm, etc.

“Not Another Tea Party” by: Mark Shulman 

This is another book that is great if you are trying to target “Social Thinking” for children who need support on being flexible in play. It can also be used for inferencing.

“Not A Box” by: Antoinette Portis  

This book contains simple, silly illustrations with very little text. It’s great for getting new or non-readers involved in a story. This can be used to introduce imaginative play and to practice inferencing/using context clues.

Have you read any of these books?  Did we miss one of your child’s favorites?  Leave us a comment below and tell us about it!

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