I’ll admit it. When I first started out as an SLP, I didn’t fully appreciate the importance of the stimulus words I chose.
💡It was a huge lightbulb moment for me to realize that our articulation and vocabulary STIMULUS WORDS MATTER. We want to create speech therapy word lists intentionally so that we can help our students achieve carryover.
Here are my top tips for creating powerful speech therapy word lists for your sessions!
- ARTICULATION STIMULUS WORDS:
When I first started out as an SLP, I used articulation card decks. The decks were not associated with any particular therapy approach and did not carry much meaning.
While cards can be a helpful tool at times, I’ve found that articulation speech therapy word lists that meet these criteria are far more powerful:
- Words that students say in their daily lives
- Words learned in the context of a meaningful activity or experience
Fortunately, this is an easy thing to do! Here’s how:
- Use graphic organizers with your students to create a list of frequently used words in their daily lives. (If you’re targeting /r/, the teacher “Mr. Roberts” is a more meaningful choice than “raccoon”).
- Use the word in the context of a therapy activity. One of my favorite tools for doing this is by creating sound-focused trioramas.
Here are some L examples! Click the image for a closer look!
2. VOCABULARY STIMULUS WORDS:
The vocabulary words what I used to choose consisted of a random assortment from the various therapy materials I could find. I would occasionally use Tier 3 vocabulary by targeting domain-specific words from classroom textbooks…
At that time, I didn’t realize the power of…
- Academic Tier 2 vocabulary (which occurs at a high-frequency and, most importantly, across the entire curriculum!)
- Morphology and visuals with root words (to help students build a semantic web)
- Multiple meaning words (because each word gives you a lot of bang for your buck)
- Providing meaningful vocabulary contexts with high-interest nonfiction texts
Here are some favorite examples!
Once I realized the power of creating intentional speech therapy word lists for both articulation and vocabulary targets, my sessions became so much more intentional, far-reaching and impactful!
I hope this helps and inspires you as you choose stimulus words for your students this school year!
