Angela Moorad, MS, CCC-SLP. Over 33 years experience in AAC. OMazing Kids AAC and app consulting. Creator of several AAC Feature Matching resources (https://omazingkidsllc.com/omazing-kids-aac-resource-links/). Includes info about unique features to support Gestalt Language Processors
Unfortunately there isn’t a preview of the book on Amazon so this video will show what the book is like before making a purchasing decision. I very rarely purchase books without seeing a preview so wanted to share this.
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Personal Professional Facebook Page (linked to OMazing Kids): https://www.facebook.com/angela.moorad (adding“friends” who have a direct role in AAC or Assistive Technology – AAC / AT app or product developers, AAC / AT consultants, SLPs who specialize in AAC, other professionals who specialize in AAC or AT, etc.)
I love using great picture books in OMazing Kids speech therapy and kids yoga! Guess what this book is fun for both. I love the colorful illustrations, facial expressions of the characters, how the color of the text changes to help depict which character is talking, logical consequences for behaviors, offering options, the subtle use of kids yoga for calming and a happy ending.
. More about the book: While Dad tucks her in, a little girl named Grace calmly recounts her day—which was anything but calm. She had a tantrum (because of some injustices involving a purple shirt and breakfast cereal) and was banished to her bedroom before deciding to run away. Understanding that kids have ups and downs, Grace’s mom wisely gave her daughter the space and time she needed to reach her own decision to return home—to open arms. The Day I Ran Away amusingly captures Grace’s mutable moods and childlike logic. Warm, humorous digital paintings offer fun details to keep little listeners busy. Kids can compare the bedtime and daytime scenes and try to figure out how Grace got that purple paw-print on her cheek—and when it got washed away. They can mimic Grace’s facial expressions or copy her poses for some soothing bedtime yoga. And of course, they can create a safe place to run away to when the injustices of Pre-K existence become too much to bear. A pop-up tent in the yard and the haven beneath the dining room table are excellent run-away destinations, as long as you come home for dinner.
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Age Range: 5 – 7 years
Grade Level: Kindergarten – 2
Hardcover: 32 pages
Publisher: Flashlight Press (April 1, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1936261898
ISBN-13: 978-1936261895
Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 0.4 x 10.2 inches
. This publisher always has great printables to go with their books:http://flashlightpress.com/the-day-i-ran-away/ (tap on “Activity Guides”). I especially like “The Day I Ran Away Yoga”and “What Would You Pack?”
I love using fabulous kids picture books in my work as a Speech-Language Pathologist! I have well over a thousand of them and have them organized by themes in tubs and on bookshelves at home. It’s fun to swap out the books in the basket at work for the activities & themes I have planned that week. I especially like books that are a “fun read” either because of the rhyming text or the hilarious story line. Here are two recent additions to my collection that fit in the “hilarious story line” category:
When a Dragon Moves In
I love the colorful illustrations (even the end sheets are fully illustrated), imaginative story, and lots of opportunities for spatial concepts, adjectives, verbs, and interpreting pictured events from different perspectives.
This sequel has colorful illustrations (even the end sheets are fully illustrated), imaginative story, and lots of opportunities for spatial concepts, adjectives, verbs, and expected vs. unexpected behavior and feelings when a new baby joins the family.
(I couldn’t find a good video of the book being read aloud but the peek inside the book on the publisher’s website will give you an idea of what it’s like)
{One Book + Interactive iPad Activity: Target Several Goals} I’m loving the newest book in my Winter collection… The First Day of Winter by Denise Fleming! It’s a fun twist on the familiar tune The 12 Days of Christmas. I made an interactive activity to use on my iPad (iESLp app for the win…. zero printing, cutting or laminating). I used the book & activity in several sessions this week to target goals for plurals, possessive ‘s endings, colors, following directions, sequencing, quantity concepts, /s/- blends & more. Too hilarious that one of my patients figured out why the snowgirl was getting all dressed up….. to go on a date with her boyfriend Frosty. Ummm I hadn’t even noticed the tiny detail in the background on the last page… lol!
I used an app to create .png images of the red cap with a gold snap and the orange berries mouth by erasing the background from some orange beads. Glad I grabbed the app when it was free awhile back: Aftercut : Background Eraser & Easy Photo Editor, https://appsto.re/us/FeIt4.i.
{Book Reviews} 5 Great Books for SLPs: Being Frank, Dragon and Captain, Hammer and Nails, Hey! That’s My Monster & I Need My Monster by Flashlight Press
Being Frank by Donna Earnhardt
Honesty is the best policy.” That’s Frank’s motto. But Frank’s overly frank comments tend to annoy his friends and teachers. Not even his own mother is all that fond of Frank’s “tell all” attitude. So Frank turns to his grandpa for help. “Everyone is mad at me for being frank. I’m not sure honesty is the best policy anymore.” A few outrageous hats, a spicy jar of relish, and some grandfatherly wisdom help Frank realize that truth is best served with more sugar and less pepper.
What I love as a SLP: This book is perfect to help kids with Autism or other special needs understand the concept of filtering the “truth” in a way that is considerate of another person’s feelings. The analogy of the truth being “best served with more sugar and less pepper” is fabulous!
Dragon is a boy who always wears his dragon robe. And Captain is a boy with a three-sided hat. But as the boys’ imaginations take over, we see them as they see themselves, and the backyard as the boys see it: a dark forest, a craggy cliff, and the immense sea. Illustrated like a comic book but for kids at the picture book age level.
What I love as a SLP: I have been looking for a comic style picture book for younger kids after reading a post about using that style of books to help kids with Autism and other special needs understand the turn taking aspect of conversations. This book is exactly what I have been needing! I love the large illustrations and simple dialogue depicted on each page or two-page spread. This style of book also lends itself well to showing kids a sequence of events. It is also filled with lots of great vocabulary, verbs, adjectives, spatial concepts, predicting, inferencing, teamwork and imagination. The pirate theme is sure to be a hit with my patients! Even the end pages are illustrated as pirate’s map.
Book read aloud video:
Hammer and Nails by Josh Bledsoe
Darcy has plans. She and her friend are going to play dress up, do each other’s hair, and polish their nails. Daddy has plans, too. He’s going to read the paper, mow the lawn, and fix the fence. When Darcy’s friend cancels and she’s sure her day is ruined, Daddy suggests a Darcy-Daddy Day. Now they can tackle their to-do lists together. But will Darcy enjoy hammering? Will Daddy do nails? You bet! Join Darcy and Daddy as they discover the fun in trying new things, especially with someone you love.
What I love as a SLP: This book has great illustrations depicting emotions and a fabulous storyline of a day that a child thought was ruined by a change in plans instead turning into a fun-filled day with her Dad. I love that the day is a mixture of what the things she wanted to do and the things her Dad needed to accomplish. This book is filled with great examples of “flexible thinking” and discussing options. Lots of great vocabulary, verbs, adjectives, spatial concepts, taking turns, trying new things, silliness/humor and showing that even chores like mowing, laundry or fixing a fence can be fun if you use your imagination and are working together.
No video of this book yet but I’ll add one here later if one is made. In the meantime a cute picture:
Hey, That’s MY Monster!, companion to the best-selling I Need My Monster, is an irresistible monster-under-the-bed story for all monster-loving kids. The perfect balance of giggles and shivers will keep you under your covers, and you’ll soon be sleeping soundly.
What I love as a SLP: This book has all the same great qualities as “I Need My Monster” with the added opportunities for pronouns (he, she, his, her). It is also fun to compare the monsters found in both books.
Book Trailer:
I Need My Monster by Amanda Noll
One night, when Ethan checks under the bed for his monster, he finds a note instead: “Gone fishing. Back in a week. –Gabe”. What will Ethan do? He needs a monster under his bed. How is he supposed to get to sleep if his monster is gone? Substitute monsters appear, but none are just right. Herbert’s teeth aren’t sharp enough, Mack’s slobbering induces giggles, Cynthia’s tail isn’t scary at all, and Ralph has nail polish on his claws! This will never work! How will Ethan ever get to sleep without his monster?
What I love as a SLP: This book is filled with great vocabulary, verbs, adjectives and is fun to use to compare/contrast the monsters. I also used it on Halloween with several patients working on articulation. It was fun to find words with their target sounds. The illustrations are exquisite and the story is the perfect level of “just a little scary but mainly funny”. The end sheets are illustrated with lots of different monsters… fun for a game of “I spy”.
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Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with over 27 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is an app beta tester for educational & therapeutic app developers and loves sharing info about great apps, products, books & toys to use with kids of all abilities.
{Free Printable} If You Give a Mouse a Brownie PlayDoh Smash Mat
My patients always love PlayDoh smash mats so I made this one to target vocabulary & the circular story sequence in the fun new book “If You Give a Mouse a Brownie”. Head over to this post on my OMazing Kids Facebook page to get the link to the free printable. I encourage everyone to “like” my page since I share info much more frequently there than on my blog:
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{Tip: When using smash mats it helps to already have small balls of PlayDoh pre-rolled so you don’t use an entire can on the first two spots (true tales from the speechie room… lol!)}
Looking for free printable story props for this book? Check out this post. Also contains info on a book page in TouchChat 60 Basic and ideas for apps & toys to extend the theme:
{Book Review} The Gingerbread Man Loose at the Zoo by Laura Murray
About the book: Is there anything more fun than a class trip to the zoo? The Gingerbread Man and his classmates don’t think so, and they get to solve riddles on a WILD scavenger hunt. They meet giraffes, monkeys, and even a fox (especially scary for a Gingerbread Man!). Animals galore and a trail of clues make the Gingerbread Man’s latest adventure his wildest one yet.
What I love about this book:
wonderful rhyming text that is fun to read
funny illustrations (many have speech bubbles)
lots of great verbs & adjectives
simple animal riddles
lots of opportunities for kids yoga activities based on the animals and other elements in the book (frog, owl, wolf, snake, giraffe, monkey, lion, elephant, bear, mole rat (child’s pose), zebra, rhino, seal, crocodile, fox, kangaroo, bus, gyan mudra looking glasses, cross crawl hike)
Nice Work, Franklin! by Suzanne Tripp Jurmain is a cool new kids picture book about Franklin Roosevelt. I especially like the messages of persevering despite setbacks & disabilities. It would be a nice addition to classroom lessons on the USA presidents, the Great Depression and/or disabilities. It’s not necessarily a book that I could see myself using much in speech-language therapy sessions or kids yoga classes so I’ll be passing along my copy to one of the teachers at the facility where I work 🙂
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As one of our most inspirational and determined presidents, Franklin Roosevelt overcame his disability to lead the country out of the Great Depression.
Franklin Roosevelt idolized his cousin Teddy Roosevelt. He started wearing eyeglasses like Teddy, he spoke like Teddy, and he held the same public offices as Teddy. But then one day his life changed—he got sick. He developed polio and he could no longer walk. But Franklin also had Teddy’s determination, so after physical therapy and hard work, he ran for governor of New York and won. Then a different kind of sickness, the Great Depression, spread across the country: Banks were closing, and thousands lost their jobs.
Franklin said that if you have a problem, solve it. If one solution doesn’t work, try another but above all TRY SOMETHING. So Franklin ran for president, and on Inauguration Day, he made it clear that together they would conquer this sickness. He got to work creating jobs and slowly America started getting better.
Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with over 25 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is a kids book reviewer with a focus on great picture books, a kids toy / product reviewer with a focus on those that are helpful for kids with special needs & an app beta tester for educational and therapeutic app developers. She loves sharing info about great things to use with kids of all abilities.
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Check out this awesome new addition to the OMazing Kids collection of fabulous kids picture books: Shh! Bears Sleeping by David Martin (due to be released Jan 05, 2016| 32 Pages| 3-7 years).
I love the gorgeous illustrations & simple rhyming text. As an added bonus there are several opportunities for kids yoga: tree, bird, humming bee breath, flower, cross crawl hike, fish, yawning stretch, squirrel toe-ga with brown pom-poms as acorns, bunny breath, snowflake (standing star with wiggling fingers as falling snowflakes), coyote (up dog), owl, deer, wake up shake. There is also a 2-page spread of bear facts.
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Here is a sneak peek at a few pages inside the book:
In the fall
When leaves turn red
Bears know soon
It’s time for bed
Comes winter
Comes snow
Bears are ready
Bears go
In their cave
Warm and deep
Winter is time
For bears to sleep
A lilting read-aloud text and stunning pictures combine to make an irresistibly appealing picture book that follows these fascinating animal friends through the cycle of the year. A page of facts about bears will answer young readers’ questions as they begin to explore the wonders of the natural world.
Angela Moorad is the founder of OMazing Kids, LLC and is an ASHA certified & licensed pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist and Kids Yoga Teacher with over 25 years experience working in a variety of settings (early intervention, schools, teletherapy & a nonprofit pediatric rehab hospital for children with developmental disabilities). She is a kids book reviewer with a focus on great picture books, a kids toy / product reviewer with a focus on those that are helpful for kids with special needs & an app beta tester for educational and therapeutic app developers. She loves sharing info about great things to use with kids of all abilities.
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{Note: Please ignore any ads that may appear below. This is a free blog and I have no control over any ads}
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