Space Theme for Speech Therapy
You know I love a theme. A good space theme has endless possibilities. A space theme for speech therapy is really out of this world. 😉 OK, I’ll stop.
I love to start any theme with a book. Books are educational, visual, and accessible! Here are a few of my favorite Space theme books for speech therapy:
- 8 Little Planets: A Solar System Book for Kids with Unique Planet Cutouts by Chris Ferrie
- Summary: Travel around the solar system and celebrate what makes each planet unique! From Neptune to Mercury and all the planets in between, each one is different and each one is happy to be what they are.
- Ages: preschool
- A Computer Called Katherine by Suzanne Slade
- Summary: The inspiring true story of mathematician Katherine Johnson – made famous by the award-winning film Hidden Figures – who counted and computed her way to NASA and helped put a man on the Moon.
- Ages: elementary
- Mae Mong the Stars by Roda Ahmed
- Summary: A beautiful picture book for sharing and marking special occasions such as graduation, inspired by the life of the first African American woman to travel in space, Mae Jemison.
- Ages: preschool and elementary
- Rocket Girl: A Space Book about Shooting for the Stars & Landing on the Moon! by Didi Dragon
- Summary: Lucy is an ambitious little girl who builds a rocket ship out of a cardboard box to go to the moon. The neighborhood kids don’t seem to think it could happen, it’s just a box, after all. Just when Lucy starts losing faith in her mission (it happens even to ambitious girls), something magical happens!
- Ages: preschool and early elementary
- Our Solar System: An Exploration of Planets, Moons, Asteroids, and Other Mysteries of Space by Lisa Riechley
- Summary: The universe is huge. With more than 100 billion galaxies and billions of orbiting astronomical bodies, there’s so much to learn. Rocket through the cosmos, and discover everything there is to know about our exciting and mysterious solar system!
- Ages: elementary and early middle school
- Real Spaceships: Fun and Engaging Spaceship and Space Age Lessons for Kids by ZB Tucker
- Summary: readers will go through the fascinating history of space travel, technology, and rockets, find out how spaceships work, what types there are, and what they’re made of, learn all about space missions and why humans want to travel into space, absorb interesting facts about spaceships and engage in interactive questions for fun
- Ages: elementary and middle school
- We Dream of Space by Erinn Entrada Kelly
- Summary: Newbery Medalist and New York Times–bestselling author Erin Entrada Kelly transports readers to 1986 and introduces them to the unforgettable Cash, Fitch, and Bird Nelson Thomas in this pitch-perfect middle grade novel about family, friendship, science, and exploration. This acclaimed Newbery Honor Book is a great choice for readers of Kate DiCamillo, Rita Williams-Garcia, and Rebecca Stead.
- Ages: Highschool
Let’s play! We know that kids of all ages learn best through play. Play is multisensory and a great way to model tier 2 and tier 3 (theme specific) vocabulary. Here are a few of my favorite space theme toys for speech therapy:
- Outerspace Sensorybin linked here. My students love this sensory bin that comes ready to go with space rocks, and manipulatives like an astronaut, stars, and an alien. I love the scooper and tongs that come with it for fine motor skills. I recommend adding a toy space spice and other astronaut action figures to build on this creative play theme.
- Giant Solar System linked here. It comes with 39 felt pieces and a huge 3.5 foot sylar system. What a fun, hands-on way to learn about the solar system! It comes with all planets, an asteroid, alien, rocket ships, and stars. I love this for following multi-step directions and learning new space theme vocabulary!
- Drone Home game. This open-ended game is best for ages 8+. The object of the game is to be the first to launch their alien in the flying drone and yes, it flies! It is linked here. My students love this game because it is so interactive! It’s great for drill like for clients with speech production goals.
My speech production space theme resources:
- Say, Click, Color: Space Themed “Mulitsyllable Words” Articulation Boom Cards™️ linked here
- About: Multisyllable Words Articulation practice for the Space theme! Great for use at any time. This digital coloring by code activity is a fun and engaging way to engage your students and practice articulation. On each card, SAY the target sound, CLICK on the checkmark when you’re done practicing, and watch as the shapes COLOR one by one and create a picture. This deck includes 15 3 syllable and 15 4 syllable words.On each page, a target speech sound for practice will appear. Each time your student is finished practicing the speech word they click on the check mark and part of the image is colored in. Once they finish the deck, the entire picture is filled in.
- Moon Landing Space Articulation: Boom Cards™️ linked here
- Summary: This moon landing activity is simple and works for your whole caseload of articulation students. The astronaut just landed on the moon. Let your student drag each of their speech sound loaded words to the moon! With audio– Each item you drag to the moon will make noise. Most sounds include 3 pages – one initial, one medial, and one final position page. There are 10 sound targets per page. There are 63 total cards included for 630 target words. Included sounds: P, B, M, N, T, D, K, G, F, V, S, Z, L, SH, CH, TH, J, R, OR, AR, IRE, ER, EAR, AIR, S blends, R blends, L blends, 3/4 syllable, and a bonus “space vocab” page to make it work for mixed groups!
My language space theme speech therapy resources:
- Color & Play: Space BINGO No-Prep Speech Therapy linked here
- Summary: No-prep color and play space-themed printable download. This download includes 6 black and white BINGO boards with 24 space pictures and one set of calling cards.Print a different board for each student. Have the student color the board while discussing the pictures. Discuss vocabulary related to space. Take this opportunity to gather intervention data on any skills (including articulation, verbs, pronouns, sentence completion, etc.) Cut apart the calling cards and place in a bowl. Pull the cards one at a time and call out the card. Each student can use a penny, bingo chips, or marker to cover the called image on their board. The first student with 5 in a row wins and shouts BINGO!
- Interactive Vocabulary Book: Space (Print + Boom Cards™) linked here
- Summary: This is a wonderful interactive language activity for your early learners! Included in this packet: 3 Interactive Books that teach vocabulary related to space. Two of the books include a simple homework sheet to send home. This set includes a bundle of both the Boom Decks and the Printable items. The interactive books are designed to allow students to match pictures to each page of the book using velcro. These books are really great for young children because they allow little hands to be busy matching. They also have a very clear ending. The kids can see if they get the 12 pictures done they are finished with this activity. I can work on many additional goals (pronouns, functions, attributes, etc.) while targeting this activity. Please email with any questions before you purchase.
One of my go-tos for any theme are YouTube videos or any other kind of educational video. Short videos capture attention! Here are some great space theme videos for speech therapy:
- The Planet Song. This is a fun song with lyrics where your students can learn fun facts about the planets. It’s animated.
- Ages: preschool and elementary
- Ryan’s World: Learn About Space. This YouTube video is very educational and since it is Ryan’s World, all my students are into it.
- Ages: preschool and elementary
- Life Inside the International Space STation. Ever wondered what it’s like to work in space? The brave men and women of the International Space Station are truly a special breed, but at the end of the day they’re just regular people, going about their jobs.
- Ages: elementary, middles school, and junior high
- NASA Live. Did you know there is a live NASA TV station? It is part of the NASA.gov page which also has a lot of educational resources!
- Ages: middle school, junior high, and high school
I hope you found this list of space theme materials for speech therapy stellar! OK, I’m done
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