Halloween Pumpkin Game

Here's a fun game for Halloween:  Roll a Pumpkin

For this game, you will need:

• blank paper
• markers/crayons
• dice 
• this free printable:  http://happyhomefairy.com/roll-a-pumpkin-free-printable/

My students loved this game- you can work on rolling the dice (takes some coordination), drawing skills (visual motor integration), counting the circles on the dice (math and 1:1 correspondence), spatial awareness and motor planning (where/how to place the parts on the pumpkin), sequencing the steps to a task, etc.  

After we finished our pumpkins, I sent a copy of the game and our finished pumpkin pictures home with the student so that they could have parents or siblings help them play it at home, or they could teach someone at home how to play as well.  

This is "Slash," one of my student's pumpkins- note the "guitar and
amplifier" that he added for an accessory!

Individual Tactile Boards

Credits to Bonnie Pedersen, resource room teacher extraordinaire at one of the schools that I go to for this idea:  individual tactile boards.  Mrs. Pedersen and I share a non verbal student who has limited play skills and very few interests that keep him motivated.  As a result, he doesn't often explore his environment.  He does, however, like to feel different things and different textures.  Hanging up individual tactile boards on a wall encourages exploration of different textures and the environment, encourages reaching and eye hand coordination and movement toward a preferred activity, to name a few.

• Buy some inexpensive frames at the dollar store, and remove the glass.
• Find various textures to hot glue inside the frames.  Vary the textures: smooth, rough, bumpy, shiny, sparkly, vary the colors, etc.

• Mount the frames to the wall using Command velcro picture hanging strips.  Once the strips are up, you will be able to move the frames around because the strips are universal.

Change the configuration on occasion so that you can start to identify what textures your student tends to prefer (ie: does he/she always seem to find the fleece frame, no matter where it is located?)

You can then find other fleece items that might be of interest to him/her, or put fleece on a switch to encourage him/her to touch it to activate it, etc.  You may remember a previous post regarding a DIY tactile board, and you can find it again here: http://fabulousfriendsot.blogspot.com/search?q=tactile+board