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Who doesn’t love a good party? I know I’ll find any excuse possible to celebrate big and small victories. “Graduating” from speech therapy is a big deal to a lot of students. It shows them that all of their hard work has paid off! In order to acknowledge and celebrate this big moment, my students and I like to have speech therapy graduation parties! A hidden bonus to these parties is the fact that it really motivates the other students in the group to work extra hard so one day they could have a party dedicated to them as well. These parties are EXTRA special for some students who may have never had a party thrown just for them. :’( We make our graduating student feel extra special and all of the other attendees love joining in the fun. Now if only we didn’t dismiss one student and pick up 5 more…but we won’t let that spoil our fun! Here are some tips for throwing a fun and meaningful speech therapy graduation party.
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Plan the celebration with your students before you have the party. You can tie in a TON of goals during this session. Have them vote on the things they want, compare and contrast options, list ideas, and discuss group members’ suggestions. There may be some things that you want to keep a surprise. I usually only discuss the music, games, snacks, and/or decorations.
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My suggestions for a GREAT Speech Therapy Graduation Party:
- Soft music! Pandora Disney? Radio for Kids? Kidz Bop? http://www.kidzsearch.com/radio.html Ask your students what type of music they’re into so you can find an appropriate option. (There are commercials/advertisements with the online radio options listed above. All songs and advertisements that I’ve heard have been appropriate.)
- Do you want snacks? Plan the snacks/treats. Cookies, fruit, candy, crackers, popcorn, brownies? Juice, lemon water? *Be sure to check with teachers or admin regarding the food policy in your school. Also be sure to check that your students don’t have any food allergies.*
- Graduation Certificate (Grab some free ones here!)
- Graduation cap craft for group members and SLP to sign (See below for instructions on how to make the graduation cap)
- A lot of students take pride in their achievement and they want to wear their graduation cap all day. Be sure to check with the teacher to see if this would be acceptable or explain to the student that they may have to put it away until it is time to go home.
- Do you want to use any additional craft materials to decorate the cap? Stickers? Glitter Glue Sticks? Markers? Wouldn’t it be fun to attach a piece of ribbon to the top for a tassel?
- Games that still target other members’ speech-language goals: HedBanz, Heads Up App (just for kids or animals gone wild categories), Charades, BINGO, Pop the Pig, Scavenger Hunt, Simon Says, Go Fish, Memory, Hangman, etc. Pick a few games ahead of time and let your group or graduating student decide.
- Do you want decorations? You could hang a few streamers, make a sign, display the student’s previous work, or inflate a few balloons to scatter in the room. You can be extra fun and fancy by using a disposable tablecloth from the dollar store (grab some cheap party supplies at the beginning of the year and keep them stashed in a closet). Involve your students in the decorating (because ain’t nobody got time for doing all of that on your own). Have them cut streamers and make signs ahead of time. This whole process should really only take a few minutes.
Fun Extras
- Graduating student gets to sit in the SLP’s chair
- Graduating student gets to “be the teacher” for the session. They can be the BINGO caller, direct the scavenger hunt, pick a game, explain how they want to play a game with the group.
- Do you see your student individually? Try asking the teacher, and getting permission from parents, to see if the graduating student could bring a friend or two to their speech therapy graduation party. If allowed, you and your student can make invitations.
- With permission, you could take some photos during the party and print them with a nice note or card to send home. I’ve done this in the past (time permitting, it doesn’t always get done the same day) and the parents and teachers really loved it! I took a few photos of the graduating student wearing the graduation cap, sitting in my chair, and/or playing a game. I printed the photos on the school printer and I attached a note explaining the party and wrote a nice parting message to the student and family. I just recently starting doing this and I really love it!
- Let other teachers know that the student is graduating from speech therapy and encourage them to congratulate the student if they see him or her around school. You could tell anyone on the student’s IEP team – special teachers, co-teachers, related service providers, the principal, or vice principal.
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- *Know your students!* Some students love the attention, while other students would really just like to quietly exit the speech room and never look back. So far, all of my students have LOVED doing the parties, but I would definitely do things differently if it were some of my more quiet/shy students at the center of all the attention. You could have a more laid back “party” and maybe just let the student pick the music and a game. Gauge your students and plan ahead so everyone is comfortable and enjoys themselves.
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How to Make the Graduation Cap
1. Cut a square from construction paper.
2. Write a message on the top of graduation cap.
3. Use the remaining section of construction paper to make the bottom
of the hat. Cut long, rectangular strips a few inches wide. Tape or staple three pieces of these strips together. *DO NOT ATTACH THESE TO THE HAT YET*
of the hat. Cut long, rectangular strips a few inches wide. Tape or staple three pieces of these strips together. *DO NOT ATTACH THESE TO THE HAT YET*
4. Write a nice message to your student on a middle section of the strip.
5. When your student is in your speech room, wrap the bottom section around his/her head to measure and cut excess length. (Do this BEFORE other group members write their messages so nothing gets overlapped)
6. Have other group members, friends, and/or the student’s teacher write a nice, positive congratulatory message.
7. Connect the bottom portion with tape or staples
8. Flip the square top over and try to center the bottom portion in the middle of the top portion.
9. Tape the bottom portion to attach it to the top. I tape multiple spots on the inside of the hat so it doesn’t show on the outside.
10. Now your student is ready to proudly wear his/her speech therapy graduation cap!
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I’d love to hear how you all party in your speech room! 🙂 Comment with any ideas or
suggestions and be sure to let me know if you plan a speech therapy graduation party anytime soon!
suggestions and be sure to let me know if you plan a speech therapy graduation party anytime soon!
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