Do You Want to be a Simply Speech Brand Ambassador?

I am so excited to announce that I am searching for BRAND AMBASSADORS for Simply Speech! Brand ambassadors are fellow SLPs, students, educators, and even parents that love using Simply Speech products with their students/children!

Who should apply to be a Brand Ambassador? The ideal brand ambassador is a speech language pathologist, graduate student, educator, or parent that enjoys and uses Simply Speech products with his/her students/children. Other TpT sellers are not eligible to be a brand ambassador for Simply Speech.

What will I need to do? As a brand ambassador, you will have FREE access to Simply Speech products of your choice in exchange for taking photographs of the products (staged or in use with students) and sharing them on your social media accounts.

How long will I be a brand ambassador? Each brand ambassador will be part of the Simply Speech team for 6 months. The first round will begin August 5, 2019!

How do I apply? To apply, simply send me an email simplyspeechblog@yahoo.com with subject line: SIMPLY SPEECH BRAND AMBASSADOR and the following information:
1. Your name
2. Your email address
3. Occupation/population you work with/setting you work in
4. Why do you think you would be a great Simply Speech ambassador?
5. Your TpT username
6. Your Instagram name

Brand ambassadors will be notified July 26, 2019 of their selection. 

My June Amazon Favorites!

July has arrived and I cannot believe summer is more than half way over! I absolutely love summertime. I love not having to get my kids ready for school. I love working half days. I love having time to get all of those projects that have been piled up for months tackled! 

This post contains Amazon affiliate links for your convenience. This means that if you purchase something using my link, I may make a small commission. 

This month my Amazon purchases have been a little more for home than work. One of my big goals for the summer was to start de-toxing our home. In April I had a retenoid toxicity from a cream my dermatologist prescribed for me. It was a horrible experience until I figured out the retinoid was the root of my problems. I'm talking flu like symptoms, fevers, rapid heart rate, and depression. Since then, I have been very interested in how to make our lifestyle less toxic. One of the first things I did was buy an air purifier for our bedroom. My husband and I both have terrible allergies and I often wake up with a sore throat. After reading a TON of reviews, I ended up purchasing a Levoit air purifier. It has been great so far. I run it all night in our room. I haven't woke up with a sore throat in over a month!

Another item I tried to rid the house of is plastic (within reason, of course). I didn't realize how toxic plastic can be in the kitchen. I bought the kids stainless steel tumblers and straws. I also tossed all my plastic tupperwear and switched to glass storage containers. Again, after reading a bunch of reviews I went with the Bayco brand glass containers. These are so nice! Besides looking pretty, they have an airtight seal and keep our food better than the plastic ones did. I also bought wool dryer balls because I also learned that dryer sheets are like the most toxic thing in your house. How are we all still alive?! Next on my list will be tossing of all our old non-stick cookware (did you know how terrible that is for you?! I had no idea!) and switching to stainless steel cookware. If you are already in full speed with a toxic free lifestyle, I would love to hear any tips you may have!

In July, I love to use an Under the Sea/Ocean theme in therapy! (I will do an entire post on my ocean theme soon to show everything I use) A few of my items have been loved a little too hard and needed to be replaced. One was my 'Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea' book by Jan Peck. This book is awesome for preschool age students and oh so cute. I also needed to get more of the beach kinetic sand. I use this in my ocean sensory bin.

Summers in Florida require a lot of water activities. We don't have a pool but we do have a big backyard. Last year we purchased an inflatable waterslide for the kids' birthdays. We use this all the time! So this year I added an inflatable unicorn sprinkler because, why not?! This thing is amazing and under $40! Who wouldn't love a giant unicorn in their backyard?

I am about to wrap up 'Own Your Everyday' by Jordan Lee Dooley. This is another great book that encourages you to not compare yourself to others, that you can't do all the things, and to find joy in the little things that bring life to you. Clearly I have needed this reminder in 2019.

Last but not least, I ordered two of these button down tie tanks. I first ordered one in black and really loved it, so I ordered a green one as well. The quality is great and it's perfect to dress up or down this summer. And they're less than $16!

Don't forget, July 15 & 16 is Amazon Prime Day! There will be tons of good deals! Last year I bought a laptop backpack (that I love and use all the time!) and an Echo Dot speaker (Alexa) for the house. However, I have heard that a lot of therapists are using these in therapy! Do you have your eye on anything special to snag during Prime Day?

Using a Farm Theme in Therapy!

June has come to an end and we have just wrapped up our month long farm theme! 'On the Farm' may be one of my favorite themes. There is so much vocabulary and fun activities that you can do with farm animals! The kids have been so engaged this month and I am excited to show you what we have been up to!

This post contains Amazon affiliate links for your convenience. This means that if you purchase something using my link, I may make a small commission. 

First I wanted to share the books we have been reading. Some of my favorites are:

Mrs. Wishy-Washy's Farm

Ten Chirpy Chicks (this one must be out of print because it's listed for a crazy amount of money on Amazon. I linked a similar story instead)

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Cow

Giggle, Giggle, Quack

What is a fun theme without a fun sensory bin?! For this one I used popcorn kernels and some squishy farm animals (that are actual bath toys!) This was great for imaginative, sensory play! These animals were also fun to use as characters in the stories we were reading. We used them with story retell and sequencing.  The are also perfect for working on prepositions (put the cow under the chair, on top of the box, etc) 

 I found this Farm Bingo game at Home Goods a few years back. This is a fun game that reinforces vocabulary as well as the opportunity to work on turn taking and social skills. I have also used the cards from the game for other activities. I found a newer version on Amazon for around $10. Check it out here!

 I had been on a hunt for a fun, interactive farm app. I downloaded a few different ones, puzzles, animal sounds, etc. but I really enjoyed the Peekaboo Barn app! I had used their Peekaboo Trick or Treat app in the past, so I knew my students would like this one, too. It was fun to use with the squishy farm animals and the String-A-Farm activity (which was a fun way to also work on fine motor skills) The wooden animals were also great for the sensory bin. 

Last but not least, we used My Little Farm so much over the past few weeks. I wrote an entire blog post about My Little Farm in May. You can check it out, here! This felt farm house is so much fun and so engaging. It's great for vocabulary, following directions, expressive language, receptive language, prepositions, sorting, etc. So much F U N ! 

I keep all of my thematic units in clear plastic bins for easy access and organization! I purchased my bins from Target and the labels I use are free in my TpT store. You can download them, here!

 Next up is our summer Under the Sea unit!