Raindrops on Roses and Whiskers on Kittens....

Welcome to my "Favorite Things" post!  I've had a couple of people ask me about my favorite books, apps, games, etc.  So, I figured I'd write this post.  I'm not Oprah though, so don't expect a massive giveaway, lol!

*The items listed are in no particular order!

Favorite Books:

For the little guys (Preschool, Kindergarten, maybe even Grade 1):

• "Where's Spot?" by Eric Hill  (Click here to see my post about this book)
• "Don't Wake Up the Bear!" by Marjorie Dennis Murray (I'll be featuring this book in January as a Book of the Week)
• "Apple Trouble!" by Ragnhild Scamell and Michael Terry (Click here to see my post about this one)
• "Little Cloud" by Eric Carle
• "The Gruffalo" by Julia Donaldson (and another post)
• "The Jacket I Wear in the Snow" by Shirly Neitzel (Check out a feature of this book by Speech Time Fun)

For the "older" kiddos (Grades 2-4 or 5):

• The Amelia Bedelia series
• "Never Take a Shark to the Dentist" by Judy Barrett
• "Dear Deer: A Book of Homophones" by Gene Barretta
• "Whole Body Listening Larry at Home" by Kristen Wilson & Elizabeth Sautter
• "Whole Body Listening Larry at School" by Kristen Wilson & Elizabeth Sautter
• "Interrupting Chicken" by David Ezra Stein

Favorite Apps:

Articulation:

• Articulation Scenes by Smarty Ears ($29.99 in the App Store)
• Articulation Station Pro by Little Bee Speech ($49.99 in the App Store)
• Speech with Milo Articulation Board Game:  Common Sounds Pack by Doonan Speech Therapy ($6.99 in the App Store)
• Articulation Games by Virtual Speech Center ($34.99 in the App Store)

Language:

• Rainbow Sentences by Mobile Education Store ($7.99 in the App Store)
• Tense Builder by Mobile Education Store ($19.99 in the App Store)
• Preposition Builder by Mobile Education Store ($7.99 in the App Store)
• Story Builder by Mobile Education Store ($7.99 in the App Store)
• Syntax City by Smarty Ears ($ in the App Store)
• Language Adventures by Smarty Ears ($20.99 in the App Store)
• Go-Togethers by Smarty Ears ($9.99 in the App Store)
• You're the Storyteller:  The Surprise by Hamaguchi Apps ($5.99 in the App Store)
• Speech Cards Professional by RWH Technologies ($9.99 in the App Store)
• Speech With Milo:  Interactive Storybook by Doonan Speech Therapy ($1.99 in the App Store)

Miscellaneous:

• Custom Boards-Premium by Smarty Ears ($39.99 in the App Store)
• Cookie Doodle by Shoe the Goose ($.99 in the App Store)
• Scribble Press by Scribble Press ($2.99 in the App Store)
• Clicky Sticky Series by invocore (price varies in the App Store)

Favorite Games (Commercially Available):

• Cranium Cariboo:  Ok, this is not necessarily available anymore in the original version. They make Cranium Cariboo Island now, which is less easy to adapt for speech/language therapy, but not impossible.  I did want to mention the original game because you may be able to find it in Thrift stores!
• Apples to Apples or Apples to Apples Junior:  I'm going to assume that you're familiar with this game (if not, check out the description on Amazon).  I personally use the junior version.  I find the vocabulary is more on level with kids who are receiving speech/language services.  For a fun variation, when a child is absent from a group and we're playing this game, we have that child's empty seat still play (deal out the cards and randomly select one of them).  One time, an absent child actually won the game!
• Bubble Talk: You can play this game kind of like Apples to Apples.  There are picture scenes and talk bubbles.  The object is to match the most appropriate captions/talk bubbles to the picture.  
• HedBanz:  Simple concepts.  You wear a headband with a picture of an object on your head.  You have to ask others yes/no and wh- questions to figure out "What Am I?"
• Zingo by Think Fun:  This is a bingo game with a twist.  The vocabulary is basic, so the game is most appropriate for preschool.  You get word/picture tiles that are plastic.  You place all of the tiles into a contraption that reminds me of the old fashioned credit card swipers (you know, when some stores had to take an imprint of your card).  You swipe the handle back and forth and the word tiles "magically" appear!  The kids love this game!

Favorite Speech Specific Products:

• Lids 'n Lizards from Super Duper
• "WH" Chipper Chat from Super Duper
• Artic Chipper Chat from Super Duper
• MagneTalk: Let's Find and Name Things from Super Duper
• The Matt and Molly Series from Linguisystems
• Word FLIPS from Super Duper (I use this for a few minutes at the start of every session as a "warm-up"

Other:

• Lesson Pix:  It's totally worth the $36.00/year to subscribe to this site, but keep your eyes peeled.  Sometimes Bill will post promo codes for sales on Twitter and Facebook!

What did I miss?  What are some of your favorite things??