This is a guest blog post by Holly, a school-based SLP. She compiled a list of free online, print-and-go, and material-free games below.
How to Include Play-Based Games in Your Speech Therapy Sessions
Embedding play into therapy can support engagement, make speech sessions more memorable, and give students a chance to generalize communication skills to everyday contexts.
It’s not hard to see why games are such a hit with our students. Whether you’re doing virtual, in-person, or hybrid speech therapy, we’ve rounded up ideas to keep the fun going, all for free. Check out our round-up of online, printable, and material-free games below.
Free Online Speech Therapy Games
There is emerging research showing that “serious games” (digital games designed to target skills) can improve communication skills in some student populations (Tsikinas & Xinogalos, 2019).
Luckily, there are a ton of educational sites offering free games you can use in your sessions. You can use these as a way to reinforce your teletherapy sessions. While you’re at it, check out these speech therapy apps for even more ideas.
Computer-based games work whether you’re sharing your screen during teletherapy, using a device with a student, or projecting for a group. Since there’s no setup or cleanup, this option is a breeze to add into sessions.
ABCya – Educationally relevant games from Pre-K to 6th+ grade, many involving spatial concepts and curriculum-based learning (full access without ads requires a subscription).
Disney Games – Coloring pages, arcade games, and sticker books. Great reinforcers if your students have a favorite character.
Fun Brain – Quick, intuitive digital games. When Pigs Fly and Penguin Drop work well as brain breaks.
Go Noodle – Movement breaks, dance choreography, and mindfulness exercises. Check out the Call & Response dances or the Blazer Fresh channel for language-related videos.
Guinness World Records | Kids – Great for working on superlatives, plus memory games and puzzles.
Highlights Kids – The Hidden Picture scenes are a language gold mine. The Jokes section is packed with multiple-meaning words.
PuzzleSnap (formerly I’m a Puzzle) – Turn any picture into a digital jigsaw puzzle. Handy for customizing activities to a student’s favorite interests or curriculum topics.
Language Playroom – 100% free hub of games organized by developmental level and communication domain (articulation, language, social, fluency).
National Geographic Kids – Check out Funny Fill-In stories and the Crack the Code activity, plus tons of animal photos and videos.
PBS KIDS – Games that build educational skills and social-emotional awareness with favorite PBS characters.
Pink Cat Games – Build a monster, run a race, or spin a wheel while targeting speech and language goals (full access requires a subscription).
Poki & Poki Kids – Digital versions of classics like four in a row, yahtzee, and air hockey. Preview games ahead of time since there are countless options.
Quia – A database of educator-created online games. Play Jeopardy, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, Battleship, and more, filtered by skill.
SLP Video Games – A free “Get Rid of Red” game on Erik X. Raj’s site that targets speech/language skills within gameplay (full access requires a subscription).
Toy Theater – Classic games like tic-tac-toe and pinball, plus language-related activities and teacher tools like dice, spinners, and timers.
New This Round
Wordwall – Search 10,000+ speech-therapy games already built by other SLPs (filterable by sound and skill), or build your own in a few clicks.
Wheel of Names – A free, no-signup spinner. Load it with articulation targets, categories, or turn order and spin.
Boom Learning – Hundreds of free, self-checking Boom Cards decks tagged specifically for speech therapy. Use the “Find Free” filter in the store to browse without spending points.
Blooket – Turn any word list or question set into a fast-paced review game. SLPs use it for articulation carryover, vocabulary, and comprehension checks.
Printable Games
Next up, printable games and reinforcing activities you can use during sessions. This ties into a previous post, A Year of Free Open-Ended Reinforcers, so check that out for even more options.
100 Trial Challenges – Themed and holiday sheets by Peachie Speechie, easy to tie into sessions.
Coloring Pages – Crayola’s sheets sorted by season, character, and place.
Crafts – Kid-friendly tutorials for origami and paper airplanes, or SLP Now Crafts that tie into our themed materials.
Free Printable Board Games – A large list of board games, bingo boards, and other printable activities.
Reinforcer Sheets – SLP Now members can browse dozens of printable bingo boards, dice games, spinners, and coloring pages on our site.
Material-Free Games
This last list only needs you and your students, the kind of games you’d play at camp or on a road trip.
While setup is simple, there may be extra cognitive demands to follow directions and stay attentive. Feel free to add written or picture-based instructions and visual aids.
Name Game – Work on alliteration and adjectives while helping students remember each other’s names.
Jedi Numbers – Students count up to a number without interrupting each other. Great for reading nonverbal cues and sharing talk time.
Tall Tales – A student favorite built around generating stories with plot twists.
Fortunately, Unfortunately – A storytelling game exploring the benefits and consequences of situations, with humor.
Word Chains / I’m Going on a Picnic – A fun challenge for students working on auditory memory.
Silent Interviews – Using nonverbal communication, pairs try to learn something about each other without talking.
Super Smile – Pass contagious smiles around the circle as fast as possible.
Zip Zap Zop – A version of hot potato using words instead of a ball. Great for articulation goals targeting /z/.
Freeze Dance and Secret Dancer – Great ways to get students moving.
Telephone – A classic game built on communication skills.
Did we miss any of your go-to games? What’s your style? Adding play throughout the session, or as a break at the end?
How to Incorporate Games and Activities into Speech Therapy
Join our Free Literacy-Based Therapy Challenge and learn how to incorporate these games and activities into an evidence-based framework.
This 5-day challenge gives you:
- Daily, 5-minute tutorials on the core steps for making literacy-based therapy work with your caseload
- A workbook and templates to streamline planning
- Free, tested therapy materials to make lesson prep easy
Plus, you’ll walk away with a month-long therapy plan, created in less than 10 minutes a day.
Click here to join today.
References
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (n.d.). Telepractice. Practice Portal. Retrieved from https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/professional-issues/telepractice/
Tsikinas, S., & Xinogalos, S. (2019). Studying the effects of computer serious games on people with intellectual disabilities or autism spectrum disorder: A systematic literature review. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 35(1), 61-73. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jcal.12311
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