Speech-language pathologists and assistants use a lot of tools and resources to teach speech and language skills to children.  What speech therapy materials and tools do we need to do our jobs?  And how can we find free speech therapy materials?  We all know we don’t have a huge budget (or any at all!).  This page will show you exactly what speech therapy materials you need as a speech-language pathologist along with links to our best freebies available.

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Check out our speech therapy materials list below for our recommendations on what speech therapy materials and speech therapy tools that you need as an SLP or SLPa.

Speech therapy materials and flashcards are resources that are designed to teach a specific speech/language skill.  These are especially helpful if you’re not quite sure the best way to teach a new skill and you’d like something that is already laid out for you.  Here are some ideas for essential speech therapy materials:

We work on teaching speech sounds a lot.  The therapy can go much quicker if we already have a deck of flashcards that contain the target sounds.  I suggest having one deck for each sound in our language.  Then you can pull those out whenever you need them.  Here are the free flashcards that we have available:

Click here to access these flashcards in our free materials library

Or, click here to purchase our full set of articulation cards and materials

Another essential speech therapy material is worksheets and flashcards that will allow you target various language skills.  You can keep worksheets in a binder with plastic page protectors so your students can fill them out with dry erase marker.  Flashcards can be kept in a carrying case like the one we show in our Speech-in-a-Box Kit!

Here is a list of some of our free flashcards and worksheets in the Free Speech Therapy Material Library:

Click here to access the language freebies in our Free Material Library

If you’re really feeling stumped on how to treat a specific skill, you can access all of our no-prep therapy kits on our TPT store.  Each of these kits will walk you through how to do therapy for a specific skill from start to finish.  And best of all, you won’t need any prep time to get ready.  Just print (or open on your device) and go!

Click Here to View our No-Prep Kits in our TPT Store

There are several different types of tools, equipment, and manipulatives that help us do our jobs as speech-language pathologists.  Here are a few of our must-haves:

Click Here to View All of our Recommendations for Tools and Equipment

The bulk of my speech therapy materials consist of games and general activities that can be used while I target various skills.  I’m a big fan of “no-prep therapy” or “child led therapy” where I go into the session knowing what skill I want to work on but I let the child choose the activity.  For that, I need toys, games, crafts, and other activities that keep us engaged and allow us to practice communication skills.

Here are some great ideas for toys, games, and other general activities for speech therapy:

For more information on how to organize all of your speech therapy materials, click here!

Who doesn’t love free speech therapy materials??? Here’s a round up of our top 11 freebies based on web traffic. The one with the most downloads will be at the top!

Download a free set of articulation cards for words of the following structures: consonant-vowel (CV – like me or no), vowel-consonant (VC – like up and on), consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC – like cat and bike), and consonant-vowel-consonant-vowel (CVCV – like happy). These are great for children who need to practice speech by working on short words first and gradually increasing in length, such as children with childhood apraxia of speech!

These visual aids and strategies will help you teach a child how to calm himself down when he’s mid-tantrum or melt-down. This is great for children who have trouble regulating their emotions, like those with autism.

Use your five senses to describe common objects! This free file folder game will allow you to choose the descriptors for an object and assemble them on a board organized by the 5 senses. This is great for working with children who are having trouble learning and using adjectives.

This sequencing board file folder game comes with a set of simple directions to follow like clap your hands and touch your nose. These can be used for helping children learn to follow multi-step directions. Plus, you’ll also get cards that sequence common events into 3, 4, or 5-step sequences, like washing your hands and making a sandwich. Great for children who are learning how to sequence and put events in order.

These flashcards include common preschool vocabulary divided up by category, such as vehicles, clothes, food, toys, etc. Plus, each card has a back side which includes a set of questions that can be asked about the card. These include yes/no questions as well as all types of wh- questions. Great for children who are working on vocabulary or questions!

Having trouble thinking of great ways to collect data on your kiddos? Check out my examples of different ways to collect data. All forms are editable in Microsoft Word so you can adapt them to meet your needs!

These action cards portray people doing various actions. These are great for building action word vocabulary or for eliciting sentences. I also use these frequently for grammar, such as by having the children say “she is dancing” or “he is sitting”.

Position the faces or the objects at various locations in relation to the car, the boat, the sky, or the sea. Children can practice various spatial concepts receptively (put the fish under the boat) or expressively (where is the fish?). Great for children with language delays who are working on understanding and using spatial concepts.

Who wants the ball? He does! She does! This game is a great way to practice gender-specific pronouns like “he” and “she” as well as “his” and “her”. Assign each of the small objects to either the boy or the girl and use the correct pronoun as you do so! Great for children with language delays who are working on pronouns and possessive pronouns.

Check out the real photos of people performing American Sign Language signs for about 60 of the most common first words in children. These are great words to teach children first as they are commonly found in the first words of typically-developing children. These are great for teaching staff, parents, and students who need to learn how to use sign language.

Make funny faces on this boy and girl inside the file folder game. This provides another great opportunity to work on gender-specific pronouns like “he”, “she”, “his”, and “her”. Plus, it’s also great for working on vocabulary like body parts, colors, shapes, and sizes.

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The Course for SLPs to Get Organized and Streamline Your Job

Hi, I’m Carrie! I’m a speech-language pathologist from Columbia, Missouri, USA. I’ve worked with children and teenagers of all ages in schools, preschools, and even my own private practice. I love digging through the research on speech and language topics and breaking it down into step-by-step plans for my followers.

Fun Fact: I feel the most at peace when walking on a trail in the woods at my local State Park.  There’s something magical about leaving the rush and hustle of modern life to spend time in nature.

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