Game Adaptations: Let's Go Fishing

 

In every therapy room I've ever inherited, there has been Let's Go Fishing (affiliate link). It's definitely NOT my favorite, but my students and patients usually love it. It pairs well with an ocean theme. It is definitely a staple in my therapy room. Here are some ways that I have adapted it to use with patients who use AAC or are minimally verbal. 

1.) Labeling colors - catch a fish and label the color. 

2.) Commenting - "I got one!" or "I caught one!"

3.) Stop/Go or On/Off - After each catch, we turn the game "off" while labeling "off." Then they can comment "on" to get me to turn the game back on. You can do this with "stop" and "go" also as you tell the fish to "stop" or "go." 

4.) Answering questions - I will ask patients what color they want to catch before they take their turn. Other questions I ask include: "did you catch one?," "what color did you get?," "where do fish live?" "what else lives in the ocean?," etc. 

5.) Help - This game is hard for many of my patients, so it creates a natural scenario to request "help." 

6.) Swim - I will work on the verb swim by having my patients tell the fish to swim before I start the game. 

7.) In/Out - I put some fish in the spots and leave some out. I have my patients practice telling me which fish are in or out while I point to them. They can then tell me "fish in" as we practice putting them in the water. 

8.) No Bite/Ouch - Sometimes we ditch the fishing poles. As the fish move around, we stick our finger in their open mouths. After they "bite" our finger, we practice telling them "no bite" or exclaiming "ouch!" Many of my patients love this because it's so silly. 

9.) Loud/Quiet - This game can be very loud. We will label it as "loud," then shut it off and label it as "quiet." When I turn it back on, we say "so loud!" and practice covering our ears. Then we tell it to "be quiet." 

10.) My turn/your turn - as with most games, this is a great game to target my turn/your turn as you take turns catching the fish. 

I hope you found some ideas you can use with your students/patients! Thanks for stopping by!