functional problem solving activities for adults speech therapy

Assess, curing, and document including more confidence and ease

Assess, treat, and document with more confidence and ease

22 Executive Functioning Activities to Growing

In this post, you’ll find executive functioning dive for adults—plus free PDF worksheets! Each functional, step-by-step occupation is broken down by score, to help you adapt each activity as your voice therapy patient improves.

Bookmark this page additionally open it during treatments. Or feel free to copy and print some you find useful.

Both for ready-made materials that will save you hours of time and stress, check out our bestselling Adult Speech Therapy Starter Pack !

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• How to Treat Problem Solving
• How to Treatable Awareness
• Strategies to Treat Executive Feature Deficits

Executive Functioning Activities for Adults!

• Activities for Heavier Your Solving Deficits
• Business for Moderate Problem Solver Deficits

Activities for Mild Problem Solving Deficits

Worksheets & handouts, what to treat executive functioning.

When treating executive functioning, you’re lessons your patient how to unlock problems and gain more power over their own behaviors.

In this station, we focus with problems solving.

How to How Problem Solutions

1. Keep it Functional!

Maintain treatment functional. It will may more motivating for patients, and it’s important to  exercise person-centered care .

Functional tasks are commonly ADLs and IADLs. The told, always interview the patient (or they caregivers, if appropriate) to understand whichever their goals are and what matters to them. Junie 16, 2020 - Are you looking for clear and meaningful functional ready tools? This set of 40 black-and-white safety signs worksheets belong leveled for comfortable differentiation and focus on common community signs typically taught as sight words. Bewachen as your students gain independence and increase their functional r...

How to Select Functional Problem Solving Aspirations

When adjust goals, consider the following patient features:

• The patient’s goals, desired, and needs
• Previous level of functioning
• Running select of running
• Amount is product available
• Awareness of deficits

When setting goals, name what the plant was done forward the injury. Provided the patient always previously a calculator pre-injury, for example, then provide a calculator in math tasks.

That goal isn’t to improve their math skills. The purpose is to help them gain back until the previous step of functioning—or like independence using the artistry as possible.

2. Work on Awareness

Work on conscious if your forbearing isn’t aware out their problem-solving shortfall.

This process is to carefully point out the deficit, educate about to deficit, and then help patients improve awareness and/or compensate by adenine lack of awareness. 22 Executive How Activities for Adults - ADULT SPEAKING THERAPY

You’ll find a step-by-step guides to treating awareness below.

3. Teach a Item Solving Strategy

Teach you patient a step-by-step process by how for solve questions.

Patients for mild to mild-moderate deficits wants fill out a worksheet for the process broken down into steps. After lots of practice, your goal is for the patients to internalize this process as much as they can.

By moderate to severe deficits, you’ll modify that process to help them learn how to think in a structured way.

You’ll find free executive functioning worksheets and other problem solving strategic below.

How to Treat Awareness

What off awareness can be challenging to and the patient and that therapist.

Be non-confrontational.

Validate their hard work.

Take breaks.

And allow both you and the patient however long she use.

1. Point Away the Area of Concern

• Reverentially point off the difference between this patient’s pointing of view and reality
• Start with things important to the patient’s day lived. Since example, grocery shopping or a meaningful relationship

2. Educational Nearly Their Impairment

• Store your patient learning specific and functional
• Educate about about their specialize type of mastermind damage may look same inside daily life (for example, “After a head injury, many people forget whichever they wanted to buy at the grocery store or people lose their keys”)

3. Practice Exist More Aware

• Use a self-assessment working (below)
• Make self-assessment a standard separate of treatment
• The goal is that—with practice— self-assessment becomes a habit

Self-Awareness Worksheet (Metacognition)

Patients any lack understanding of their cognitive deficits can routine being more aware. The destination of your treatment will be for self-assessment to werde a habit.

Will Self-Awareness worksheet lives included in the free  Executive Functioning Worksheets  download.

For more, read  How To Refine Awareness .

Strategies to Treat Executive Functioning Deficits

Below are 7 strategies to dealing executive functioning deficits.

You’ll find recommendations by when to use each in and activities section below.

1) Game Plan Worksheet

Use on Game Plan Worksheet to teach your patients a step-by-step edit available how to resolved problems. Read Executive Functioning Strategies for Adults for detailed instructions.

2) Self-Assessment Worksheet

Use the Self-Assessment Worksheet to help your patient become more aware of their problem-solving deficits.

3) Errorless Learning

• Focus on accuracy when treating problem-solving
• Highlights not guessing
• Minimize guessing by giving enough help. For example, give a verbal cue to double-check the medicines tagging.

4) Task Analysis

Function analysis helps your learn new skills by breaking down a task into smaller steps. Task analysis is especially handy while running on more complex tasks.

Fork example, checking and deleting voicemails can be broken down into these steps:

• Touch the phone icon
• Touchscreen of voicemail button
• Touch play, etc.

5) Chaining

Use chaining to teach your multi-step tasks. You may benefit forward or backward linkage.

Stair into Rear Concatenating

Teach an entire task first, then gradually decrease cues, step-by-step, by the patient can do the task independently.

Be sure to use errorless how real to give immediate feedback.

• Place view bottles on this left web are this table
• Opens all the compartments of the pillbox
• Take one bottle and fill in only week’s valued
• Double-check your work
• Place the bottling in the right next of the table
• Provide visual, verbal, and/or mechanical prompts also modeling in requires as they go throws every take of the task
• For exemplar, you give the patient moderate visual queue with occasional modeling to complete steps 1 through 5 of filling an pillbox
• Go through of entire task, but decrease cues for the last step
• Keep fading cues until of patient can do the last tread independently
• For example, give only a graphical cue for step 5 (place the bottle on the right side starting to table) until independent
• An through the entire task, but decrease cues for the 2nd-to-last level
• Keep fading cues until the patient can doing an 2nd-to-last step independently
• For example, model step 4 (double-check your work) until independent
• Keep backward combine until the patient does and entire task independently

6) High Number of Practice Trials

Have insert patient completing of whole task over and pass again.

7) Make Modifications

Modifications to a patient’s environment or tasks can improve problem-solving skills. They can also search your compensate in deficits.

Modify the Environment

• Reduce clutter : take down strange wall art, etc.
• Removal distractions : reduce excess noise and optic distractions
• Organize the blank : assign specific places available specific things (e.g. a key rack by an door)

Modify the Assignment

• Make tasks easier
• Give cues and prompts
• Use task analysis
• Physiological: concerns with sleeper, medication side results, pain, etc.
• Psychological: depression, anxiety, etc.
• Refer out as appropriate

Below, you’ll find 22 executive how operations for your adult speak medication patients!

These functional events special on report removing and are shattered depressed by severity, from severe to mildness deficits.

Activities for Severe Problem Dissolve Deficiency

You will teaching sufferers with severe problem-solving deficits how to think into a structured way. One goal is often basic technical.

These patients expected can’t generate the steps to a destination by die. Otherwise even plan on for simple tasks. Though you ca teaching them how to think in a methodical way. Functional Independent Work Tasks: Color Matching Column Folders & Mission Cards ... Money Essentials Bundle for Special Education [Task Cards, Worksheets].

Problem Solver Strategies To Use: Strong

• Errorless Learning
• Tasks Analysis
• High Quantity of Practice Trials
• Construct Modifications

1) Using the Shout Light

Below are examples of how to use problem-solving strategies by of goal of using the call lightweight.

Chore Analysis: Us break “using the call light” down into three steps: 1) Identify that goal to call of nurse 2) Find one get bright and 3) Push the button.

Errorless Lessons: Focus on accuracy until giving enough cues and accenting not guessing

High Number of Practice Trials: Practice the duty many dates

Make Modifications: Decrease clutter int to room. Caregivers always return the shout light to the same location. Post a printed display of the call light next to the bed.

Chaining: Once the patient can call their foster, expand the task. Teach them to call the nurse when they have pain, when they has a question, etc.

2) Tracking Precautions

Turn any precautions that the patient has to problem-solving activities. For example, fall precautions, your limitations, etc.

3) Manage Oxygen Tubing

For some patients on oxygen, a functional problem-solving order are how to manage the tubing without geting involved.

Patient Instructions:

• If you how a walker, loop the tube around a finger to elevate the tube going from your feet. When you don’t use a walker, carry this tube with your non-dominate hand-held.
• When yourself want to take down, grip the tube out on front of you go avoid it becoming complicated around you.
• Wrap small pieces of leicht tape (e.g. neon-colored tape) every 12 to 18 inches along the length of the tubing in see it more easily.

4) Scheduled Tasks

Getting simple, structured tasks to procedure problem-solving strategies.

Place of measures into of correct order, using the numbers 1 though 4.

BOILING WATER

☐ Placement the pot on the stove.

☐ Wait for the water to boil.

☐ Fill up and pot with waters.

☐ Turn on the stove.

TOASTING BREAD

☐ Place bread in the toaster.

☐ Open the bread bag.

☐ Add organic to the toast.

☐ Push the lever downward on the toaster.

For print-and-go worksheets & handouts, visit our shop !

5) Simple Write & Paper Math

Use plain addition to practice problem-solving strategies. The point isn’t math. The point has in practices the skill they need to problem solve, such as paying paying, task initiation, etc. In this post, you'll find executive functioning activities for adults in speech therapy—plus free PDF worksheets!

Operations for Moderate Problem Removing Deficits

Patients is moderate problem-solving deficits been ready toward expand beyond basic safety goals. They ca now work on ADLs, increased independence, and setting and attain own own goals.

At the moderate level, they’re furthermore finish to try self-awareness strategies.

For the mild-moderate level, you can introduce of Game Plan Calculator .

Problem Solve Strategies To Use: Medium

• Self-Awareness Worksheets
• Game Plan Worksheet (Mild-moderate)
• Errorless Learned
• High Counter of Practice Trials
• Make Modifications

1) Avoiding Cascade

Along the moderation level, the my can work on problem-solving several views of avoidable falls.

GET YOUR SIGHT & EARS CHECKED

IMPROVE YOUR STRENGTH

IMPROVE YOUR CREDIT

USES ASSISTIVE DEVICES

ADAPT YOUR ENVIRONMENT

2) Remembering Your Medications

Use who symptom solving strategies to help sufferers move towards greater independence with medication management. Create a worksheet to help education the steps.

KEEP A ROUTINE . Pick my medications by the equivalent time and place anything day.

CREATE A LIST  of all of your medications.

USE A PILLBOX . Have all of your medications ready.

PLACE REMINDER NOTES  where you’ll see them

USE ALARMS . Programmer your calling or Alexa™ appliance to sound einem alarm when it’s time to take your medications.

USE A TIMETABLE . Write remembers in take your medications. Cross them out only  after  you’ve taken them. Add to your calendar when to call for an prescription refill.

3) Using a Smart Speaker

Use problem-solving strategies when learning to use an clever speaker. Create one worksheet to help teach the steps.

SET AN ALARMING

SET A TIMER

SET REMINDERS

ADD AN APPOINTMENT IN A ORGANIZER “Set ampere speech therapeutic appointment used either Monday at 10 am”

CHECK A CALENDAR “When is Mother’s Day?”

COMPUTATION

VARIATIONS “How many tablespoons is 3 cups?”

4) Order Bills

Utilize problem-solving strategies to help patients with the basics of finance management. Create ampere worksheet to help teach which steps. Modify an activities below for each patient.

GET ORGANIZED. Organize photo bills. Make a list of any currency, due dates, automatic services, ect.

KEEP A PHONE/WEBSITE LIST. Create a list of important websites and phone numbers.

STICK TO A DATE. Make due dates on calendars. Decide when to pay monthly paying. Set up recurrent reminders.

SELECT UP AUTOMATIC PAYMENTS. Set up automatic payments for all recurring payments.

5) Practical Calculation Worksheets

Use simple but practical math issues to practice problem-solving strategies. Stir beyond worksheets to real-life operations as sooner as possible!

Use a computing and pen and paper as needed.

• Their one-week passenger rental is $400. How way does each day cost?
• Your bill for a meal will $30. Select much will a 15% peak be?
• You buy 4 coffees along $1.80 each. How of is to total cost?
• You split a $50 eating amongst 2 people. How much does each meal cost?
• You buy two $18 sweaters with ampere buy-one-get-one half-off distribution. What’s this total cost?
• A 30-minute massage costs $45. How much does each minute value?
• Your dentist belongs 15 minutes away. What time should you leave your house to be right on time for an 8:30 appointment?
• The movie is 2 hours the 15 minutes long. It started at 3:35 pm. What zeit does e end?

6) Math in Everyday Life

Use math in everyday life to practice problem-solving strategies. Creation a worksheet to help teach the steps.

Patient Manuals:

Practice your math skills with the following tasks:

ROAD TRIPS. Choose a amusement road trip destination. Use an atlas or Google Maps

• Calculate the total distances
• Set adenine few stops
• Figure how much she will pass on fuel

WEEKLY ADS. Open adenine weekly ad from a local grocery store

• Decide for a budget for a week’s worth of groceries
• Write a list of all the items you need
• Using the week ad, write downhearted an price of all the products you need
• Calculate the total cost

7) Food Planning

Use meal planning to practice problem-solving strategies. Create a calculator to help teach the steps.

HOLD IT SIMPLE. Delicious, healthy, and time-saving meals can got 5 otherwise fewer components.

KEEP A LIST. Put a whiteboard or inviting memory pad on to cold and write down the market list throughout the week. Or apply a Notes app turn your cell phone.

PLAN TO MEAL AT AN TIME. Decide what you want to ingest. After planning a meal, add the article you what into get grocery list and Move for to the next meal.

USE FROZEN EITHER TINNED INGREDIENTS. If preparing fresh produce is too challenging, canned or frozen produce can be adenine nutritious and easier option. Avoid added sugars press salt.

FOODSTUFF SHOP AT THE SAME TIME EVERY WEEK. Get in a simple in avoid forgetting until sell.

USE A DINNER SHIPPING SERVICE. Meal delivery anmeldungen such as Hello Fresh or Home Kitchen can cut down a lot of time spent on shopping, cooking, additionally cleansing. Some offer spezial diet options and oven or microwave-ready meals.

Make a schedule for choosing meals online. Set calendar reminders for dates you need to pause aforementioned subscription (for example, during a bank week).

8) Set Targets

Once patients with moderation deficits are ready, begin working in goal-setting.

Create a goal-setting printable. Prep them equipped the following questions:

• What is your standard daily routine right immediately?
• What did a normal day use go look like (pre-injury)?
• What things are gone that you’d like to do again? These will become your goals.
• Predefined your new challenges, which goal would you like toward get back to in the move 2 weeks?
• What could you do tomorrow to work towards reaching your goal?
• What 1-3 more steps can you take this week this achieve your intention?
• How would your routine change?

9) Real Life Trouble Solving

As the patient progresses, make the transition to real-life roles.

These contains their daily activities and the goals they have set:

• Planning their own schedule
• Making their own events
• Heightened self-determination with ADLs and IADLs, etc.

Patients because mild problem-solving deficits will working on tasks that read increase their independence, safety, and quality of life.

Do a read in-depth patient interview to better understand their needs both wants. How do they want their life to look like? And how can your problem-solving treatment sessions help they get there? Safety Drawing Worksheets - Functional Readers for Society Signs Sight Words | Functional literacy, Literacy worksheets, Reading comprehension

Difficulty Solving Strategies Till Use: Mild Deficits

• Game Plan Worksheet
• Self-Awareness Worksheet
• My Analysis
• High Number of Practice Trials
• Make Modification

1) Math in Everyday Life: Road Trip

Plant Instructions:

• Choose a road trip destination. Got fun with this! Maybe it’s for visit this my in Atlantes or to the sea
• Use an atlas or Google maps to blueprint out their journey
• Calculate the total distance
• Calculate how many days/hours the trip will take
• Plan how many stops they’ll take
• Calculate how much they’ll pass on gas alternatively tickets
• With appropriate for your patients, increase the challenge by adding in a second or third terminus. Calculate the free of tourist and food

2) Math in Everyday Life: Shopping

To keep this activity functional, set weekly ads for a store the fit your patient’s interest. For example, if your love gardening, use adenine my center’s weekly ad to plan next spring’s garden. Or if it’s nearby the vacations and her have young grandchildren, find a big-box store or toy storage katalogisierung to create a gift list. Transition Assessments and Activities

We’ll exercise the example are planning a holiday feast.

• Get adenine copied on a weekly ad from one geographic grocery store
• Have them decide up adenine get for the annual meal
• Are them write an inventory of all the items they’ll need the make the meal. Don’t forget fun decoration and dessert!
• Using the weekly adverts, have them write lower the price by all the items they’ll needs
• Have them calculate what the total cost will subsist

3. Mathematical are Everyday Life: Restaurant Menus

• Geting a copy about and restaurant’s menu. You may pick up their take-out menu with print out the menu from their website.
• Have the invalid set a cheap
• Have them write one list of get the items they want
• Possess them calculate fiscal and tip
• Then have them calculate how much their total will be

4) Mathematic within Everyday Life: Reading a Receipt

• Asks the patient to review a receipt then answer matter
• Let them know that the can use this calculator and pen and paper as needed

Example Inquiries

• How much is each mango?
• How much is each avocado?
• How much are apples per strike?
• How often is whipped topping?
• Thing are your grand total?

5) Remembering Will Medications

• Transition away from the medication enterprise worksheet toward trouble solve what for remain more fully with this task
• Employ the Game Flat Worksheet to are patients set their own goals and make their own plans for this task
• Help patients progress towards internalizing these steps
• Continue using the other strategies

Go to the medication management instructions.

6) Using a Smart Guest

• Transition leaving from the smart loudspeaker calculator up problem solve how to exist extra independent with this task.
• Used the Playing Plan Printable to have invalids set their own objective and make their proprietary plans for this task
• Help patients take towards internalizing these action

Go to the smart speaker instructions .

7) Treasury Management

• Transition away from printable to problem solve how until be more independence with this task
• Exercise the Game Planner Worksheet until have disease set their own goals additionally make their own dates since this undertaking
• Help disease move towards internalizing these stages

Going up this economic management i nstructions.

8) Meal Planning

• Transition back from the feast planning worksheet to problem solve wherewith to must more and more independent through that task
• Use the Game Plan Worksheet to have patients set their own goals additionally take their own plans for this task
• Help patients move towards internalizing these steps
• Continue using an other strategies

Go go the meal planning instructions .

Used hundreds are ready-made largesse & printable check out our biggest Adult Speech Remedy Starter Pack!

• Cognitive Rehabilitation Manual; Translating Evidence-Based Recommendations into Practice  by The American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine
• Goal Plan Do Review/Revise by the Centre on Budget and Policy Priorities and Globalized Learning Affiliated
• Softer TBI Rehabilitation Toolkit  by The Borden Institute
• The Adult Speech My Project , with Chung Hwa Brewer

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About the Author: 

Sarah Baar is a speech-language pathologist working in Grand Rapids, MI. She’s had the opportunity to work in many settings across the continuum including acute care, acute rehab, home & community, and outpatient therapy, as well as being involved in various leadership projects. In 2016, she started the Honeycomb Speech Therapy website and blog as a way to promote person-centered and functional therapy ideas for adult rehab. Those who have attended her speaking events enjoy her practical approach and tips that the everyday SLP can implement for a functional therapy approach.

Today, we are talking about why Functional Treatment for Everyday Cognition matters. 

Functional Treatment is a person-centered approach.  

Using a person’s own goals to improve their performance and meaning in life tasks is the very essence of person-centered care.

We know from research that person-centered care offers better patient satisfaction and outcomes. 

Those who are highly involved in setting personal goals have better outcomes when treatment is done (Webb & Gluecauf, 1994).

Why do we care about a person-centered approach?  

Person-centered care has become the standard across health settings, and therefore our speech therapy treatment and resources need to change from decades ago. 

As SLPs, we are no longer telling a patient what their problem is and what we are working on. 

Instead, we are collaboratively identifying person-centered goals, therapy, and outcome expectations. 

The Worldwide Health Organization describes person-centered outcomes as focusing on the activity and participation of a patient (can they make their own coffee? Set an alarm? Use their call light?), as opposed to measuring impairment level outcomes only (sustained attention, problem-solving, memory).

Is the functional approach just another option in our treatment bag?  

This approach is not just “another option” because it’s fun to have options; it’s actually the best option when considering large healthcare initiatives as well as our own SLP literature. 

We are in a new era as SLP’s, as our own SLP literature for the adult neurogenic population has shown ample evidence that cognitive-communication therapy MUST be performed in-context if we hope to make a difference in someone’s everyday life. 

Research has shown that using workbooks in therapy does not generalize to everyday life skills or strategies. Playing games–either board games or nonfunctional apps–  only improve someone’s skill at playing that actual game.

Does this functional / person-centered approach apply to treating cognition for adults with brain injury?  

Best practices indicate that for cognitive intervention to be meaningful in real-life; we MUST practice skills and strategies in a real-life context. 

That means that drilling a skill with a worksheet, game, or app has not been proven to make a difference when someone is using cognitive skills in real life. 

This includes problem-solving, attention, planning, memory, and organization (Ponsford et al., 2014). 

"I’m not sure what I would do in treatment if I didn’t have worksheets or games."  

I’ve been where you are! 

You have “Tossed The Workbooks”, “Closed The Game Closet”, and “Scrapped the Nonfunctional Apps.” 

The good news is that research supports MANY treatment options and frameworks that have been shown to improve everyday activities for cognition. 

Alas, with productivity demands, busy caseloads, full extracurricular lives, or kids interrupting your sleep at night (That's me, currently!), you might notice that while you attempt to read the current research, it's not always "sticking" for the moments you need to remember some of the key details. 

And let's be honest, we don't exactly have time to thumb through articles or textbooks trying to recall specific recommended guidelines for the population that benefits from a certain treatment.

Clinical SLPs, I hear you (I AM you!) and I want to help. 

Today I'm sharing a simple "Cheat Sheet" that I use to recall evidence-based treatments that can be applied to meet functional goals in cognitive therapy. 

All of the treatment packets in my store include a simple Cheat Sheet that can be used to decide if a certain treatment would be appropriate for a patient, at a glance.

But today, I stuck them all together so you can see the info in a simple table.

If you are just catching up, I have created some great resources that give functional treatment ideas using evidence-based cognitive treatments:

Book 1: Goal Management Training

Book 2: Step-By-Step Activities

Book 3: Task-Specific Cognitive & Language Supports

Book 4: Spaced Retrieval

When it comes to choosing my treatment methods, I first listen for the functional needs during the assessment, and then use a Cheat Sheet like the one attached here to collaboratively choose a treatment plan with the patient. 

This way, I know that I am bringing a best practice treatment to meet a real need for the patient (but also don't have to rely on my memory to recall all these facts independently during the evaluation!).

Click here to download/print your own copy.

What else is in your evidence-based treatment box for functional cognition? I'd love to hear! 

If this info is new to you, be sure to head over to my website and sign up for Functional Freebies to get you started on a person-centered approach for speech therapy.

Make sure you get the latest functional therapy updates: Follow Honeycomb Speech Therapy on Facebook , Pinterest , or Instagram .

Related Course

Related Posts

Hi SLPs! With productivity demands, busy caseloads, full extracurricular lives, or kids interrupting your sleep at night (That’s me, currently!), you might notice that while you attempt to read the current research, it’s not always “sticking” for the moments you need to remember some of the key details. And let’s be honest, we don’t exactly have time to thumb through articles or textbooks trying to recall specific recommended guidelines for the population that benefits from a certain treatment.

Today, I’m sharing a simple “Cheat Sheet” that I use to recall evidence-based treatments that can be applied to meet functional goals in cognitive therapy. All of my treatment packets in my store include a simple Cheat Sheet that can be used to decide if a certain treatment would be appropriate for a patient, at a glance.

*Psst: Those of you that received a coupon via social media when this Series began: It expires on 11/2! 

If you are just catching up, I have created some great resources that give functional treatment ideas using evidence-based cognitive treatments. Read more:

Book 1:   Goal Management Training

Book 2:  Step-By-Step Activities

Book 3: Task-Specific Cognitive & Language Supports

Book 4: Spaced Retrieval

When it comes to choosing my treatment methods, I listen for the functional needs during the assessment, and then use a Cheat Sheet like the one below to collaboratively choose a treatment plan with the patient. This way, I know that I am bringing a best practice treatment in to meet a real need for the patient (but also don’t have to rely on my memory to recall all these facts independently during the evaluation! I actually have this printed out):

What else is in your evidence-based treatment box for functional cognition? I’d love to hear! If this info is new to you, stay tuned for my next post which will include key references (with free links!) that you can use for education.

Purchase book 1: goal management training ,  book 2: step-by-step activities ,  book 3: task-specific language & cognitive supports , and book 4: spaced retrieval in my store, and stay tuned for other parts to this series.

Make sure you get the latest functional therapy updates: Follow Honeycomb Speech Therapy on  Facebook  ,  Pinterest , or Instagram , or sign up for email updates below.

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Urgent Care

Problem Solving Activities For Adults Speech Therapy: Improve Communication

Skills and Cognitive Function

Are you an adult struggling with communication difficulties or cognitive impairments? Speech therapy can be a valuable tool in improving your quality of life. In this blog post, we will explore the benefits of problem solving activities in speech therapy and how they can help you enhance your communication skills and cognitive function.

Why are problem solving activities important in speech therapy?

Problem solving activities are an essential component of speech therapy for adults. These activities help individuals develop and improve their communication skills by challenging their cognitive abilities. By engaging in problem solving tasks, adults can enhance their problem-solving skills, critical thinking, and decision-making abilities.

Benefits of problem solving activities in speech therapy

• Improved communication skills: Problem solving activities require individuals to think critically and communicate their thoughts effectively. By engaging in these activities, adults can enhance their ability to express themselves clearly and confidently.
• Enhanced cognitive function: Problem solving activities stimulate the brain and promote cognitive function. These activities can improve memory, attention, and concentration, leading to better overall cognitive abilities.
• Increased confidence: Successfully solving problems can boost self-confidence and self-esteem. By participating in problem solving activities, adults can gain a sense of accomplishment and feel more confident in their communication abilities.
• Real-life application: Problem solving activities in speech therapy often simulate real-life situations. By practicing problem solving in a controlled environment, adults can transfer these skills to their daily lives and improve their ability to navigate various communication challenges.

Examples of problem solving activities for adults in speech therapy

• Storytelling: Encourage adults to create and tell stories using specific vocabulary or themes. This activity promotes problem solving skills, as individuals need to organize their thoughts, structure their narratives, and communicate effectively.
• Role-playing: Engage adults in role-playing scenarios that require problem solving and effective communication. For example, simulate a job interview or a social gathering where individuals need to navigate conversations and express themselves clearly.
• Puzzle solving: Provide adults with puzzles or brain teasers that require problem solving skills. This activity challenges cognitive abilities and promotes critical thinking and communication.
• Group discussions: Facilitate group discussions on various topics, encouraging adults to express their opinions, listen actively, and engage in problem solving as a team.

How can Statcare help?

At Statcare, we understand the importance of problem solving activities in speech therapy for adults. Our digital health platform offers comprehensive healthcare solutions that cater to the unique needs of each individual. Through our innovative technology and expert therapists, we provide cost-effective and superior quality multispecialty services to enhance communication skills and cognitive function.

Problem solving activities are a valuable tool in speech therapy for adults. By engaging in these activities, individuals can improve their communication skills, enhance cognitive function, and gain confidence in their abilities. If you're looking to enhance your quality of life and unlock your full potential, start incorporating problem solving activities into your speech therapy routine. Contact Statcare today to embark on your journey to improved communication and cognitive abilities.

1. How often should I engage in problem solving activities in speech

The frequency of problem solving activities in speech therapy may vary depending on individual needs and goals. It is best to consult with a speech therapist who can assess your specific requirements and recommend an appropriate schedule.

2. Can problem solving activities benefit adults with cognitive

impairments?

Yes, problem solving activities can be beneficial for adults with cognitive impairments. These activities can help stimulate the brain, improve cognitive function, and enhance overall communication abilities.

3. Are problem solving activities only for adults in speech therapy?

While problem solving activities are commonly used in speech therapy for adults, they can also be beneficial for individuals of all ages and in various therapeutic settings. These activities promote critical thinking, communication skills, and cognitive function.

4. How can I incorporate problem solving activities into my daily life?

You can incorporate problem solving activities into your daily life by practicing problem solving in various contexts. For example, you can solve puzzles, engage in critical thinking exercises, or participate in group discussions that require problem solving and effective communication.

5. What other services does Statcare offer?

Statcare offers a wide range of comprehensive healthcare solutions, including telehealth consultations, remote monitoring, and personalized treatment plans. Our platform combines cutting-edge technology with expert care to deliver superior quality multispecialty services.

6. Is Statcare's digital health platform cost-effective?

Yes, Statcare's digital health platform is designed to be cost-effective while providing superior quality healthcare services. We prioritize affordability without compromising on the quality of care and support we offer.

7. How can I get started with Statcare?

To get started with Statcare, simply visit our website and explore our range of services. You can schedule a telehealth consultation or contact our team for more information on how we can help you improve your communication skills and cognitive function.

8. Does Statcare offer personalized treatment plans?

Yes, at Statcare, we believe in personalized care. Our expert therapists assess each individual's unique needs and goals to create personalized treatment plans that address their specific requirements. We tailor our services to ensure the best possible outcomes for our patients.

9. Can Statcare help with other healthcare needs?

Yes, Statcare offers comprehensive healthcare solutions to address a wide range of needs. From speech therapy to remote monitoring and personalized treatment plans, our platform caters to various healthcare requirements.

10. Is Statcare covered by insurance?

Statcare works with various insurance providers to ensure our services are accessible to as many individuals as possible. We recommend contacting your insurance provider to determine your coverage and eligibility for our services.

Please note that the information provided in this blog post is for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical advice. It is always best to consult with a qualified healthcare professional for personalized guidance and recommendations.

• https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/urgent-care/
• https://urgentcareassociation.org/

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Table of Contents

Problem Solving Activities for Adults Speech Therapy

As a BetterHelp affiliate, we may receive compensation from BetterHelp if you purchase products or services through the links provided.

The Optimistminds editorial team is made up of psychologists, psychiatrists and mental health professionals. Each article is written by a team member with exposure to and experience in the subject matter.  The article then gets reviewed by a more senior editorial member. This is someone with extensive knowledge of the subject matter and highly cited published material.

This blog will highlight the problem solving questions and exercises that are most commonly used in Adult Speech Therapy. It will also explore the rationale and process of Speech Therapy, what problem solving entails and how it fits into the practise of speech therapy. 

The various possible problem solving approaches that can be used within adult speech therapy would be discussed in detail, along with a brief into speech therapy and it’s need for adults. The blog will also list other approaches that can be used within the domain of speech therapy apart from problem solving. 

What Is Speech Therapy?

Human wings are social animals that are able to function within their environment through effective communication. Communication, whether the form of speech or written word enables individuals to express and understand each other, it helps them in forming and sustaining relationships with other people. 

Understanding what people are saying and responding to them through effective communication channels is an essential part of being a human, it almost comes as second nature to individuals. Although such is not the case for individuals battling speech and communication disorders. For such people, speech therapy may prove to be an essential tool. 

Speech therapy is a psychological intervention that seeks to improve an individual’s ability to understand and produce language. It can help in better comprehension and expression of both verbal and non-verbal language. Speech therapy can also be called speech language therapy, and it helps build communication skills in people. This kind of therapy provides successful support and treatment to individuals with speech problems and communication disorders. 

Do Adults Need Speech Therapy?

It is a very common misconception that speech therapy can only serve as useful for children with speech and communication disorders. While speech therapy can help direct children’s language development onto the right path, it’s applications do not end there. Speech therapy can be extremely useful even in the case of adults with long-drawn or newly acquired speech problems. 

Adults may seek out speech therapists for a variety of reasons, ranging from regaining communications skills and confidence after trauma or injury or to simply improve on public speaking skills. 

Some of the most common reasons for adults to seek out speech therapy can be:

• Stuttering: stuttering is a speech issue wherein a person has a hard time pronouncing certain sounds. It can cause people to either repeat their words or stretch them out. This condition may become exaggerated due to stress and can also be influenced by the person’s feelings. 
• Swallowing Issues: Individuals with diseases such as cancer of the jaw, lips, mouth or tongue, and people with neurological issues can develop issues with speech production and clear expression of verbal content. When there are physical problems such as these, a speech therapist may help clients in regaining lost speech functions or to work around them and find alternative routes. 
• Trauma and Speech Reception: Speech therapy is not limited to speech production, it can also aid in better comprehension and speech reception. Trauma or accidents are likely to interfere with how people process and understand spoken content; they may face difficulties in focusing attention, understanding what others are saying or retaining information they have received. Speech therapy can also help with developing these skills and improving speech reception. 
• Cognitive Disorders or Aphasia: Aphasia is a common communicative disorder which interferes with a person’s ability to clearly speak or understand others. It is often acquired as a result of illness or injury. An individual could also require speech therapy if they have a cognitive-communication disorder, which means that the parts of their brain responsible for speech production are facing problems. 

What Happens in Adult Speech Therapy?

A Speech and Language Pathologist is likely to use various techniques as part of adult speech therapy. These can involve:

• Breathing exercises: A speech therapist can use breathing exercises to help people with resonance issues.
• Mouth exercises: Mouth exercises in speech therapy can be a suitable way to strengthen the oral muscle which help control and improve communication.
• Social communication: Speech pathologists could also make use of problem-solving, memory activities, and conversation exercises to improve communication.
• Swallowing exercises: Organic illnesses, like Parkinson’s disease, oral cancer, or a stroke, may cause swallowing difficulties which can also affect clear speech. A speech therapist can use swallowing exercises to help a person resolve and better deal with these issues. 

What is Problem Solving In Speech Therapy?

Before understanding how problem solving fits into speech therapy, it is important to review what problem solving means. The term problem solving essentially highlights the mental processes that people use to identify, understand, analyse and overcome problems. It is a multi-step, goal-directed behaviour aimed at overcoming a mental or physical obstacle. 

The problem solving process starts with defining a problem. This step usually involves the diagnosis of a situation to collect facts and information for later processing.  While a person is attempting to define a problem, they take in information from various sources and try to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between various factors involved in the situation. After a problem situation is successfully conceptualised, people try to look for alternatives solutions that may bring about a resolution. As various solutions are found and evaluated for usefulness, the final stage of problem solving is reached, which is implementation of the shortlisted solution. After scouring through dozens of possible solutions to a particular problem, an individual narrows down on the most feasible option and seeks to implement it as a final solution to the situation. 

Within the domain of speech therapy, problem solving exercises, or activities that involve the use of memory systems, organisation and decision making behaviours are most commonly used to treat cognitive communication disorders. Such disorders can affect the way in which people produce or comprehend speech, and they can be a result of either injury or illness. 

Adopting a problem solving approach with respect to communication disorders can help adults in adapting to undesirable situations that arise throughout their days. It can even help them gain a better understanding of their speech problems and come to terms with it. Once people are able to comprehend their issues, they will be better equipped to deal with the problems and take steps to improve their situation as suggested by their speech therapists. Problem solving exercises within speech therapy also help in building a person’s confidence and their capabilities for social interaction; which in turn would have benefits for their personal and professional relationships. 

Problem Solving Activities In Adult Speech Therapy

Some of the commonly practised problem solving activities within adult speech therapy are:

• Tongue Exercises: The first step in re-training oneself to practise correct speech patterns should be to gain better control over the tongue. Moving and exercising is an essential part of speech therapy. Tongue training exercises can help the mouth to move easily in coordinated patterns which can greatly improve the quality of speech production. 
• Expression Game: Standing in front of a mirror and practising a list of expressions is also a great cognitive exercise within speech therapy. Reading a list of expressions and then attempting to recreate them in the mirror provides the rain with essential feedback. This stimulates the brain and allows individuals to observe their progression real time. Not only this, it can also help in strengthening the muscles in a person’s face and mouth. 
• Reading and Sentence Production: Patients with organic speech disturbances like apraxia can benefit from reading activities. Reading small passages and repeating them out loud can help such patients to strengthen their lip and tongue muscles. A speech therapist may start off by asking them to practice one or two sentences initially for short periods of time, and gradually increase theory timings and workload.  
• Word Games: Word games either through the use of computers or with people around oneself can prove to be a great way to exercise the brain’s speech and language centers. These games can either rely on quick production or quick comprehension and repetition of speech. They force individuals to pay and sustain attention, and make use of their speech centers. 
• Computer Games: Computer games like solitaire or alchemy are sometimes also used with speech therapy clients. Although these games do not rely on active production of speech, they can still help exercise the cognitive-linguistic pathways because the brain’s language processing skills are still being actively used. 
• Counting Syllables: When working with a speech therapist, a client may be asked to speak various words to the therapist while the therapist does the same. When one person finishes saying a word, the other’s role is to guess how many syllables are there in the word. As a client and therapist both say words and provide each other with feedback, the individual showing up for speech therapy learns to identify and break down words for better speech comprehension and also makes improvements in the production of speech. 
• Special Focus Games: Sometimes clients may face extreme difficulties in pronouncing certain words or sounds. In such cases they are encouraged to pair the problem consonants with all the five vowels and to practice the sounds they make over and over. 
• Role-Play Conversations: Sometimes speech therapists may engage in role-plays with clients to enable them to slowly ease back into communicating and regain the verbal skills and confidence required to form and maintain personal and professional relationships. 
• Speech Exercises through apps: With the advent of technology, there are various speech problem solving mobile and internet applications available today. These applications come with unique plans and exercises that can be tailored to a client’s specific problems. Apps can also be used to assess an individual’s problems areas which can help both the therapist and the person concerned to understand where they are lacking and what they need support with. 

How Can Problem Solving In Speech Therapy Help Adults? 

The various ways in which speech language pathologists can utilise problem solving exercises within speech therapy are:

• Using cognitive exercises to help recovery after strokes
• Using breathing, mouth and tongue exercises to provide comfort from swallowing difficulties
• Using conversational exercises that stimulate the brain to help repair communication between friends and family 
• Improving the clarity of spoken language by working on speech production and pronunciation
• Using cognitive exercises to create a strong link between language comprehension and production centres of the brain
• Improving brain plasticity through various cognitive problem solving exercises that help individuals gain new skills in speech development 

Is Speech Therapy The Only Option For People With Speech Disturbances?

Sometimes, people who have been diagnosed with speech production or comprehension issues may not be able to benefit from speech therapy. This could be because speech therapy is unable to target their problem areas or other therapeutic factors beyond the control  of the individual or therapist. Sometimes speech therapy alone may not be able to cater to the problems of an individual. There are various approaches that can be applied in the care of such individuals, like: 

• Music Therapy: Musical activities can  be used to facilitate speech recognition and processing in adults that have suffered traumatic brain injuries or brain damage due to illness. These exercises can strengthen language processing, communication and social skills. 
• Neurofeedack: Neurofeedback makes use of sensors attached to a client’s scalp which provides them with realtime information about their physical states. by receiving constant information about brain processes and physical arousal, an individual can learn to manage these states better. 

In this blog we discussed the applications of problem solving exercises within the domain of speech therapy – what exactly is speech therapy, what is meant by problem solving and problem solving exercises, what these exercises entail and how exactly they help in speech therapy. Other applications and the most commonly used problem solving exercises were described in detail, along with alternatives to replace them in special cases. The process and scope of speech therapy was also explored to understand how the process unfolds and helps treat speech disturbances. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Problem Solving Questions for Adults Speech Therapy

What exactly is speech therapy.

When children or adults have speech problems that prevent them from clearly using verbal language and communicating effectively with people around them, they can seek speech therapy to get help for their issues. Speech therapy is a form of psychological treatment that helps people to coordinate mouth movements to be able to etter produce certain sounds, address articulation, fluency, language comprehension and production. It can also help improve the understanding and expression of language. 

How do you know if a person needs speech therapy?

A person may need speech therapy if they suffer from problems such as stammering or stuttering, if they are unable to produce or understand certain sounds and words or if they are unable to use verbal and body language appropriately in social situations. Speech therapy may also be needed in cases where people are unable to comprehend verbal cues from the people around them, in such cases speech therapists can help aid the language comprehension of individuals. Speech therapy can also be used with individuals who have suffered traumatic brain injuries or are unable to communicate effectively due to brain cognitive or neurodegenerative disorders. 

What do speech therapists do?

The first and foremost task of speech therapists is always to identify speech and language pathologies in their patients. This can be done by giving people certain exercises that can help highlight their problem areas and help a therapist gain better understanding of their issues. After identification and isolation of the problem, speech therapists work on targeting these areas and giving the client exercises that will help improve their condition. Apart from carrying out interventions, speech therapists also act as a constant source of motivation and support for their clients, urging them and giving them the warmth and understanding needed to continue working on their problems. 

How does speech therapy last for adults?

Adults are not as malleable as children, they are more set in their ways and have ingrained methods of understanding and producing language. In order to bring about a change in how an individual understands and communicates veral content a speech therapist needs longer times as compared to children. Speech therapy with adults also includes providing constant support and encouragement to keep the client motivated towards the final goal of speech therapy. This can become an intensive and time-consuming process that might spread across months. In case of injuries or brain disorders, the severity and prognosis of the conditions is also likely to influence the length of therapy.

References:

Bedell, J. R., & Lennox, S. S. (1997). Handbook for Communication and problem-solving skills training: A cognitive-behavioral approach . Wiley.

Belsky, G. (2021, May 24). What is speech therapy? Understood. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://www.understood.org/articles/en/what-you-need-to-know-about-speech-therapy.

MEDIAmaker. (2020). Cognitive communication difficulties . Headway. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://www.headway.org.uk/about-brain-injury/individuals/effects-of-brain-injury/communication-problems/cognitive-communication-difficulties/.

Rowden, A. (2021, January 5). Speech therapy: For adults, kids, and how it works . Medical News Today. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/speech-therapy#conditions.

Smith , B. (2014). What is speech therapy? Parents. Retrieved November 18, 2021, from https://www.parents.com/kids/development/learning-disabilities/what-is-speech-therapy/. 

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• Problem Solving

Speech therapy materials with problem solving tasks.

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Expanding Utterances Using Response Elaboration Training

Kearns, K.P. (1985). Response elaboration training for patient initiated utterances. Clinical Aphasiology, 15, 196-204.

Gaddie, A, Kearns, K.P., & Yedor, K. (1991). A qualitative analysis of response elaboration training effects. Clinical Aphasiology, 19, 171-183.

Functional Problem Solving Cards

This PDF contains 288 real-world task cards (with photos and illustrations) that can be used to target problem solving, reasoning, safety awareness, and more.

Sample prompts and goals are also included.

Functional Activities Bundle: Rehab Discharge to Home

This packet was created to promote recovery of cognitive-linguistic deficits for individuals returning home or to an assisted/independent living facility. Use of functional real-world tasks in therapy helps generalize skills learned to everyday situations. Functional therapy is based on a patient-centered approach and it is important to consider your clients’ day-to-day responsibilities. This packet includes a case history form, functional activities, practice ideas, and compensatory strategies. To improve functionality and promote independence, modify materials based on individual needs and use real materials/scenarios when possible.

Sections include: goal writing examples, home practice and ADL activities, 60 + high-quality colored images, and an additional 20 ideas for real-world practice.

Cognitive Speech-Language Inventory

The Cognitive Speech-Language Inventory (C.S-L.I) is designed to assess cognitive-communication skills and speech-language abilities. This tool can be used to help rapidly plug-in client data into current medical information systems. Speech-language therapists and professionals may use this assessment tool in its entirety or complete subsections based on client abilities and cognitive-communication needs. This assessment may guide professionals in identifying need for further testing within specific domains or may be used independently to generate real-world functional goals for speech therapy. Although this evaluation was generated and has been tested by medical SLPs in sub-acute rehabilitation and skilled nursing settings, no standardized data has been collected.

C.S-L.I Sections:

Receptive Language

• Verbal ID Level
• Yes/No Questions
• Following Directions
• Open Ended Questions
• Conversation
• Comprehension Level
• Signs/Symbols

Expressive Language

• Automatic Speech
• Naming Objects
• Responsive Naming
• Making Needs Known
• Speech Characteristics
• Expression Level
• Pragmatic Skills
• Alternating
• Orientation
• Memory – Short & Long Term
• Thought Organization

Motor Speech

• Articulation
• Intelligibility
• Sustained Phonation

Functional Materials for Long-Term Care

The  Functional Speech Therapy for Long-Term Care Bundle   includes materials and resources for new and experienced clinicians working in long-term care settings  (i.e., Skilled Nursing, Assisted Living SNF/ALF/LTC, etc.).  Filled with educational handouts, screening tools, and practical no-prep treatment activities.

• SLP Intake Form
• Screening Forms

Functional Reading

• Activity Calendar
• Appointments/Schedules
• Weather Forecast
• Television Guide
• Community Signs

Memory/Orientation

• Interventions
• Memory Strategies
• Names and Faces
• Memory Book Template/Orientation Log

Problem Solving/Reasoning/Safety Awareness

• Picture Scenes
• Calculations/Time Management
• Safety Signs

Word Retrieval

• Naming Everyday Objects
• Naming from Description
• Divergent Naming

Picture Flashcards

Print pages front and back to easily create flashcards for your therapy.

Handout: Wernicke’s Aphasia

Printable caregiver handout for patient families and around your workplace.

Functional Reading Activities: Groceries

60 pages of functional reading activities including organization tasks to target speech-language goals.

Organization Tasks: Food Storage

12 pages of activities and tasks that target organization skills through everyday tasks, such as putting groceries away. Practice identifying where items belong in the kitchen (e.g. fridge, freezer, pantry, etc) for functional speech therapy.

Also included in: Functional Reading Therapy: Groceries materials

AAC Communication Board

Free AAC communication board. Contains printable and high-quality images.

Automatic Speech Routines

Includes automatic speech routines such as:

• Days of the Week
• Months of the Year
• Familiar Songs
• Pledges and Prayers

Aphasia Therapy Workbook

The Aphasia Therapy Bundle includes 350+ pages of printable activities, educational handouts, documentation examples, and more. Includes worksheets for receptive language, expressive language, written language. This bundle may provide helpful resources, treatment materials, and home practice for patients with aphasia. Each section provides ideas for treatment, sample goals, and cueing examples. Manipulate materials and personalize for your clients to promote individualized speech and language therapy.

Table of Contents

• What is Aphasia?
• Impacted Language Domains
• Caregiver Communication Tips
• Word Finding Strategies
• Section 2. Expression
• Gestures & Nonverbal Language
• Automatic Sequences
• Functional Phrases – Completion, Script Training, MIT
• Everyday Object Flashcards
• Semantic Feature Analysis (SFA)
• Responsive, Divergent, and Generative Naming
• Symbols and AAC Communication Board
• Verb Network Strengthening Treatment (VNeST)
• Expanding Utterances
• Section 3. Comprehension 
• Cueing Strategies
• Object Identification and Discrimination
• Following 1-Step Commands
• Word to Picture Matching
• Sentence Comprehension
• Paragraph Comprehension
• Functional Reading Comprehension – menus, notes, cards, labels, weather
• Section 4. Writing
• Numbers & Alphabet
• Words & Sentences
• Filling in Forms
• Section 5. References and Terms of Use

Functional Speech Therapy Materials Bundle

The Functional Therapy Materials Bundle includes 350+ pages of functional activities and printable resources that target real world cognitive-linguistic skills.

Included in this bundle: 

• Client Intake Questionnaire
• Advertisements/Coupons
• Appointments
• Filling out Forms
• Associative Naming
• Confrontational Naming
• Picture Flashcards – with prompts
• Features and Functions
• Divergent/Generative Naming
• Food Storage
• Recipes and Ingredients
• Scheduling – daily, monthly, yearly routines
• Orientation – days, months, holidays
• Medication – management
• Calculating Coins
• Balancing a Register
• Sustaining Attention

Semantic Feature Analysis (Sample)

27 pages. Use this free PDF download to target word retrieval using evidenced-based practice.

Printable Memory and Orientation Book

This memory bundle includes a memory book template, interventions, compensatory strategies, and therapeutic activities that target goals of memory, attention, and orientation skills. It also includes educational handouts and printable safety signs.

Cognitive Communication Assessment

The Cognitive Communication Assessment created by Medical SLPs is a quick and easy to administer tool for speech therapists working in the medical setting. With a more functional approach to evaluation, this assessment tool can be used to develop individualized therapy programs and help therapists create functional goals for their clients. Administration materials included: patient intake form, record form, and stimulus booklet. Note: This is an informal assessment and has not been standardized.

Table of Contents 

 I. Intake Form

i. HPI, PLOF, Daily Routines, Cognitive Demands, Discharge Planning

ii. MDS Coding – For Skilled Nursing Facilities only

 II. Auditory Comprehension

i. Pointing/Body Parts

ii. Yes/No Questions

iii. Following Commands

iv. Understanding Conversation

 III. Verbal Expression

i. Automatics

ii. Phrase Completion

iii. Repetition

iv. Confrontational Naming

v. Divergent Naming

vi. Responsive Naming

vii. Convergent Naming

viii. Object Description

ix. Sentence Formulation

IV. Written Expression

i. Confrontational Naming

ii. Personal Information

iii. Functional Messages and Taking Notes

iv. Clock Drawing

V. Reading Comprehension

i. Reading Ability/Recognition

ii. Words-Phrases Matching

iii. Paragraph Comprehension

iv. Functional Reading – Menu

VI. Cognition

i. Attention

ii. Immediate Recall and Recent Memory

iii. Distant Memory

iv. Making Change and Calculating Coins

v. Functional Calculations

vi. Problem Solving/Safety

vii. Sequencing and Organization

viii. Balancing Checkbook and Writing a Check

Word Retrieval Worksheets Bundle

The  Functional Word Retrieval Bundle  includes printable speech therapy activities, compensatory strategies, functional goals, cueing examples, and much more.

• Using Gestures to Communicate
• Identification and Comprehension
• Alphabet and Numbers
• Days, Months, Seasons
• Greetings and Common Sayings
• Familiar Sequences
• Social Greetings and Songs
• Functional Phrase Completion
• Templates and Personalized Scripts
• Conversational Topic Ideas
• Sample Phrases with Visual Cue Cards
• Symbols and Photographs of Everyday Objects
• Semantic Feature Analysis
• Synonyms/Antonyms
• Object Description
• Word Deduction
• Naming by Letter
• Activities and Worksheets (45)
• Courses (3)
• Evaluations (5)
• Gift Cards and Misc. (5)
• Handouts (13)
• Speech Therapy Materials (67)
• Study Guides (4)

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71+ Free Social Problem-Solving Scenarios

Do you have kiddos who struggle with their social problem-solving skills? Teach your students the simple process of how to solve a problem along with having them review how well their solution worked or didn’t work.

Why Teach Problem Solving Skills?

Learning to problem solve is an essential skill that is used not only throughout childhood but also into adulthood. Social problem solving is the ability to change or adapt to undesirable situations that arise throughout our day.

On a daily basis, a child will encounter social problems that they will need to solve.

Anything from:

• arguing with another student
• to hurting a friend’s feelings
• to having a difficult conversation
• working with others

Start with Small Problems

Many of the “problems” children encounter are often small problems which the child may be over-reacting to, such as wanting a different coloring crayon or wanting to be first in line, however, these small problems are still very real to the child.

Practicing problem-solving with these small problems can be a great learning opportunity. Children can practice problem-solving with a small problem which can help them learn how to handle bigger problems in the future.

Problem Solving Importance

Social problem-solving skills are critical to a child’s social interactions, personal and professional relationships. A child’s ability to handle change, cope with stress, and handle challenges improves with a child’s ability to successfully solve social problems.

The ultimate goal is that the child will be able to solve social problems all on their own, but until they can independently solve a problem they will need to learn how to communicate and self-advocate to positively solve their problems.  

Steps to Problem Solving

Children can be taught how to problem solve through a guided process of breaking down the problem and using simple steps to solve the problem.

Learning specific steps to problem-solving can allow children to remember how to solve a problem when they become overwhelmed or stressed.

Although learning to solve a problem independently can take some time and practice it is well worth the investment to have a child who can eventually solve most social situations in a positive manner on their own.

What we learnt about solving problems is don't freak out, if one thing doesn't work , try something else out. And work together as a team. #melthammathsweek #MELTHAMPUPILVOICE @problemsolveit pic.twitter.com/iVm1Im4Aue — yr6melthamce (@yr6melthamce) February 4, 2019

Problem Solving Form

Teach your students the 4 steps to becoming a social problem-solver.

• Identify the problem. For instance, start by having your student identify the social problem.
• Create three solutions. Also, have your student come up with three different solutions that they could use to solve the problem that they identified.
• Identify the consequences. Then, identify the consequence for each individual solution.
• Pick the best solution.  Lastly, have your student identify which of their three solutions is the best choice Then have your student put into words why they think that solution is the best solution.

Problem Solving Review Form

After your students go through the social problem-solver have them use the social problem-solving review form.

• What happened.  For instance, after your student tried their solution have them explain what happened next.
• Review the results. Also, have your student identify whether or not their solution got them the results they wanted.
• Use this solution again. Furthermore, have your student identify whether or not they would use this solution again in the future to solve the same or similar problem.
• What would you do differently? Finally, have your student explain what they would do differently if they didn’t get the results they wanted or if they wouldn’t use that solution again in the future.

71+ Social Problem Scenarios + 6 Blank Scenarios

Use the 71 social problem-solving scenarios to have your students get great experience practicing how to solve a social problem.

Also, included are 6 blank scenarios. Then laminate them so you can use them over and over again. Therefore, create social problems that the student experiences and needs help solving.

Wordless Video teaching Problem Solving

Watch this super cute wordless animation with your students and have them discuss the problem they see and how to best solve the problem.

Use this as a fun practice example to get your students started towards learning how to problem-solve.

Demonstrate Through Modeling

Model and discuss empathy.

First and foremost, children need to understand how another person might be feeling in a given situation in order to become a good social problem solver. The student needs to learn how to “stand in someone else’s shoes” for a little bit.

One way you can work on this skill is during the reading time you can focus on how a particular character in the story might be feeling.

Ask questions, such as:

• “How do they feel right now?”
• “How would you feel in that same situation?”
• “Why do you think they feel that way?”

Model Problem-Solving Skills as the Teacher

When you are faced with a problem you can solve the problem by thinking aloud for the students to hear how you solve a problem.

You can state the problem, then come up with possible solutions, then identify the possible consequences to each solution, then pick and explain why a solution is the best option.

For example, you could say, “I was hoping to take the class outside for a stress walk around the track before the reading test, but the problem is that it is raining outside. I could still take you outside, but then you will get wet, or we could walk the halls, but then we’d have to be really quiet because there are other classes learning, or we could just skip the walk and take the reading test, but then you might not do as well on the test. I think based on all of those solutions the best solution will be to walk the hallway, but you guys will have to promise to be quiet so that we don’t disrupt other classes.

Modeling the problem-solving process can be very helpful for the students to watch, observe, and later implement themselves.

Teach Communication

Have students communicate how they are feeling.

Teaching your students to share their emotions in a respectful way can improve their ability to problem-solve.

Have students use an “I” sentence frame, such as, “I feel _____ (insert feeling word) when _____ (identify what made you feel that way).”

For example, “I felt sad when Jackson broke my favorite pencil” or “I was mad when I wasn’t picked to be first in line.”

This way students can communicate how they are feeling using honest and open communication. Teaching students to appropriately communicate their emotions can help solve some social problems from the beginning.

Encourage Independency

Encourage your student to problem solve.

If your student is struggling to problem solve independently encourage them to do so using open-ended questions.

• “How could you fix this problem?”
• “What would be a fair solution?”
• “What would happen if you used that solution?”

Let the Student try to Problem Solve Independently

Give your students the space to try and solve their own problems using the guided strategies. Try not to come running to their rescue for every little problem.

Some problems are small and a great opportunity for the student to learn and practice. If an adult does all of the problem solving for a student then what are they really learning?

Give your students the time and space they need to practice solving small problems on their own. Of course, if it is a bigger or more serious problem then have an adult help guide the problem-solving process.

Tell an Adult

Remind your students that there are still some problems that are too big for them to solve on their own and that it is okay to get help from an adult to solve big problems.

For example, if the student doesn’t feel safe, someone is being hurt physically or emotionally, or if they tried to solve a problem independently but it didn’t work and they need help. Let them know that it’s okay to tell an adult.

Teach How to Disagree and How to Make Up

Discuss how to disagree respectfully.

Remind your student that they won’t always agree with their teacher, friends, classmate, or parents and that’s okay. Even the people we like might have different opinions, interests, and likes than we do.

However, even if we disagree with someone we should still treat them with respect. Treating someone with respect means to not call them names, ignore them, yell or hit them. It means that you do try to create solutions that both parties can agree with and to apologize when we hurt others’ feelings.

Role-Play How to Make Up

Practice in everyday life how to make up after a social problem .

Students are really having to stretch their brains today. It's @NSPCC #NumberDay and @problemsolveit are challenging Y9 and 10 to solve the escape room boxes. It's not as easy as it looks! The promise of a few sweet treats for the winners seems to be helping though! pic.twitter.com/AxRRJnJIv2 — CongletonHS (@CongletonHS) February 2, 2018

Be sure to get your free social problem solver today below! I hope you and your students love this freebie.

Have your students use task card scenarios to help them identify how they and others might feel in different social scenarios. Be sure to discuss the problem, identify possible solutions, identify the consequences of those possible solutions, and then based on those consequences pick the best solution.

Make social problem-solving a game by telling the students that they are social detectives and that it is their job to use what they know about social rules to help them identify the possible and best solutions.

Start practicing today with 71+ free social problem social task cards! Do your students need more practice?

Be sure to check out my other freebie for 31 wordless animated videos to teach problem-solving and so much more.

Make Problem Solving Easier with this Freebie!

Download yours today to get started.

Get More Problem Solving Time Saving Materials

Next, be sure to check out the following time-saving materials to continue to teach your students how to solve their social problems in addition to this freebie.

Weekly Social Pragmatics Homework

• Weekly problem-solving.   Send home a  weekly homework page  that includes a problem-solving scenario plus an idiom and a conversational practice scenario.

Restorative Justice Problem Solving Flip Book

• Restorative justice graphic visual.  Use this graphic visual to help your student  restore a social relationship  after a social problem.

Self-Advocating Role-Play Scenarios

• Self-advocating in high school.  Teach your high schoolers the process to  self-advocate  for what they need.

5th-12th Grade Life Skills Problem Solving

• Life skills problem-solving.  In addition, this  life skills differentiated bundle  includes a problem-solving lesson plan.

I recommend you read Problem Solving Wheel: Help Kids Solve Their Own Problems , 61+ Free Fillable SLP Planner Pages 2020-2021 , 430+ Free Multisyllabic Words List Activity Bundle , or 432+ Free IEP Goal Bank to Save You Time posts because they include freebies as well and who doesn’t want more freebies!

Got questions? Leave a comment. Let’s chat!

Monday 30th of January 2023

Hello! I have entered my name and email twice (yesterday & today) to receive to 71+ Free Social Problem-Solving Senarios, but I have not received anything yet. Not even an email back to mine in order to subcribe. Thanks for your help! Tracy

Melissa Berg

Tuesday 31st of January 2023

Hi Tracy, Thanks so much for reaching out! Sorry about that. We went ahead and sent you an email with the PDF attached. Wishing you all my best, Melissa

Problem Solving Skills

Tuesday 30th of August 2022

I truly love your site. Excellent colors, theme and writing. Thanks for sharing.

Laura Ricca

Monday 11th of April 2022

Tuesday 12th of April 2022

Hi Laura, I'm glad you found this resource helpful. Melissa

Modified Mental Health and Suicide Prevention - Speech Therapy Store

Monday 11th of May 2020

[…] 71+ FREE SOCIAL PROBLEM-SOLVING SCENARIOS […]

Problem Solving Wheel: Help Kids Solve Their Own Problems - Speech Therapy Store

Monday 4th of May 2020

[…] 71+ Free Social Problem Solving Task Cards Scenarios […]

An SLP writes about swallowing, communication, and cognition

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10 practical cognitive therapy activities

I’m sharing 10 practical cognitive therapy activities that I’ve done with my patients recently, with suggested SMART goals. Details have been changed to protect privacy.

Free DIRECT download: 17 SMART cognitive goals (cheat sheet). ( Email subscribers  get free access to all the resources in the  Free Subscription Library .)

• Sample goals .
• Sample goal .
• Related Eat, Speak, & Think posts .
• Your cognitive therapy activities .

Scheduling appointments

One patient I worked with was having trouble scheduling appointments.

• Disorganized
• Not taking notes during the phone call.
• Waiting too long before adding the information to her calendar.
• Using a monthly calendar with small boxes.
• Messy and hard to read.

I recommended that she get a planner, which her daughter picked up. I taught the strategies:

• Have planner open to avoid double-booking.
• Take notes during the phone call.
• Read back the information to confirm details.
• Write in planner immediately.

When I went in for the next couple of sessions, I looked at her planner to see if I could understand it. Then I asked her questions about it. And finally, I had her call and make a new appointment. I could have asked her to confirm an appointment if she didn’t need to make a new one.

I listened to her side of the conversation to make sure she was gathering the correct information and confirming it, then watched as she wrote the information in the book.

That was all she needed. She was independently making and keeping track of her own appointments accurately when I discharged her.

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Sample goals

Patient will demonstrate:

• Ability to add new appointments to personal planner with 90% accuracy independently to improve ability to manage own schedule by 12.31.19.
• Understanding of personal schedule by answering comprehension questions with 100% accuracy independently to improve ability to participate in desired activities by 12.31.19.

Organizing information

Another patient complained that calling doctors and the home health agency was a hassle. He had the phone numbers written down in various places, so it was an effort to find the information to make the calls.

He’d been using a smart phone for awhile, but his daughter had only entered family contacts. He was open to learning how to enter new contacts into his cell phone. So I spent about ten minutes during one session teaching that skill and guiding him to practice by adding a few home health and MD numbers.

At the next session, he told me that he tried adding another one on his own but got stuck. So I retaught that part and had him write down a reminder note about how to do that step.

At the following session, he had added more of his doctors and even included the addresses. He said that it made making phone calls really easy, and he wasn’t procrastinating anymore.

Patient will demonstrate ability to:

• Add at least 5 new contacts to electronic contact book with 100% accuracy independently to improve organization of information for daily tasks by 12.31.19.
• Make at least 3 phone calls using electronic contact book with 100% accuracy independently to improve ability to communicate with medical professionals in a timely manner by 12.31.19.

Daily writing to improve attention and memory

Another patient I worked with recently had pretty significant impairment of attention, memory, and executive function skills. She reported various problems which were frustrating to her:

• Difficulty remembering strategies from PT and OT.
• Trouble remembering recent conversations.
• Not oriented to the day of week or the date.
• No longer able to read for pleasure
• Couldn’t sign her name (or write functionally).

One activity I started her on was to write in a notebook every day. In the beginning, she started off by copying the day of the week and the date with the help of her husband. And she signed her name over and over (the OT started that) as homework.

We built up to her writing the day of week and the date, copying her daily therapy schedule down, and then adding one of the strategies she was working on for each therapy.

On days when she didn’t have therapy, I had her write down a brief note about something that she did that day.

By the time I discharged her to outpatient therapy, she:

• Could remember key recommendations from PT, OT, and ST.
• Was oriented to time from memory.
• Could sign her name.
• Was remembering recent events without referring to her notes.
• Could write short sentences (with errors).

Patient will:

• be oriented to day of week, date, and time using visual supports as needed with 100% accuracy independently to improve daily function and reduce frustration by 12.31.19.
• recall at least 3 recommendations from any therapy with 100% accuracy independently using visual supports as needed to improve safety and independence by 12.31.19.

Word finding

Another patient was having mild difficulty with word finding, which was very frustrating for her. I taught her Semantic Feature Analysis (SFA), which she learned how to do very quickly. I also taught her word finding strategies.

In therapy, we did a variety of word retrieval exercises for two reasons. First, to give her the opportunity to use the word finding strategies when she failed to retrieve a word. And second, to identify challenging exercises to assign for homework.

I also asked her to complete at least one SFA each day, ideally using a word that she really had trouble retrieving in her normal conversation.

She worked diligently, and when I discharged after six sessions she was independently using the strategies and was experiencing far fewer word retrieval failures (less than once a day).

• ability to use at least 3 word finding strategies during moments of word finding failure on 4 of 5 opportunities to improve communication and reduce frustration by 12.31.19.
• no more than one un-repaired word-finding failure during 30 minutes of conversation independently to demonstrate improved word-finding skills for conversation by 12.31.19.

Using YouTube for attention and memory

Another patient I worked with recently had left neglect, with general attention and memory deficits. His wife really wanted him to be able to focus on television and then be able to discuss what they watched. He was happy to work on anything that would help him.

I found a seven-minute TED talk, divided into three parts, that I knew he would enjoy.

The first time he watched it, he was very excited and talked during the video. After it was over, he said how much he liked the video but his comments were only tangentially-related. He couldn’t recall any specific details independently.

So I taught the strategies of paying attention and noticing the details. We then watched the time lapse section from 0:50 to 1:58 and I asked him to tell me what he could remember. He could not remember the four specific examples: the mushroom, the creeping vine, the air traffic, and the ship traffic.

We worked on remembering those four examples using WRAP: writing, repetition, association, and picturing it (visualization). By the end of the session, he was able to watch that part of the exciting video and then state the four examples. He worked on studying the video for homework, and we continued in this way.

By the end of therapy, he was able to recall at least eight specific details independently and several more when given a question prompt. Ideally, I would have had him watch a new video to see if his performance was improved, but we ran out of time with the reassessment and discharge.

Sample goal

• demonstrate ability to recall at least 5 specific details from information recently heard or seen with 100 percent accuracy independently to improve ability to engage in leisure activities by 12.31.19.

Remembering spouse’s name after brain surgery

I treated a young man recently after brain surgery who was persistently calling his wife by his ex-wife’s name. As you can imagine, this was embarrassing for him even though his wife didn’t seem overly bothered by it.

In addition to treating general word-finding and memory deficits, we focused on her name. I taught the WRAP strategies of writing, repetition, association, and picturing (visualization).

Then I had him write her name 10 times which imagining her face and saying her name each time he wrote it. I suggested doing that every day until he wasn’t mixing the names up anymore. Finally, I helped him to find an association that would help trigger the word when he was in conversation with her.

This is a fictional example to preserve privacy, but the idea is the same. His wife’s name was Marla, and he created a little phrase “I’m married to Marla” that he would think when he saw her. This way, he was sure of her name and it reduced the anxiety of possibly mixing the names up in conversation.

We spent perhaps 10 minutes total in therapy on this issue. When I returned the following week, he reported that he was no longer mixing up the names and was no longer feeling stress about it.

Sample goals:

• independently use recommended strategies to recall wife’s name in 9 of 10 opportunities by report or observation to reduce stress and embarrassment by 12.31.19.
• demonstrate the use of at least 3 memory strategies for recalling preferred information with 100% accuracy independently to improve recall of important information by 12.31.19.

Basic executive function skills

I recently worked with a patient who was impaired in all areas of cognitive-communication. It seemed that working memory and executive function skills were impacting her the most.

Her specific complaints included:

• Difficulty remembering and following directions.
• Unable to complete basic reading and writing tasks.
• Trouble maintaining the topic in conversation.
• Difficulty remembering recent information.

We started off with functional activities: activities that she would do in the course of her normal day. Such as using the TV remote, maintaining a conversation, and sequencing the steps to get up from the wheelchair. I modified in various ways: simplifying, visual supports, written instructions, discussing and then doing (even down to the single step level), and modeling for imitation. I even tried spaced retrieval with errorless learning. However, I wasn’t seeing as much improvement as I’d have liked.

So we switched from these real-life activities to apps on her iPad. After trying some different things, we ended up using the iBrainH D app and Tactus Therapy’s Visual Attention and Writing apps .

We focused on learning and using strategies to slow down and improve accuracy, error detection, and error correction. For instance, I taught her to point to and/or verbalize each element, compare to the target, and double check her work.

This approach seemed to work better. When I discharge her to out-patient therapy, she had improved from a “severe” to a “mild” cognitive communication impairment per the CLQT+ . She was maintaining the topic of conversation at least 80% of the time, and she improved to only needing min assist with standing up from the wheelchair.

• demonstrate understanding of at least two cognitive strategies by independently using them during functional activities in 4 of 5 opportunities to improve participation in daily tasks by 12.31.19.
• maintain the topic of conversation for 3 turns in 4 of 5 opportunities to improve functional communication and reduce frustration by 12.31.19.
• verbalize and demonstrate the correct sequence for safely standing up from the wheelchair with 100% accuracy across three trials to improve safety by 12.31.19.

Massed practice for visual neglect

Another person I worked with had left visual neglect. His main complaint was difficulty reading because he was missing information on the left. Although he was fully aware of his deficit and with the slightest cue would correct himself, he was not consistently using the strategy independently.

Neither a bright-colored guideline or a written reminder worked for him. He continued to require a verbal cue to use the strategies to detect information on the left.

One activity that we did that was helpful was to have him page through a catalog and report what was in the top left corner on each page. After several correct answers in a row, then I would introduce a distractor question and then have him turn the page. When this was easy, I made it harder by asking him to name the third thing down on the left side of each page.

In this way, he had multiple opportunities to practice his skills in a short period of time.

Sample goal:

• locate the top left corner of reading material (e.g., paper, calendar, cell phone) using recommended strategy independently within 10 seconds in 9 of 10 opportunities across 3 sessions to improve functional reading by 12.31.19.

Remembering to use the call bell

A gentleman I’m working with in an assistive living facility has recently started wearing a bracelet with a call button. He’s supposed to use it to obtain assistance for the bathroom, but he’s been forgetting. In talking with him, I don’t get the sense that he is deliberately avoiding using it.

We’re using spaced retrieval with errorless learning to train the use of the call button.

• Prompt question: “What should you do when you need to use the bathroom?”
• Response: “Press the button and wait” and demonstrate.

We just started this past week, and I’d guess it would take another week or so to take effect (if it will help). While spaced retrieval with errorless learning doesn’t work for everyone, I’ve had many good successes with it.

• independently verbalize and demonstrate the recommendation to press the call button when he wants to use the bathroom with 100% accuracy across 3 sessions to improve safety by 12.31.19.

Using supports to be oriented to time

Sometimes, just making sure the tools are in the right place is all that is needed: clock, calendar, or a digital combination.

One recent patient had a digital calendar * that was recommended by a physical therapist, but she wasn’t using it. It was just another bit of decoration on the shelf that she wasn’t paying attention to.

I used spaced retrieval with errorless learning to train her to use it in two session (and confirmed it in each subsequent visit).

• Prompt question: “What should you do when you want to know the time or the date?”
• Response: “Look at the clock” and then read off the time and the date.

Not only was she using the digital calendar independently when I returned the following week, but she was also independently oriented to the day of the week and the month (i.e. from memory).

*This is an Amazon affiliate link. As an Amazon associate, I may earn a small commission on qualifying purchases. There is no extra charge to you, and it will help keep Eat, Speak, & Think sustainable.

• verbalize and demonstrate the independent use of the electronic calendar to determine the current day of week, date, and time with 100% accuracy across 3 consecutive sessions to improve ability to participate in desired activities by 12.31.19.

Related Eat, Speak, & Think posts

• 5 easy steps to remember names .
• Collaborative goal setting to identify meaningful cognitive goals .
• How to use spaced retrieval with errorless learning to improve memory .
• Writing SMART memory goals for a reluctant patient .
• Treating cognition in the real world .
• Improve aphasia outcomes by creating intensive home exercise programs .

Your cognitive therapy activities

What are some of your recent cognitive therapy activities? Leave a comment below!

Featured image by kang_hojun from pixabay .

Lisa A Young M.A. CCC-SLP

Lisa earned her M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology from the University of Maryland, College Park and her M.A. in Linguistics from the University of California, San Diego.

She participated in research studies with the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) and the University of Maryland in the areas of aphasia, Parkinson’s Disease, epilepsy, and fluency disorders.

Lisa has been working as a medical speech-language pathologist since 2008. She has a strong passion for evidence-based assessment and therapy, having earned five ASHA Awards for Professional Participation in Continuing Education.

She launched EatSpeakThink.com in June 2018 to help other clinicians be more successful working in home health, as well as to provide strategies and resources to people living with problems eating, speaking, or thinking.

• Home health SLP survey results may surprise you
• An easy way to write participation-level speech therapy goals
• Learn how Goal Attainment Scaling makes SMART goals better
• Quick guide to self-management training in Parkinson's

Loving your blog. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you, Mireya!

I’m a graduate student treating a person with aphasia in therapy this semester. This is the first website I’ve found that has been truly helpful for my adult client, Thank you so much!

Thanks so much for sharing your feedback, Kristin! I’m happy to hear you’re finding something helpful on my site. Good luck with your client and your program!

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