Minecraft in the Speech Room

Recently I bought the pocket edition of Minecraft ($6.99) and installed it on my iPhone. I also bought a "how to" book recommended by a friend’s seven-year old son. I realized I was on to something when I went into a classroom to pick up a student, and heard a ripple of appreciative murmurs as I walked by. Heads swiveled. I felt like a movie star walking the red carpet. I was confused for an instant, and then I remembered that tucked under my arm, on top of my clipboard, was my edition of Minecraft: The Essential Handbook. Since then I’ve been using it as an activity for fluency and articulation goals for a few students, and I have to shoo them out of the room to get them to leave at the end of the session.  They're usually still talking or showing me something as I gently push them out of the room telling them they did a great job, and I will see them next week.  If you have boys between the ages of 7 and 13 on your caseload, and your activities are getting a little stale, try incorporating Minecraft.