Advantages of Using a Prize Bag
Using a prize bag or treasure box in speech therapy is a great way to reward students. Students who need tangible rewards benefit from things like stickers and trinkets to help them stay motivated for the long haul during speech therapy sessions.
Disadvantages of Using a Prize Bag
However, there are disadvantages of having a prize bag. Some kids become hyper-focused on the reward and forget about the reason for speech therapy. Another concern are those students who need immediate reinforcement and the delay in waiting for a reward is too long. Those students cannot wait until the end of a session for a sticker and a trinket after 10 successful sessions. What I have done in those sessions is get out a piece of paper and offer a student immediately after a successful production, etc.
Rewards for Teletherapy Students
When I transitioned to working as a teletherapist, I stopped using tangible rewards (obviously). Verbal rewards can be reinforcing for a lot of students. I learned that it is not necessary to have physical, tangible rewards and students will still feel supported and motivated in speech sessions.
Where to Find Speech Therapy Rewards?
I have gone to the dollar store to stocky prize bag. But I never realized how much stuff there is at Party City that I can use in my speech therapy sessions! I discovered that treats for party favor bags make super cheap fun trinkets! In the video above, I take you along with me on a trip to Party City with my two sons and show you everything you can find there. Did you already know about all of the stuff they have there? This was news to me!
I was not sponsored or paid in any way to make this video. All opinions expressed in the video are my own.