Communication Temptations Game
Structured situations that motivate AAC use.
Session summary (SOAP)
Stays on this screen. Nothing is saved or sent.
Mark a card Correct, Correct with cue or Incorrect and the summary writes itself here.
How to run it
The whole method is the waiting. Set up the temptation and then stop — look expectant, say nothing, and let the silence do the work, which will feel much longer than it is. Model on the device if the child does not initiate, then reset and try again rather than prompting the response. Give the wrong item on purpose is the most underused one here because it targets protesting and clarifying, which most programmes neglect in favour of requesting.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentSet up the moment, then wait with an expectant look for 10 seconds.Log as correct
- GesturePoint toward the device or the right area of the page.Log as cued
- ModelTouch the symbols on the device yourself while you say the message.Log as cued
- Partial physicalOnly if the team agrees and the student accepts touch: a light touch at the elbow toward the page. Never press the symbol for them.Log as cued
Adjust it
Fewer symbols on the page, and model the message several times before you expect it.
Wait longer before prompting, or expect one more symbol in the message.
Matching IEP goal
During structured activities, Student will use their AAC system to make a request in 8 of 10 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than a gestural prompt.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Twelve situations engineered so that a child has a reason to communicate: hand over a closed jar of bubbles and wait; give a snack in a container they cannot open; start a fun activity, then stop suddenly; give the wrong item on purpose; give crayons but no paper; put a preferred toy in view but out of reach; pause a favourite song mid-chorus. Each one creates a gap that only communication closes, which is a very different thing from asking a child to say something.
What to listen for
Count initiations, not responses. The whole point of a temptation is that nothing was asked, so a child who communicates has started something, and that is the behaviour worth recording. Watch the form too: a reach, a look to your face, a vocalisation and a symbol hit are all initiations, and the progression between them is the real data. Notice whether the child looks at you — joint attention is often the thing that appears first.
Carrying it home
Families do this naturally once they see it. Putting the cereal on a high shelf, handing over a closed container, forgetting the spoon — all of it creates a reason to communicate that a smoothly run house does not.
What's in this activity
- Hand over a closed jar of bubbles and wait. (requesting help)
- Give a snack in a container they can't open. (requesting help)
- Start a fun activity, then stop suddenly and wait. (requesting more)
- Give the wrong item on purpose. (protesting / clarifying)
- Blow bubbles once, then hold the wand and wait. (requesting more)
- Give crayons but no paper. (requesting an object)
- Roll a ball, then hold it and wait expectantly. (requesting a turn)
- Put a preferred toy in view but out of reach. (requesting)
- Hand over puzzle pieces one at a time, slowly. (requesting more)
- Do something silly, like putting a shoe on your hand. (commenting)
- Pause a favorite song mid-chorus. (requesting more)
- Offer a choice of two items, both held up. (choice-making)
Questions
- Isn't this frustrating for the child?
- It is designed to create a small, resolvable gap, not a barrier. Give the item as soon as the child communicates in any form — the point is that communication works, not that the child has to work.
- Do I need an account?
- No, all twelve setups are free to read and use.
- What ages is this for?
- Kindergarten through fifth, and it is equally useful with pre-symbolic communicators where the target is any initiation at all.
Use this board with your caseload
With a free account, every correct, cued and incorrect mark is saved to the student and scored against their IEP goal, with the data written up for you. Assign it as home practice through the parent portal.
Track progress freeFree for SLPs. No card, no trial clock.