About this activity
Twelve habits sorted into cuida la voz and daña la voz: tomar agua durante el día, descansar la voz después de cantar, acercarse en vez de gritar and avisar cuando la voz duele care for the voice; gritar en el recreo, carraspear muchas veces, hablar por encima de la música, susurrar por mucho tiempo and toser fuerte a propósito harm it. Two of the harmful ones surprise most students.
How to use it in a session
Spend the time on the two counter-intuitive items. Susurrar — whispering — is on the harmful side, which almost every student gets wrong, because whispering is assumed to rest the voice and actually uses the folds in a more effortful way. Carraspear, repeated throat clearing, is the other one, and it is a habit rather than a need. Ten minutes covers the twelve with discussion of those two.
What to listen for
Watch which harmful habits the student recognises in themselves. Sorting cards correctly is easy; naming the one they do at recess is the useful step, and it is where the behaviour change starts. Notice whether the student can suggest a replacement — acercarse en vez de gritar is on the board as a substitution rather than a prohibition, which is the shape every recommendation should take. Hygiene advice is not an explanation for a voice. A student hoarse for more than about four weeks should be examined by a physician, ideally an ENT, before this board becomes the plan.
Carrying it home
Ask the family to put a water bottle where the child will use it and to notice throat clearing rather than correcting it. Both are small and both are more effective than telling a child not to shout.
Questions
- Is this board in Spanish?
- Yes, the habits and categories are Spanish. This page is in English so an English-speaking clinician can find and evaluate it.
- Do I need an account?
- No, it plays free with no login.
- Why is whispering harmful?
- Because it is not a rested voice. Whispering brings the folds close without full vibration, which for many people takes more effort than speaking softly with voice — which is usually the better substitution.