Rate Your Own Rate: Conversation Self-Check
Talk, then rate. Each card pairs a speaking task with a self-rating so the student's judgement of their own rate can be compared with the listener's.
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
Agree on the scale first: one is very slow, five is rushing, and decide together where the target sits. Use the fast, normal and slow card early so the student has a sense of each end. Rate straight after each task, before discussing it. The recorder card is the most useful for calibrating, since the student hears exactly what the listener heard. Fifteen minutes allows three or four cards with discussion.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentThe student uses a slow, even rate on their own. Listen without reminding.Log as correct
- Visual reminderPoint to the picture or card that stands for the technique.Log as cued
- Verbal reminderSay a short reminder, such as 'Slow and even.'Log as cued
- ModelSay it yourself using the technique; the student copies, then tries the card again.Log as cued
Adjust it
Go back to shorter turns: single words or two-word phrases.
Move to longer turns, a new listener, or a little time pressure.
Matching IEP goal
Student will use a slow, even rate in structured conversation in 8 of 10 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than a visual reminder.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Ten talk-then-rate cards for older students working on slow rate in conversation: talk for one minute and rate your speech rate from one to five; tell a short story and have your partner rate it too, then compare; say the same two sentences fast, normal and slow; talk into a recorder and rate what you hear against what you remember. The aim is self-monitoring, so the gap between the student's rating and the listener's is the thing to talk about.
What to listen for
Notice whether the student's ratings match yours. Consistently rating themselves slower than they sound suggests they need more listening practice. Listen for where rate climbs: the card about something exciting and the one about a difficult subject often show it. Note what the student says they were feeling when they rushed, since naming it is part of catching it next time.
Carrying it home
Pick a quiet time to try the fast, normal and slow card together, then use the route-home card on a car ride. A parent can rate too, and compare numbers. Keep it light and focus on noticing, not on getting it perfect.
What's in this activity
- Talk for one minute about anything. Then rate your speech rate from one to five, where one is very slow.
- Describe your route home. Stop at thirty seconds, rate yourself, then finish and rate yourself again.
- Tell your partner a short story. Have them rate your rate too, then compare the two numbers.
- Talk about something exciting. Notice whether the rate climbs, and say exactly where it happened.
- Explain a set of instructions. Say how many times you rushed a word and what you were feeling each time.
- Answer a question you have answered many times before. Say whether familiar answers come out faster.
- Talk about a subject you find difficult. Rate the rate, then rate how hard it was to keep it down.
- Say the same two sentences three times: fast, normal, and slow. Say which one you would use in class.
- Have a two-minute conversation. Rate yourself at the end of every turn without stopping the conversation.
- Talk into a recorder for a minute, then listen back and rate what you hear against what you remember.
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- Fourth through twelfth grade, for self-monitoring and carry-over of rate control.
- Is it free?
- Yes. The board plays free in the browser with no login. An account adds session data, goal scoring and assignment to a student.
- What if the student gives the same rating every time?
- Record them and listen together, or use the fast, normal and slow card so they have clear reference points to compare against.
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.