Sarcasm and Tone of Voice
Detect non-literal intent from prosody, context and punctuation.
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
Produce each line twice, sincerely and sarcastically, and let the student sort them. Hearing the same words carry opposite meanings is the fastest route to understanding what tone is doing, and it is much more effective than describing it. The final card — what happens when the pitch drops — is where the cue gets named explicitly, which some students need before they can hear it. Fifteen minutes covers the eight.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentSet up the situation and wait for the student to respond on their own.Log as correct
- Nonverbal cueUse a look, a gesture or a point to the visual cue card.Log as cued
- Indirect promptAsk 'What could you say now?' or 'How do you think they feel?'Log as cued
- ModelShow what to say or do, then run the moment again so the student can try it.Log as cued
Adjust it
Give a script or two choices of what to say, and practise with you before a peer.
Role-play with a new partner, or add a twist the student has not planned for.
Matching IEP goal
In structured role-plays, Student will use the target conversation skill appropriately in 4 of 5 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than a nonverbal cue.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Eight items on prosody and intent: oh, great said flatly when his car won't start — literal or sarcastic; nice job said right after you drop the ball; I LOVE waking up at five a.m., how do you know this is sarcasm; a text reading cool. with a full stop; this is fine during an obvious disaster; how does the meaning change when the pitch drops at the end. The last one names the acoustic cue directly.
What to listen for
Listen for the student using context when tone is unavailable. The text message item has no prosody at all, so the only cues are punctuation and situation, and a student who can do the spoken items and not that one is relying entirely on voice. Watch this is fine, which is sarcastic only because of the situation and is otherwise a perfectly literal sentence.
Carrying it home
Saying the same sentence two ways is a game that takes ten seconds. Getting a child to guess which one was meant sincerely builds exactly this skill without any materials.
What's in this activity
- 'Oh, great.' said flatly when his car won't start -- literal or sarcastic?
- 'Nice job.' said right after you drop the ball -- what is meant?
- 'I LOVE waking up at five a.m.' -- how do you know this is sarcasm?
- A text that reads 'cool.' with a period -- what tone is likely?
- 'No, go ahead, take your time,' from someone tapping their foot -- meaning?
- 'This is fine,' during an obvious disaster -- meaning?
- A friend says 'Wow, you're SO funny' while laughing -- sincere or not?
- How does the meaning change when the pitch drops at the end?
Questions
- What ages is this for?
- Ninth through twelfth grade.
- Is it free?
- Yes, all eight items play with no account.
- How is this different from the sarcasm game?
- That one has sixteen items with answer options. This is a shorter, more discussion-shaped set that names the acoustic cue — falling pitch — directly.
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.