Magazines in therapy! The "Highlight" of my day!

I really enjoy using newspapers and magazines to target inferencing, main idea, vocabulary, and listening comprehension goals for my older students. I know that you can download newspaper and magazine apps these days, but I really love actual magazines and newspapers.  I prefer to read the "old fashioned way". My lovely Aunt Nancy ordered my 5 year old son a subscription to Highlights magazine for Children. He receives the "High Five" version, geared toward 3-6 year olds. I love sitting down with him and reading the magazine together. We enjoy doing every puzzle, finding every hidden picture, and reading all of the cute stories. After my son has read it cover to cover, I save it to use in the speech room! This magazine really is a fantastic therapy tool!

Here are just a few of the ways I use Highlights in my sessions:

- Read the short stories and ask comprehension questions
- Select pictures for students to describe
- Using the Hidden Pictures section to work on vocabulary. I provide a starter sentence "I see a _________" and the student has to say the sentence as they find the picture. We can then discuss what the item is used for, etc.
- Comparing and contrasting - there is usually a section that has two pictures side by side and the students have to pick out what is different
- Find pictures in the magazine that contain a certain sound
- The "That's Silly" section of the magazine is great for reasoning skills. It gives the students an opportunity to explain why something is silly or why it does/doesn't belong in the scene.

Here are a couple more pictures of my son enjoying Highlights:

Another great subscription my son has is Ranger Rick Jr. The pictures are just fantastic and it is filled with fun animal facts. I have already swiped my son's September issue since I plan on doing a lot of squirrel-themed activities this fall! I love squirrels. And fall. And magazines.

I am thinking about using some of my school money to buy a subscription to another children's magazine. Any suggestions?