Susan’s published games, digital guides, and curated picks to support communication and learning beyond the therapy room.
Susan's go-to toys and books for building early language, sensory exploration, and communication foundations in babies and toddlers.
Open-ended building play that naturally sparks vocabulary — colors, shapes, spatial words, and cause-and-effect concepts. Perfect for parallel play and following directions at home.
A timeless classic for early vocabulary — animals, sounds, action words, and imaginative play all in one. Susan uses farm sets routinely to build first words and two-word combinations.
Builds functional vocabulary around everyday routines — family members, rooms, actions, and social scripts. Excellent for expanding language in children just beginning to put words together.
Colorful stacking and nesting cups with images of common objects on each surface — building size concepts, object labels, and cause-and-effect play all at once. A simple, high-value therapy staple.
A go-to sensory tool for babies and toddlers — the tactile texture supports sensory exploration and body awareness, and the back-and-forth rolling makes it a natural vehicle for early turn-taking and shared attention.
A modular, hands-on activity board designed for babies and toddlers. Each panel targets a different sensory and fine motor skill, supporting the focused attention and cause-effect understanding that underlies early communication.
Colorful spinning discs that drop one by one onto a swirling pole — irresistible for babies and toddlers. Targets sustained attention, cause-and-effect, and shared joy — the foundation of joint attention and early communication.
Balls wind down a colorful tower and pop out the bottom — a captivating cause-and-effect toy that encourages anticipation, exclamations, and early requesting. One of Susan's favorites for eliciting first words like "go," "more," and "again."
Mo Willems' Elephant & Piggie series is a therapy staple. This one is perfect for teaching children to describe what they see, ask for help, and read facial expressions — all with humor kids love.
P.D. Eastman's classic is rich with action words, positional concepts (up, down, in, out), and simple question-answer dialogue. An excellent book for targeting early language goals in a predictable, repetitive format children love.
A colorful, rhythmic story that builds color vocabulary, descriptive language, and category concepts. The repetitive structure makes it easy for children to predict and participate — great for early readers and language learners.
P.D. Eastman's story about finding home builds positional concepts, comparison language, and problem-solving vocabulary. Warm storytelling that invites children to predict and retell.
A cautionary tale with rich size vocabulary, sequential narration, and problem-solving language. Children naturally retell and predict as the story escalates — ideal for narrative language goals.
Mo Willems at his best — Gerald wrestles with a big decision in real time. Teaches perspective-taking, emotion vocabulary, and the internal monologue behind social choices. A natural conversation starter for social language work.
An Elephant & Piggie favorite for teaching inclusion, problem-solving, and flexible thinking. Ideal for children working on social language — the humor and heart make the lessons stick.
Teaches emotional flexibility and resilience through Elephant & Piggie's response to unexpected rain. Wonderful for children who struggle with transitions or changes in routine — the characters model coping with humor and grace.
Piggie asks Gerald to wait — and waiting is very, very hard. This book opens rich conversations about patience, delayed gratification, and emotional regulation. A go-to for children working on impulse control and self-regulation skills.
Press the buttons, pull the levers, and pop-up animals appear — each paired with a color and a sound. A perfect cause-and-effect toy for building anticipation, early requesting ("more!"), animal labels, and color vocabulary. One of Susan's go-to toys for 18-month visits.
A complete set of concept board books covering colors, numbers, shapes, animals, and more — each with simple, bold images perfect for early label-learning. A wonderful gift set for families starting early language stimulation from birth.
Priddy Books' tactile classic pairs vivid photographs of everyday objects with different textures to explore. Builds object vocabulary, sensory awareness, and shared attention — perfect for lap-reading with babies as young as a few months old.
Kevin and Haily Meyers' playful rhyming book follows animals as they move through their day — packed with action words, animal vocabulary, and a joyful rhythm that invites toddlers to join in. Great for building verb labels and predictive language.
Tiger Tales' touch-and-feel sound book brings the farm to life with real animal sounds and textured pages. Multisensory engagement supports early word-sound associations and keeps even the youngest children focused and delighted.
Mirrors, sliders, and push-pull tabs make this book a fully interactive sensory experience. The peekaboo format is one of the earliest and most powerful joint attention games — ideal for building shared gaze, anticipation, and early social communication.
Mirrors, sliders, and push-pull tabs bring the farm to life — corn, barn, horse, pig, and more. The same multisensory interactivity as Peekaboo: Love, now with farm vocabulary and animal sounds to explore together. Irresistible for babies and young toddlers.
The zoo version of the beloved Peekaboo series — flaps reveal animals with their names and sounds, making it a natural tool for building animal vocabulary, cause-and-effect understanding, and the joyful social routine of hiding and finding.
Carefully curated books, games, and tools that Susan recommends to families for home use.
Michelle Garcia Winner's foundational social thinking curriculum, widely used with students with social communication challenges and HFA.
A go-to resource for parents and educators supporting children with phonological awareness challenges and early reading difficulties.
Thomas Brown's book on executive function and attention challenges in intelligent individuals — highly recommended for families with teens and adults.
A fast-moving, fun word-building game that builds vocabulary in young children. Great for home practice between sessions.
A classic deductive reasoning game that naturally builds question-forming skills, descriptive language, and turn-taking — all key social communication targets. Great for sessions and home practice alike.
A hands-on balancing game that encourages expressive language, patience, and collaborative play. Naturally motivating for kids who struggle with traditional tabletop games — minimal language required to play, but rich opportunity to build it.
Builds expressive vocabulary and descriptive language as players ask and answer questions about locations. Reinforces spatial concepts, category naming, and structured conversation in a fun, low-pressure format.
A classic strategy game that builds planning, sequencing, and problem-solving skills. Excellent for developing executive function, flexible thinking, and the ability to anticipate consequences — all areas Susan targets with older students.
A silly, high-energy game that's irresistible to young children — and a perfect low-pressure context for building turn-taking, counting, expressive language, and emotional regulation. Kids who are reluctant to engage often light up for this one.
A clear, compassionate guide for parents and caregivers navigating an autism evaluation or new diagnosis. Helps families understand what autism looks like, how it's identified, and how to move forward with confidence.
Barry Prizant's landmark book reframes autism as a different — not lesser — way of experiencing the world. A must-read for any family or educator who wants to better understand and support an autistic child or young adult.
Practical, therapist-designed tools you can start using today. Available as instant downloads from the Stan Store.
Printable worksheets, visual schedules, and strategy cards for students ages 8–16 who struggle with planning, organization, and task initiation.
Susan is happy to recommend the right resources for your child's specific situation. Reach out for a free phone consultation.
📋 Amazon Affiliate Disclosure
Shields Speech & Language Services participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Some links on this page are affiliate links — if you purchase through them, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. We only recommend products Susan genuinely uses or believes will benefit her clients and families.