One of my favorite seasonal read-alouds is There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves by Lucille Colandro. This silly story is perfect for the fall season and such a fun way to bring autumn vocabulary into the speech room! The Old Lady is up to her usual antics—this time, she swallows leaves, a shirt, a pumpkin, a pole, and more. Of course, in true Old Lady fashion, it all comes together in a surprise ending that will make your students giggle! Check out these fun and engaging There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves activities!
This book companion is included in The Speech is Sweet Club. Let’s peek inside!
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This book companion was designed to make planning easy while targeting a wide range of speech and language skills.
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves Retelling Activities
First up, I designed four different retelling activities to give students plenty of hands-on practice. One of my favorites is “feeding granny” — students retell the story by placing cards into a granny figure. I usually pair students for this activity: one student holds granny, while the other practices retelling. It’s a fun way for everyone to stay engaged while also hearing a peer model the language.
Meanwhile, the rest of the group doesn’t just sit and wait—they’re busy with story maps, a retelling craft, or a cut-and-glue worksheet. I love having multiple options available so every student is working at the same time. Therapy time is too valuable to waste on waiting for turns, and these activities keep students focused, engaged, and learning!
Feed Me Activity
Children love “feed me” activities, whether they’re feeding articulation cards into a mini garbage can or feeding granny retelling pictures! Feeding activities are hands-on, memorable, and most importantly fun!
Students can work on retelling the story as they feed granny the cards! They can also work on vocabulary, describing, formulating sentences, and more!
Story Maps
There is a color version + a coloring sheet version! The black and white option is perfect for sending home for homework! In the snip and stick versions, students cut out the events and paste them in order!
Retelling Craft for There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves
This is another fun retelling option! I love incorporating crafts when it’s realistic! Students just cut out the leaf-shaped events and glue them onto their scarecrow!
Students can color the scarecrow and the leaves or you can print the scarecrow and leaves out on colored paper to save time!
Comprehension Activities for There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves
There are quite a few different activities that tackle comprehension and WH questions included! Let’s take a look:
Clip Cards
I’ve also created a variety of clip cards to go with this book! Students will place a clothespin on their answer. It’s just a fun way to add a little spice to card activities!
These clip cards come with two options – answers in a field of 2 or in a field of 3! These are perfect for working on WH questions and comprehension.
Old Lady Flip Book Companion
There is also a literature flip book included! This tackles comparing/contrasting, sequencing, writing, and comprehension!
Printables
These print-and-go worksheets are some of my favorite There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves activities. They address why questions, rhyming, retelling, and open-ended pages! I love the open-ended pages, because they can be used for any goal! I created them with bingo daubers in mind; however, you can truly use any art supply or even use mini erasers to cover the spots!
Here is a peek at the open-ended pages! You can ask comprehension questions (or tackle any goal) and then students can dab/color the object!
Interactive Reading Notebook Activities
Interactive notebook activities are one of my favorites, because they keep everything organized and create a collection of student work you can revisit throughout the year. No notebook? No problem! Students can glue the pages onto loose-leaf or construction paper instead. These activities are flexible and engaging, while giving you an easy way to target story elements, describing, plurals, and more.
Here is a closer look at one of the activities:
Following Directions Activities for Fall Speech Therapy
This book companion also includes following directions activities! There are clip cards with 2-step directions and cards with 3-step directions! These are great for working on temporal concepts (before, after, first, next, etc).
More ideas for following directions:
- Play “Old Lady Says” instead of “Simon Says”
- Use the feeding activity to have students feed a variety of objects according to your directions
- Play a game with the open-ended sheets! After students follow a direction they get to cover the objects with a mini eraser!
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves Conclusion
If you’re looking for a fun and engaging fall book for speech therapy, There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves is a must-have! With its silly storyline, seasonal vocabulary, and endless opportunities for targeting speech and language goals, this round-up of There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves activities is sure to bring laughter and learning to your autumn sessions.
Where to find a copy of this book? Here is a convenient Amazon link: There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves by Lucille Colandro
Where to find the book companion? There are a few options:
- The Speech is Sweet Club – home to all of my current and future resources!
- There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves – This is the book companion in my TPT shop!
- There Was an Old Lady Bundle – Money-saving bundle in my TPT store!
Want more fall themed speech therapy activities? Check out these related blog posts:
Fall Speech Therapy Activities: A Mega Guide for SLPs
Fall Interactive Articulation Notebook Activities
Candy Apple Speech Therapy Craft
Squirrel Themed Speech Therapy
Five Fall Crafts for Speech Therapy
Leaf Picture Books Round-Up
Pumpkin Picture Books Round-Up
When the Leaf Blew In Freebie
Bushel of Fun
Apple Articulation Worksheets Review
Apple Themed Lesson Plans
Apple Themed Therapy Mega List
If you love using There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves in therapy, you’ll definitely want to check out my Leaf-Themed Speech Therapy Activities post for even more fun ways to celebrate fall in the speech room.
Looking for some more Old Lady fun? Check out these blog posts:
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Shell
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Ghost
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat
Thank you for stopping by! Have a great day!
