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One of my favorite themes to plan for Januaryis snowmen. Kids love talking about snowmen, and it makes an engaging, flexible winter themefor speech therapy sessions. Best of all, there are so many snowman speech therapy activities you can use to target articulation, language, and AAC goals with preschool through second-grade students. Whether you are working with mixed groups, supporting special education classrooms, or pushing into the classroom, a snowman theme makes lesson planning easier and more fun. In this post, I’m sharing a round-up of snowman speech and language ideas you can pick and choose from to support your students’ speech therapy goals.
To make planning even easier, the activities below are organized by skill area so you can quickly find what works best for your students and setting.
This blog post was originally written in January 2022. I update the post every year when I find new ideas and resources to share. It was last updated 12/29/26.
The most efficient way I have found to plan by theme is first to select a book to use with my students. I often choose 2-3 books on the theme to use with my caseload. This allows me to maintain consistency with the theme across weeks while providing flexibility to use different books in therapy as needed. There are numerous great snowman speech therapy books to use in your therapy sessions.
Once your snowman speech therapy book is selected, you can look for extension activities to use with this winter speech therapy theme. For example, if I plan to use the “Feed the Snowman” activity, I will adapt it for a range of ages and settings. The snowman sensory bin could be useful for my small groups and my co-teaching lessons.
Adding a few snowman-themed toys and props can really boost engagement during speech therapy sessions, especially when you’re working with younger students. That said, I’m always intentional about what I add to my therapy stash so it supports learning and not just the theme.
When I’m deciding whether to use or purchase a new speech therapy toy, I ask myself a few key questions. Can this toy be easily adapted for multiple speech and language goals? Will it help my students better connect to the snowman theme or the story we’re reading? Is this something I’ll realistically use across different groups and settings?
Thinking through these questions helps me choose toys and props that work well for mixed groups, small groups, and push-in lessons. Sometimes I’ll find a toy simply because it sparks excitement, such as snowman pull-back sleds, and then I challenge myself to think through how I can use it for articulation, language, or AAC goals rather than letting it sit on a shelf.If you’re looking for specific snowman-themed toys, props, and low-prep ideas, I share all of my best tips in a dedicated post, including a free snowman printable you can use with bowling pins as a reinforcer for any speech or language goal, functional communication or AAC core words.
When you’re short on time, using a YouTube video can be an engaging and effective way to plan a quick snowman-themed speech therapy session. Many high-quality snowman videos support targeting of language, articulation, movement, and AAC goals across preschool through early elementary grades.
In my snowman push-in language lesson plan guides, I include a Google Slides presentation with curated snowman-themed YouTube videos that are easy to use for whole-class and co-teaching lessons. Inside the Themed Therapy SLP membership, you’ll also find snowman Google Slides with links to YouTube songs, book read-alouds, and videos, all organized so you can quickly find what you need for your students. When you have the annual plan, you have access to all themes at once. On the monthly plan, you get the snowman theme in December.
YouTube videos also work well as a brain break or a transition between activities. Snowman songs are particularly effective for introducing movement while still targeting listening, following directions, and core vocabulary. Here are a few of my favorite snowman songs to use during push-in or co-teaching sessions:
If you want even more winter videos, songs, and book read-alouds in one place, you can also check out my winter YouTube video round-up, which includes a free Google Slides presentation to make planning fast and easy.
When you become a yearly annual Themed Therapy SLP member, you get access to many winter speech and language themes for preschool and elementary. For December we have a winter, and snowman speech therapy activities unit for Prek-5th grade. In January, you can easily plan an arctic animals, or penguins theme. We also have mini-themed units for hot chocolate and gingerbread man to cover those winter months!
Snowman rhymes and fingerplay activities are perfect for students who love movement and hands-on learning. Using simple rhymes with props during a snowman unit gives students repeated opportunities to practice language skills while staying engaged and regulated.
Snowman rhymes can be used to target a variety of speech and language goals, including vocabulary, following directions, sequencing, early grammar, and imitation. They also work especially well for preschool and special education students who benefit from predictable routines and visual supports.
If you’re looking for an easy snowman rhyme to add to your therapy sessions, check out this blog post from Ms. Gardenia’s Speech Room. She shares a fun snowman rhyme along with free visuals you can use during small groups, circle time, or push-in lessons.
There are so many simple snowman crafts you can use during small groups or push-in speech therapy lessons. One of my favorite options is creating a snowman using a white paper bag or paper plate. These low-prep materials make it easy to add a hands-on element without overcomplicating planning. You can have step-by-step visual supports and lesson plan for easy snowman crafts in the Themed Therapy SLP membership.
To support speech and language goals, I created free snowman craft visual supports that you can use to target sequencing and following directions. This makes the craft more than just an art activity and helps keep therapy intentional and goal-focused.
Snowman crafts are particularly well-suited to mixed-ability groups. Instead of planning separate activities for each student, you can use one craft template and customize how students interact with it based on their individual goals. One student might work on requesting or core words, while another practices sequencing steps or expanding sentences.
For articulation and language goals, a 3D snowman speech and language craft is a great option. It provides students with a hands-on way to practice speech sounds and can be easily sent home as speech homework to support carryover. Using a single adaptable craft across your caseload makes winter planning more manageable while keeping students engaged.
If you’re looking for ready-to-use visuals, snowman snack, craft ideas, and planning support, you can grab my FREE Snowman Speech Therapy Resources Guide, which includes links to activities, visuals, and ideas you can use right away.
For your whole class lessons, why not read a fun snowman book and then do a hands on cooking lesson! Here is a FUN marshmallow snowman cooking activity from Kristine Lamb at Live Love Speech. If you need visual recipes for your themed units, Kristine has the best set that will last all year! Plus, Kristine and I made you a snowman speech therapy resources guide with a free snowman marshmallow cooking activity and more!
Click here to get your FREE Snowman Speech Therapy Resources Guide
If you’re looking for pre-made snowman speech therapy activities to use with younger students, having a ready-to-go language lesson plan can make planning much easier. This snowman theme language lesson plan guide was designed to support preschool through early elementary students in small groups, push-in services, and co-teaching lessons.
The resource includes a Google Slides presentation, a parent newsletter, a lesson plan cheat sheet, and more than five small group activities that can be paired with any snowman book. It also includes clear, step-by-step instructions that can be shared with instructional aides or classroom teachers when running station activities.
These snowman activities are intentionally designed to target a wide range of speech and language goals while keeping students engaged. Inside the lesson plan guide, you’ll find hands-on materials such as a build-the-snowman file folder activity, snowman picture mats, snowman life cycle visuals, and a Feed the Snowman activity, just to name a few.
If you want an easy way to cover multiple goals with one theme and reduce planning time, this resource can help streamline your snowman speech therapy lessons across your caseload.
Digital snowman speech therapy activities can be a great option for younger students, especially when you’re short on prep time. One of my favorite ways to target sequencing skills is by talking through the steps for how to build a snowman.
For a free digital option, ABCya has an interactive build-a-snowman game that’s perfect for targeting requesting, sequencing, describing, and increasing MLU. Students can describe what they’re adding, make choices, and explain what comes next while staying highly engaged. Starfall and CBC Kids have a snowman-building game for sequencing and describing goals.
Another engaging digital option is setting up a simple green-screen activity using a winter background from Google Photos. Pair the background with a felt snowman and accessories to create an interactive build-a-snowman activity. This is effective for targeting spatial concepts, core vocabulary, and expressive language, particularly when the felt pieces can be affixed with Velcro.
Tiny Tap has a free snowman – Finding Different to work on visual discrimination as well as work on wh-questions, describing, same/different and AAC core words look, that, yes, and no.
A snowman theme works especially well for articulation and phonology goals because it’s easy to build in high repetitions while keeping activities hands-on and motivating. With a few adaptable snowman articulation activities, you can target speech sounds at the word, phrase, or sentence level while still meeting the needs of mixed groups.
One of my go-to articulation activities during winter is Feed the Snowman. This activity can be used with any speech sound and easily adapted for different ages and ability levels. Students practice their target sounds and feed the snowman as they go, making it a fun way to increase trials without it feeling like drill. I share the Feed the Snowman printable along with other winter articulation ideas in this winter articulation blog post.
Snowman crafts are another easy way to work on articulation while keeping students engaged. Using a simple snowman craft with templates for all speech sounds allows students to practice their targets as they assemble their snowman. This works well for small groups, mixed groups, and even sending home as articulation homework.
If you’re using books in therapy, Sneezy the Snowman pairs perfectly with articulation practice. Sneezy the Snowman articulation worksheets make it easy to target speech sounds at the word and phrase level while reinforcing vocabulary and story comprehension.
For a more hands-on option, a 3D snowman articulation craft is a great way to combine speech practice with fine motor skills. Students practice their sounds while building their snowman, and the finished craft can be sent home for additional carryover practice.
Games are another simple way to boost engagement during articulation sessions. A Build a Snowman game can be used with any speech sound and works well as a reinforcer during drills or stations. Students roll, practice their target sound, and add pieces to their snowman as they play.
If you’re looking for a low-preparation, fine-motor option, filling a clear water bottle with a snowman face and nose, and gluing on a scarf with white pom-poms as students practice their speech sounds, is an easy way to add movement and visual feedback. This activity works especially well for younger students who benefit from hands-on articulation practice.
Using a variety of snowman articulation activities allows you to keep therapy fun while still getting the repetitions students need to make progress. Many of these activities can be reused across multiple weeks and adapted for different speech sounds, making winter planning more efficient.
Snowman sensory bins are a great way to add hands-on, play-based learning to your speech therapy sessions, especially for preschool and early elementary students. Sensory bins work well for mixed groups, small groups, and push-in lessons because they naturally support language, articulation, and AAC goals while keeping students engaged.
One easy snowman sensory bin idea is using shredded white paper to create a “snow” base. You can add simple snowman pieces, such as cups, buttons, or small containers, and have students build or explore while practicing requesting, commenting, and following directions. This shredded paper snowman sensory bin is low-prep and easy to adapt for different goals and settings.
Another favorite option is making snow dough to build snowmen. Snow dough is simple to make and pairs well with loose parts like buttons, yarn, plastic eyes, and small containers. As students build their snowmen, you can target vocabulary, spatial concepts, sequencing, and sentence expansion. Snow dough sensory bins also work well for fine motor development and calming regulation during therapy sessions.
If you’re looking for a quick and inexpensive sensory activity, try creating “fill the snowman” bins. Use plastic cups with snowman faces drawn on them and let students fill the snowmen with rice, beans, or white pom poms. This activity is easy to set up and is effective for targeting requesting, counting, turn-taking, and articulation during drills.
Snowman sensory bins are flexible and can be reused across multiple sessions. By changing how students interact with the materials, you can target different speech and language goals without needing to plan a brand-new activity each week.
Teaching sequencing skills aligns naturally with a snowman theme, particularly when discussing how to build a snowman. Sequencing snowman activities gives students repeated practice with first, next, and last while also supporting language organization, following directions, and early narrative skills.
One of the easiest ways to practice sequencing is to break down the steps for building a snowman. Students can discuss what happens first, what comes next, and what happens last using visuals, crafts, or hands-on materials. This approach is practical for preschool and early elementary students and can be readily adapted for mixed groups.
Snowman sequencing activities also pair nicely with books, crafts, and sensory bins. For example, after reading a snowman story or watching a short video, students can retell the steps using sequencing visuals or by constructing a snowman from materials. This helps reinforce comprehension while keeping students engaged.If you want step-by-step guidance, visual supports, and ready-to-use materials for teaching sequencing with a snowman theme, I share everything in a dedicated snowman sequencing blog post. Inside that post, you’ll find activity ideas, visuals, and links to materials that make planning and sequencing lessons easier for speech therapy.
Using a snowman theme in speech therapy is a simple way to keep students engaged while targeting a wide range of goals. With these snowman speech therapy activities, you can work on articulation, language, AAC, sequencing, sensory play, and digital learning, all while reusing the same theme for two to four weeks. Planning this way saves time and makes it easier to stay consistent across your caseload.
If you want to learn more about extending a theme beyond one week and making the most of themed therapy planning, you can check out episode 45 of the Real Talk SLP Podcast, where I share tips for planning efficiently without overcomplicating your sessions.
I’d love to hear from you. Share your favorite digital or printable snowman speech therapy activities in the comments so other SLPs can get new ideas too.
