Chatterbox consists of 72 cards for promoting conversation and discussion. The cards can be read by the student/client or by the teacher/leader and promote 'higher order' cognitive uses of language.

As students progress through the grades they are expected to give and justify opinions, provide explanations, interpret facts and recognize different points of view. This is the substrate for much written language.

The Chatterbox topics or questions encourage 'higher order' cognitive uses of language. They are deliberately open-ended to prompt reflection on personal experience and the development of social awareness, as well as to give opportunities for self expression.

Chatterbox Conversation Starters can be used in a variety of ways to foster language interaction, develop expository language or to stimulate the discourse skills or written language skills of older students.

Communication skills targeted include:

Describing events, Identifying and expressing feelings, giving opinions, justifying opinions or behaviour, providing explanations of event or activities, comparing and indicating preferences, identifying positive and negative aspects of a situation, making inferences and interpreting verbal and non-verbal cues, being aware of social interaction 'rules', persuading, negotiating, determining causes and solutions, predicting outcomes and consequences of actions, determining relevance and priority of information.

Uses:

Fluency and articulation generalisation, Language interventon for school aged students, adolescents or clients with traumatic brain injury, Social skills training, oral language activities - individual, small group or class discussion, conversation starters - school, home, dinner party

Written language starter topics, Topics for discourse assessment and training, ESL activities.