Word Games and Aphasia

Games are a great way to continue practicing word use at home. They can reinforce speech therapy work or keep the mind active during the early stages of Primary Progressive Aphasia. Word games will keep you interacting with letters, but even visually-based activities are great for getting the conversation rolling. Look at some of the options below to see if you can work them into a fun activity night.

Crosswords Together

Team up with another person to figure out crossword puzzle clues. The person with aphasia can be the thinker and speaker, and the person without aphasia can be the writer. The best part is that there is no time limit. Stretch out solving a puzzle by spending a few days tackling the clues.

You can also team up for other word games like Scrabble. Play regular Scrabble two-on-two, or opt for Scrabble Junior, which is a streamlined version of the game with multiple difficulty levels.

Board Games

There are plenty of word-oriented board games you can play to stretch your mind. ThinkFun’s Zingo has the player creating three-letter words. Quiddler’s words get longer with each round, beginning with three letters, too.

Word Game Apps

There are dozens of word apps in both the iPhone and Android app stores. Word Search Pro has free word find puzzles. Pictoword gives the player picture clues for finding a word. For example, giving a picture of a beach (sand) and a witch (wich) to put together to form “sandwich”. Words With Friends is like a giant, on-going game of Scrabble that you can play with friends or family over the phone.

Talking Games

Games don’t have to be focused on words to be helpful. Trivial Pursuit has general sets, like the original Genus edition, as well as specialty sets. You can target by year, such as the Baby Boomer edition or pop culture topic, such as Doctor Who. Answering trivia questions gets you thinking and speaking.

What are your favourite games for supporting word use?

Image: Paolo Soro via Flickr via Creative Commons license