Word Search: Making Active Listening Fun

In previous blogs, we have talked about active, structured listening practice leading to faster progress, tips for practicing listening, and how to make activities easier or more difficult depending on your listening skills. Here is another active activity which can easily be tailored to meet your individual listening needs.

Word Search

For this activity, you will need a communication partner to read you the clues. The Word Search is about:  Things To Do At Home.

Download the Word Search Handout now!

There are 20 words in the Word Search for you to find. Your communication partner will provide you with clues to the words. Identify and write down the words and when you have all 20, complete the word search. The clues are divided into five listening activities.

Activity 1:  For words 1 to 4, you have been given a list of the dissimilar sounding words. The list is on your handout under Activity 1. Your communication partner will say one of the words in a random order. Point to or say the word. Continue until you have identified all four words.

Activity 2: For words 5 to 8, you have been given a list of similar-sounding words. The list is on your handout under Activity 2. Your communication partner will say one of the words in a random order. Point to or say the word. Continue until you have identified all four words.

Activity 3: For words 9 to 12, your communication partner will tell you the word at the end of the sentence, for example: “I want you to write down the word ________.” Write the word in the space provided.

Activity 4: For words 13 to 16, you will hear a clue about the target word and then the target word at the end. If you want to make this activity more challenging, don’t have your communication partner say the target word at the end. Write the word in the space provided.

Activity 5:  For words 17 to 20, you will hear a rhyming phrase. The rhyming word is missing. You will need to listen to the phrase and figure out the rhyming word. To make it easier, have your communication partner include the rhyming word when reading the clue. Write the word in the space provided.

Tip:  Have your communication partner use listening first. If after three tries it is still difficult, add in lip reading. If it is still difficult, have your communication partner show you the written clue and say it again as you read along.  This activity should be fun, but not frustrating.

This activity provides you with a variety of strategies such as being provided word lists with a number of options, clues (lip reading), dissimilar to similar word lists, and familiar to unfamiliar context (rhyming). You were also provided with a variety of listening exercises from sound discrimination (Activity 1) to add cognitive/thinking exercises to the listening practice.

Think about which of these activities you like and practice them more. You could even have your communication partner make a word search specific to your individual interests or about something new you would like to learn about. There are many free sites online where you can make your own word search. Just type create your own word search into a search engine.

Have fun!

Looking for more resources for active practice at home? Discover our Rehab For Adults: Auditory Training With Your Cochlear Implant series! Find more useful tips and tricks as well as handouts for free download in part 1, part 2 and part 3 of this blog series.