Short Films for Speech Therapy

Looking for an engaging way to target multiple speech and language goals without spending hours preparing materials? Try short films! These bite-sized videos are one of my favorite resources for speech therapy, especially when working with mixed groups.

Here are some practical, no-prep activities and prompts you can use in your next session!

Why Use Short Films in Speech Therapy?

Many animated short films tell an entire story with little or no dialogue. Students must rely on facial expressions, body language, character actions, and other visual clues to figure out what’s happening. That makes them useful for targeting inferencing, narrative language, problem-solving, perspective taking, sentence formulation, and articulation carryover.

This makes them great for targeting inferencing, narrative language, problem-solving, perspective taking, sentence formulation, and even articulation carryover.

Short films are also perfect for mixed groups. Everyone watches the same video, but each student can work on a different goal. Since most films are only a few minutes long, there’s plenty of time to discuss, revisit key scenes, and practice targeted skills—all within one session.

Perhaps the best part? Students love them!

6 Ready-to-Use Short Film Activities

Here are six ways to turn a short film into a meaningful speech therapy lesson. Choose a skill, grab a few prompts, and adjust the level of support to meet your students’ needs.

Inferencing & Predictions | Narrative Language & Retelling | Cause, Effect & Problem-Solving | Perspective Taking & Social Communication | Sentence Formulation & Complex Sentences | Articulation Carryover

1. Inferencing & Predictions

Pause at a key moment when a character reacts, makes a decision, or encounters a problem. Have students identify what they notice, make an inference, and explain which clues support their thinking. Revisit the scene later to see whether their predictions were accurate.

Ask:

• What do you think is happening? What makes you think that?
• What clues tell you what might happen next?
• What do you predict will happen next? Why?

Level It Up:

• Consider alternatives: What else might explain the character’s behavior?
• Revise predictions: Now that you’ve seen more, would you change your prediction? Why?
• Support with evidence: “I noticed ___, so I think ___ because ___.”

Need more support? Model your thinking aloud, highlight specific visual clues, or provide two possible explanations for students to compare.

Free Resource: Making Inferences Activities & CLUE Strategy

2. Narrative Language & Retelling

After watching, help students organize the story into meaningful parts: characters, setting, problem, attempts, and outcome. Use these elements to build an organized retell, focusing on important events rather than every small detail.

Ask:

• Who are the characters, and where does the story take place?
• What did the character want? What problem got in the way?
• What did the character try, and how did the story end?

Level It Up:

• Identify key events: Which three events are most important to understanding the story?
• Explain motivations: Why did the character make that choice?
• Summarize: Can you retell the story in three sentences without leaving out important information?

Need more support? Use a story map or the Somebody–Wanted–But–So–Then strategy. Model a retell before gradually reducing cues.

Free Resource: Story Comprehension & Retelling Activities

3. Cause, Effect & Problem-Solving

When a problem arises, pause the video and explore what caused it. Have students brainstorm possible solutions, predict the consequences, and then watch to see how the character handles the situation.

Ask:

• What caused the problem?
• What could the character do to solve it?
• What might happen if they try that solution?

Level It Up:

• Compare solutions: Which solution might work best? Why?
• Explore alternatives: What could the character have done differently?
• Use conditional language: “If the character had ___, then ___ might have happened.”

Need more support? Offer two possible solutions and discuss the likely outcome of each before asking students to generate their own ideas.

Free Resource: 100 Problem-Solving Scenarios & P.L.A.N. Strategy

4. Perspective Taking & Social Communication

Choose a scene involving two or more characters and explore how each might interpret the situation. Discuss their emotions, intentions, and reactions, using the context and visual clues to support different perspectives.

Ask:

• How might each character feel about what happened?
• What does one character know that the other doesn’t?
• Why might the characters react differently to the same situation?

Level It Up:

• Compare perspectives: How would each character describe what happened?
• Explore shades of meaning: Was the character annoyed, frustrated, or furious? Which word best describes their reaction?
• Consider misunderstandings: Could one character have misunderstood the other’s intentions?

Need more support? Offer possible interpretations and help students identify supporting clues. Emphasize that more than one perspective or interpretation may be reasonable.

5. Sentence Formulation & Complex Sentences

Select a scene and ask students to describe what’s happening in a complete sentence. Then build on their responses by adding details, combining ideas, or explaining relationships between events.

Ask:

• What’s happening in this scene?
• Can you add details about where, when, how, or why?
• Can you combine these two ideas into one sentence?

Level It Up:

• Expand sentences: “The bird flew.” → “The little bird flew toward the others when it spotted them on the wire.”
• Combine ideas: “He was nervous. He tried again.” → “Although he was nervous, he tried again.”
• Target conjunctions: Use because, although, while, before, after, and unless to explain relationships between events.

Need more support? Provide sentence starters, visual cues, or conjunction choices. For advanced students, target multiple clauses, varied sentence structures, and more detailed explanations.

6. Articulation Carryover

For students working on connected speech or conversation-level carryover, use the film as a springboard for meaningful speaking opportunities. Have students describe scenes, retell events, share opinions, or give a short movie review while monitoring their target sound.

Ask:

• Describe what happened in your favorite scene.
• Tell me the beginning, middle, and end of the story.
• What would you have done differently? Explain why.

Level It Up:

• Target specific sounds: Identify relevant /r/, /s/, /l/, /th/, or other target words related to the film.
• Practice self-monitoring: Have students identify productions they want to try again.
• Try a speaking challenge: Give a 30-second movie review while monitoring your target sound.

Need more support? Begin with selected words, phrases, or structured descriptions before transitioning to spontaneous conversation. Adjust feedback and cues to the student’s current level.

Free Resource: Articulation Carryover Passages

Three Short Films to Try in Speech Therapy

Not sure where to start? Here are three engaging short films that work particularly well with upper elementary and middle school students.

For the Birds — Pixar

Great for: Inferencing, perspective taking, social consequences, and cause and effect.
A group of little birds reacts unkindly when a larger bird tries to join them. The characters’ exaggerated body language and unexpected ending provide opportunities to discuss intentions, emotions, and consequences.

Pip — Southeastern Guide Dogs

Great for: Narrative language, problem-solving, perseverance, and character growth.
Pip is a small dog training to become a guide dog. Students can explore the challenges Pip faces, how Pip responds, and what the story reveals about strengths and differences.

Mike’s New Car — Pixar

Great for: Cause and effect, predicting outcomes, problem-solving, and flexible thinking.
Mike is excited about his new car, but things quickly go wrong when he and Sulley begin exploring its features.

Make the Most of One Short Film

The same short film can be used across multiple sessions or groups without repeating the same lesson. One day, focus on story comprehension. Another day, revisit the film to target inferencing, perspective taking, complex sentences, or articulation carryover.

Looking for additional teaching strategies and ready-to-use prompts? Browse these Free Speech Therapy Activities for more ways to practice language skills in structured activities and everyday situations.

And if you’d like more structured lessons, explore Speech Therapy Video Companions on TPT, featuring organized activities, flexible discussion prompts, and teaching notes for popular animated short films.

Sometimes, a few minutes of video can provide the foundation for an entire speech and language lesson. Choose a good story, focus on your students’ goals, and let the language practice begin!