Following Directions Pop It Fidget Book | Basic Concepts | SLP SPED Autism

This Following Directions Book, "Pop the Bubbles," uses a Pop It / bubble pop fidget to make following directions and basic concepts irresistibly fun! As the teacher or therapist reads, students pop the bubbles in the correct way — practicing following directions AND a stack of basic concepts (go/stop, fast/slow, top/bottom, left/right, up/down, a lot/a few, one/all, and more). A hands-on, sensory-friendly hit for speech therapy, SPED, and autism classrooms.

🫧 Perfect for:

• Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs) targeting following directions, basic concepts, positional/spatial concepts, and quantity concepts
• Special Education teachers building following directions and concept IEP goals
• Autism classrooms working on following directions, concepts, and sensory engagement
• Occupational Therapists working on fine motor skills, finger isolation, and self-regulation (fidget use)
• ABA therapists running discrete trial following directions programs
• Early Childhood, Pre-K, and Kindergarten teachers
• ELL/ESL teachers building basic concept and positional vocabulary
• Homeschool families with young learners

🎯 Concepts Included:

• go / stop
• fast / slow
• top / bottom
• left / right
• around
• up / down
• a lot / a few
• one / all
• done

🎯 Skills Targeted:

Following directions (1-step and multi-step), basic concepts, positional/spatial concepts (top/bottom, left/right, up/down, around), quantity concepts (a lot/a few, one/all), temporal/control concepts (go/stop, fast/slow), listening comprehension, attention, fine motor skills (finger isolation, popping), self-regulation (fidget use), and following along with text.

Sample Text:

"Pop the bubbles.

Ready? GO!

Pop them fast.

Pop them slow.

Pop the bottom.

Pop the top.

Pop-pop-pop-pop

Pop-pop-STOP!

Pop a lot.

Pop a few. Pop the left —

and right ones too!"

How to Use:

The teacher or therapist reads the book aloud — slowly — while students follow along and pop the bubbles on their Pop It fidget in the correct way. Works as a whole-class activity (with enough fidgets), small group, 1:1 therapy, or independent center. The novelty of the pop-it fidget keeps even reluctant students engaged while they practice following directions and basic concepts.

✏️ Ways to Use:

• Following directions and basic concepts IEP goal practice and data collection
• Speech therapy concept and following-directions sessions
• Back to school routines and listening practice
• OT fine motor (finger isolation) and self-regulation sessions
• ABA discrete trial following directions training
• Whole-class brain breaks and transitions
• Independent work systems (TEACCH)
• ESL/ELL basic concept and positional vocabulary lessons
• Take-home and tele-therapy practice

For more hands-on back to school, fall or apple themed activities, please see the following links:

Hands-On Back to School Activities

Hands-On Fall Activities

Apple Themed Activities