Activities to Encourage Speech and Language Development
By: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Birth to 2 Years
Encourage your baby to make vowel-like and consonant-vowel sounds such as "ma," "da," and "ba."
Reinforce
attempts by maintaining eye contact, responding with speech, and
imitating vocalizations using different patterns and emphasis. For
example, raise the pitch of your voice to indicate a question.
Imitate your baby's laughter and facial expressions.
Teach
your baby to imitate your actions, including clapping you hands,
throwing kisses, and playing finger games such as pat-a-cake,
peek-a-boo, and the itsy-bitsy-spider.
Talk as you bathe, feed,
and dress your baby. Talk about what you are doing, where you are going,
what you will do when you arrive, and who and what you will see.
Identify colors.
Count items.
Use gestures such as waving goodbye to help convey meaning.
Introduce animal sounds to associate a sound with a specific meaning: "The doggie says woof-woof."
Acknowledge the attempt to communicate.
Expand on single words your baby uses: "Here is Mama. Mama loves you. Where is baby? Here is baby."
Read
to your child. Sometimes "reading" is simply describing the pictures in
a book without following the written words. Choose books that are
sturdy and have large colorful pictures that are not too detailed. Ask
your child, "What's this?" and encourage naming and pointing to familiar
objects in the book.
2 to 4 Years
Use good speech that is clear and simple for your child to model.
Repeat
what your child says indicating that you understand. Build and expand
on what was said. "Want juice? I have juice. I have apple juice. Do you
want apple juice?"
Use baby talk only if needed to convey the message
and when accompanied by the adult word. "It is time for din-din. We
will have dinner now."
Make a scrapbook of favorite or familiar
things by cutting out pictures. Group them into categories, such as
things to ride on, things to eat, things for dessert, fruits, things to
play with. Create silly pictures by mixing and matching pictures. Glue a
picture of a dog behind the wheel of a car. Talk about what is wrong
with the picture and ways to "fix" it. Count items pictured in the book.
Help
your child understand and ask questions. Play the yes-no game. Ask
questions such as "Are you a boy?" "Are you Marty?" "Can a pig fly?"
Encourage your child to make up questions and try to fool you.
Ask questions that require a choice. "Do you want an apple or an orange?" "Do you want to wear your red or blue shirt?"
Expand
vocabulary. Name body parts, and identify what you do with them. "This
is my nose. I can smell flowers, brownies, popcorn, and soap."
Sing simple songs and recite nursery rhymes to show the rhythm and pattern of speech.
Place
familiar objects in a container. Have your child remove the object and
tell you what it is called and how to use it. "This is my ball. I bounce
it. I play with it."
Use photographs of familiar people and places, and retell what happened or make up a new story.
4 to 6 Years
When your child starts a conversation, give your full attention whenever possible.
Make sure that you have your child's attention before you speak.
Acknowledge,
encourage, and praise all attempts to speak. Show that you understand
the word or phrase by fulfilling the request, if appropriate.
Pause
after speaking. This gives your child a chance to continue the
conversation.Continue to build vocabulary. Introduce a new word and
offer its definition, or use it in a context that is easily understood.
This may be done in an exaggerated, humorous manner. "I think I will
drive the vehicle to the store. I am too tired to walk."
Talk about spatial relationships (first, middle, and last; right and left) and opposites (up and down; on and off).
Offer
a description or clues, and have your child identify what you are
describing: "We use it to sweep the floor" (a broom). "It is cold,
sweet, and good for dessert. I like strawberry" (ice cream).
Work on
forming and explaining categories. Identify the thing that does not
belong in a group of similar objects: "A shoe does not belong with an
apple and an orange because you can't eat it; it is not round; it is not
a fruit."Help your child follow two- and three-step directions: "Go to
your room, and bring me your book."
Encourage your child to give directions. Follow his or her directions as he or she explains how to build a tower of blocks.
Play
games with your child such as "house." Exchange roles in the family,
with your pretending to be the child. Talk about the different rooms and
furnishings in the house.
The television also can serve as a
valuable tool. Talk about what the child is watching. Have him or her
guess what might happen next. Talk about the characters. Are they happy
or sad? Ask your child to tell you what has happened in the story. Act
out a scene together, and make up a different ending.
Take
advantage of daily activities. For example, while in the kitchen,
encourage your child to name the utensils needed. Discuss the foods on
the menu, their color, texture, and taste. Where does the food come
from? Which foods do you like? Which do you dislike? Who will clean up?
Emphasize the use of prepositions by asking him or her to put the napkin
on the table, in your lap, or under the spoon. Identify who the napkin
belongs to: "It is my napkin." "It is Daddy's." "It is John's."
While
shopping for groceries, discuss what you will buy, how many you need,
and what you will make. Discuss the size (large or small), shape (long,
round, square), and weight (heavy or light) of the packages.