Ask The Speech Therapist

August 08, 2008 2 Comments

 As a parent, I’m sure you are very interested in ensuring that your young child learns and develop to his or her fullest potential.  But with your busy schedule, it is often difficult to set aside special time to teach important, developmental skills.  Don’t worry, it’s easy to turn everyday activities into great language-building activities.  It’s easy to take activities that you are already doing with your child and make them even more meaningful and educational.

These 6 everyday activities are really rich language-building activities in disguise!

• Taking a walk down the street: Have your child identify the different color of the cars, trucks or buses that he or she sees.
• Watching a movie: After the movie is over, ask your child simple questions about the movie like, “who was your favorite person in the movie or what did you like most about the movie?”
• Playing board games: This activity is great for building great social skills, like turn-taking, staying focused on tasks, and following directions.
• Riding in the car: While riding in the car, this is great time to point out safety symbols like stop signs and traffic lights. This is also a great time to introduce safety rules.
• Listening games-identify the sound: Have your child close his eyes and see if he can identify the various sounds in the environment. This activity encourages creating great listening skills.
• Going grocery shopping: Have your child identify which category the items on your shopping list belongs, like apples are fruits, chips are a snack and water is a drink.

All the activities listed above are things you are already doing with your child on a regular basis.  So, turn ordinary activities into extraordinary learning activities that will have a great impact on your child’s development for years to come.

Denise Moore is a leading Speech Therapist that specializes in improving communication in children. Visit her website at www.askthespeechtherapist.com/ and sign-up for the FREE online newsletter for tips, ideas, and strategies on how to improve communication skills.

Children

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