KristinaHope22, Author at

RIDING IN THE CAR

Ever wondered how much children can learn while riding in the car? Whether your child is rear facing or forward facing, it can be possible to learn new fun things during car rides, long or short! Some children love car rides, some do not. For those who don’t like it so much, we can find ways to distract them from their protest by utilizing language! As you are getting them in the car, describe what you are doing, maybe even by singing it. For example, “Up, up, up we go”, “For a ride we go”(tune of Row, Row, Row Your Boat), “For a ride”, “In the car”, “For a ride we go”. Talk to them about getting their arms in the straps(Arms in, 1, 2), buckling it up(Snap!), then “Here we go!”. When able, talk about what you see during the ride, sing some songs(especially for the riders that don’t enjoy it so much). For the forward facing riders, ask them questions about what they see or hear so they can tell you. If you’re not the driver, maybe even offer some choices of drinks or snacks, which is also a good way to keep them distracted from any anxiety they may feel. Use a lot of descriptive language as you talk about what you see. For example, “Look!” “A big truck!”, “There’s a blue car”, “Awwww what a cute puppy!”, “There’s a cow, what does it say?”, “Mooooo, that’s what a cow says!”. Even if they aren’t able to, or choose not to repeat sounds/words back to you, they are still absorbing the information and will eventually engage in imitation. Most importantly, have fun with them and enjoy the time without having to worry about the regular interruptions of life!

Sounds/words to include: car, seat, sit, up, down, in, out, go, stop, buckle, snap, truck, plane, house, trees, sun, clouds, stars, moon, sky, beep, zoom, slow, fast, name animals you might see, colors, foods/drinks you may have, etc.

MUSIC MAKES THE WORLD GO ‘ROUND

Music is a universal language. Most children at a very young age respond to, engage, and interact with music. It can be used to get children to move or to help soothe/calm them when they are upset. Music makes us feel many emotions. We can also use it to teach our children sounds and words! Whether it’s popular music you hear on the radio or familiar children’s songs, it can be a fun way to teach them to imitate or anticipate to fill in sounds and words. Some common children’s songs that can often be heard at schools or child care settings are: Wheels on the Bus, Old McDonald, Isty Bitsy Spider, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, Row, Row, Row You Boat, Happy and You Know It, Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes, ABCs, and the now very popular Baby Shark. Many of these songs also pair actions to the words. Most children will imitate actions first, then begin to pair a sound/word/word approximation with the action. Children who are less vocal/verbal will gain confidence with action imitation and once they feel able to imitate the sound/word, will do so without even realizing it. For some children, the motor actions are enough of a distraction from speech being difficult for them that they eventually begin to make sounds. As parents/caregivers, we can build their engagement and interaction while singing songs with them by pausing at the end of a phrase or certain part of the song. This will give them the opportunity to try to fill in the pause. For example, while singing “Itsy Bitsy Spider”, pause before saying “down” to start with. Your hands will already be up ready to show them the gesture of “Down came the rain” so they will have the visual cue of what is coming next in the song. During “Old McDonald” or “Baby Shark”, give them the opportunity to decide who(animal or person) comes next. First ask “Who’s next?” to see if they can suggest, or give them a choice if they aren’t able to. For example, sing “Old McDonald had a farm, E-I-E-I-O” “And on his farm he had a …..” “Cow or horse?”. That way they can imitate what animal they want next. You can pause at the sound so they can fill it in. It usually works best if you don’t pause until the last phrase of the sound the animal makes so they hear it a couple times first(Everywhere a ……). When they are able, give them the choice of what song they want to sing with you. Such as, “Do you want boat or star?”. Then model the full name of the song for them if they are only at the single word level. As long as they are familiar with the song, they will love to try to sing along. It will boost their confidence to try new sounds and words, and they will enjoy the engagement with you!

PLAYING WITH FOOD!

Does your child love to play in the kitchen? Most small children go through the stage of wanting to be and do everything just like a parent/caregiver. One of the ways they show us this is imitating adults preparing food. They love the “real” kitchen stuff, even if they have the pretend kitchen and all the accessories that go along with that. Using play food and/or a pretend kitchen is a great way to expand both receptive and expressive language skills. It may even help expand the variety of foods they will eat! As they pretend to eat or drink while playing, you can model sounds like you are takes bites, munching/chewing, take a drink(sipping sound, then ahhhh). Definitely model “Yum!” or “Mmmmm” when you like something or even “ooooo, yuck!” when you don’t like it(or if they are pretending to eat something that is not actually edible). To build receptive language, you can ask your child to get a particular food or kitchen object for you, provide simple directions, such as “Stir!”, “Pour”, “Put in”, etc. Expressively, name the foods or kitchen objects you are using or your child is playing with, narrate what you are doing(Make cookies, Blow on the pizza, it’s hot, Stir the soup, Pour the milk, etc) or ask them to name the objects independently. This is also a good opportunity to provide choices for them to imitate words(Do you want milk or juice?) or to give them cues to ask for “more” of something(More cookies). As they build their vocabulary and are spontaneously requesting certain foods, drinks, or objects, expand to modeling phrases for them to ask. For example, “Do you want more juice?” “You tell me, more juice!” so they imitate the word combination. Sometimes, children respond to the adult over exaggerating the phrase(More juice) by slowing down the word(s) or saying it in a sing song like pattern, imitating more easily. Even if you don’t have the play food or pretend kitchen, you can use these same strategies with the items you have in your kitchen to pretend. Not only is this a good way to build pretend play skills, it provides opportunities to learn and express many concepts while communicating with you! Also, “playing” with food and tools used to prepare it can help if your child experiences any anxiety related to trying new tastes/textures.

Words/sounds to include: Names of foods, drinks, kitchen objects, action wordsàeat, drink, pour, stir/mix, dump, scoop, wash, blow, cut, Mmmmm, yum, yuck, oooo/ewwww, more, all done, clean up, hot, cold, wet, dry, on, off, in, out, open, close, pot, pan, fork, spoon, knife, cup, plate, etc.

FUN WITH PLAY DOUGH

Another classic toy that has been around for ages…..Play Dough! Play dough can be used to teach your child many language concepts. The recommended age for your child to play with play dough is 2 + years, mostly because it will most likely go into their mouths at some point. Under and over the age of 2, this is most definitely a supervised activity! Not only does play dough give children a way to keep those little hands busy, it is a great way to teach them many action words. As they play, join in and model action words such as, “roll”, “pull”, “squeeze”. You can make many different shapes whether you have a play dough set you purchased or if you just have some play dough. Roll it into a ball and label “ball” while you show your child. Then you can easily smash it and tell them it’s a pancake or a cookie(of course reminding them they can’t really eat it😊). Roll it a different way and it’s a “snake”, while you make the “ssss” sound. You can give your child choices for different colors, what they want you to make, or what they want to make using the tools or shapes. They most likely won’t be able to open the containers, which gives the opportunity for them to ask you to “open” or “help”. To help cue your child to request, ask them, “Do you want me to open?” or “Do you want help?”. If needed, model “open”, “open please”, “help”, or “help me” for them to imitate. Another way to encourage them to request is to only give them a little at a time. Then you have the opportunity to help them to ask for “more”. Receptively, give them simple directions to follow or imitate actions(put in, push, pull, etc). Show them two tools or shapes and ask them to get one(Get the scissors, Make the butterfly, etc). With easy access to the many different recipes, making your own play dough has never been easier! Wouldn’t it be fun for your child to help make a toy they can play with? Play dough is a simple fun way to teach your children many concepts without them even knowing they are learning!

Words/sounds to include: open, close, in, out, push, pull, roll, cut, squeeze, squish, smash, bounce, ball, snake, sssss, pancake, cookie, hot dog, pretzel, more, colors, names of tools or shapes in kits, all done, clean up, etc.

TIP: Once your child is using single words, help them to expand to phrases by adding one more word to the words they are using. For example, if they ask for more, ask them “More what?” Then you can model a 2 word combination for them to imitate so they can be specific about what they want more of(More play dough/dough, More blue, More stars, etc).

PLAY WITH A POTATO?

Mr. Potato Head has been a toy in distribution since 1952! The Toy Story franchise has made it’s popularity continue among children for many years. Did you know this simple toy could teach children so much with no lights and sounds? Since there are no buttons to push to reinforce children with a familiar song or a flashing light, this is a toy for the parent/caregiver to engage and interact with using the familiar sound of their voice. Receptively(an understanding of language), you can give your child simple directions to follow, such as “Get the shoes” while limiting the visual choice of the parts to 2-3 depending on their age. Help them to push or pull the pieces in and out, while over exaggerating the actions and words as you help them. Pretend you are having a hard time with the pieces as if they were heavy. They may even begin to imitate the words since you are being silly while modeling it. You can also assess their understanding by telling them to pull out a certain piece one at a time when taking it apart after completing it. Expressively(use of language), model the names of each piece as they put them in or take them out. Ask them to choose which piece they want by showing them two and asking “Which one?”. If they don’t independently choose using the word, label each part while holding it close to your mouth so they can see how you are saying the words. Show them some of the same parts on themselves and you. As they get older, you can expand from single words to modeling word combinations(Shoes on, Green hat, Two ears, etc.). This is also a good turn taking activity(My turn, Your turn) with you as the caregiver or between siblings. If they know Toy Story, they will love playing with one of the characters in it!

TIP: If your child has a shorter attention span, start slow. If they only do a couple pieces at a time, it’s o.k. You can build on it over time. Also, it’s o.k. if they put the pieces in the “wrong” spots-it can be a “silly” potato!

Words/sounds to include: hat, shoes, glasses, teeth, mouth, eyes, nose, tongue, hands/arms, in, out, push, pull, again, all done, colors, etc.

GROCERY SHOPPING

For some of us, grocery shopping is fun! For others, one of those tasks we dread. Having a baby or young child with us can make it even more challenging! What if sometimes, we turn it into a fun adventure and learning experience for our children? From a young age, babies can begin to learn about the foods and drinks we can get at the grocery store, as well as, the process we go through. These days, we can get so much more than food there! Here’s an example of how grocery shopping can be a teachable moment. “Up we go, in the cart!” “Let’s see what we need.” “We need more bananas.” “Where are they?” “Here’s the bananas!” When they are old enough, see if they can find them, or hold up the bananas and another fruit and ask them to find them(“Get the bananas” or “Where’s the bananas?”). They are building receptive language this way by identifying them. Whether they choose correctly or not, hold the bananas close to your face so they can see you pronounce the word. Then you can ask them, “Can you say it?” or tell them, “You say banana”. Over exaggerate the word in an almost sing song voice, “ba-NA-na” emphasizing the second syllable or both the second and third. They are learning expressive language this way. Many young children will say “nana” first and that’s o.k. when they are little. Talk to your baby as you shop and label what you are buying. Tell them “In the cart” to describe where the items go. If they are old enough to walk on their own, they can help put the items in and you can ask them each time, “Where does it go?” so they begin to answer “In the cart”, or at least an approximation of the phrase. As you take everything out to put it on the conveyer belt, you can tell them “Out!”, “There it goes, wheee!”. Describe to your baby or young child the items go “In the bag”. If they are older, ask them to help put some “In the bag!”. When you’re done, talk about what you bought and how much fun the adventure was. You can also complete the activity saying “All done!”, “Let’s go home!”. In addition to teaching your child language, grocery shopping can be a good way to introduce or teach them to try new foods. Maybe while putting the groceries away, you can talk about something you can make, or they can help make. One example might be a smoothie-something sweet you can also hide veggies in😉. For more suggestions and information on smoothies, please visit the “EAT” tab. Remember, it is important to do these activities when there is enough time to take your time…..learning is more difficult for everyone if it is rushed!

Words/sounds to include: Names of foods, drinks, or household items, in, out, eat, drink, yum/yummy, cart, beep, more, all done, go, stop, look, etc.

SUMMER SMOOTHIES

It’s summer and it’s HOT! What better way to cool down than ice cream…..or a smoothie! With technology at our fingertips at any given moment, you can find many recipes for smoothies. It’s a great way to incorporate fruits and veggies into our children’s(sometimes picky children’s)diet. What you probably didn’t know is that this is a great way for your kiddos mouth to work a little harder and differently to drink. Make it fun by giving them a silly straw to drink it from. This will provide awareness to their lips and tongue, as well as extra work while they are sucking through the straw. It could be an easier way for children to learn to drink from an open cup since the liquid is thicker and won’t go so fast as they learn to tip the cup to gauge the amount of liquid to swallow. You can easily play around with the consistency, whether you want it more like a milkshake or a smoothie. When they are old enough, have them help add the ingredients and teach them the names of what is going into the smoothie, and the actions that go along with it(cut, mix, pour, etc). Then enjoy a cool treat during the dog days of summer! For more information about picky eaters, see the resources tab for a helpful and informative website!

LET’S GET DRESSED!

We go out shopping, find the CUTEST outfit for our little one, and come home excited to put them in it! Dressing can be a great opportunity to teach our children. It’s something we help them with at least twice a day. Even when they get old enough to give us a hard time, which they will at some point, we can still provide a learning opportunity! Dressing routines can teach them names of clothing even before they can imitate sounds and words. As parents, we just have to label what we are putting on them. It not only teaches them but it may even distract them from being upset about what is happening😊 Over the years, I’ve seen some parents/caregivers turn it into a song! “These are your socks, socks, socks!” The tune doesn’t matter(and neither does your singing voice!). As they get older, ask your child to give you the article of clothing to put on(receptive language) or ask them “What’s this?” as you show them, so they can label it(expressive language). If they don’t know or the word is too hard for them at the time, label it for them so they eventually imitate it. Repetition and practice are keys to learning. What better way to do this than in daily routines! Even as they get older and more headstrong, provide choices(when able) for the child to pick out clothing. You can ask, “Do you want to wear the blue shirt or the green shirt?”. You may use a favorite character that’s on the clothing. Any method you choose, you are teaching them to combine words! Also, you can teach them “on” and “off”. “We put shoes on”. “Take your coat off”. There are so many phrases. Furthermore, you can incorporate questions in this routine. “Do you wear shoes on your head?” “No, shoes go on our feet!”(Be silly with this!). “Does our hat go on our head?” “Yes, on our head!” Another example is asking “where” so they can use words to answer one of the first “wh” questions they will begin to understand. “Where do our socks go?” “They go on our feet!”(Encourage them to respond “feet” or “on feet”). Although we may not always have a lot of time to spend in this routine, significant learning can occur!

TIP: Give you child time to respond, at least 3-5 seconds.

Words/sounds to use: names of clothing, colors, body parts, on, off, yes, no

MOTOR MOUTH

Early on, babies begin to explore their mouths. Once they get the hang of bottle or breast feeding, their fingers begin to make their way to their mouths. Some babies may begin to suck on their fingers or thumb to soothe themselves. Although we hope this doesn’t turn into a habit we somehow have to help them break in the future, it is important to have the hand to mouth connection. They will also begin to place objects to their mouths when they begin to teethe. This is a good thing as long as it is an appropriate object! As parents, we should begin to make silly faces and sounds with them as early as possible. This will given them the opportunity to connect, begin to imitate and gain awareness of their mouths, and engage in the beginning of turn taking(social language). It feels silly at first as adults, but it teaches your baby so many early speech and language skills! Show your baby raspberries(blowing with your lips closed or when tongue is slightly protruded), moving your tongue around(clicking it, sticking it out, lalalala sound), popping/smacking your lips together(I like to call this the fishy sound), blowing, opening mouth wide to make “ahhhh” sound, and smiling to make an “eeee” sound. Your baby will probably get a kick out of this and laugh a lot at his silly parent/caregiver! As they get older, you can teach them using a mirror if you notice they are having difficulty imitating these movements or making sounds. This way they can watch you and themselves perform. Blowing bubbles is a great way to teach toddlers how to blow, which is important for awareness of their lips and tongue in order to make both an “o” and “w” sound. If they have difficulty with this movement, use a bubble blower that they can dip one end in the bubbles and blow through the other end. Having to blow through it shapes their lips in a rounded position and their tongue down and out of the way. Any type of instrument they have to blow through to make noise(the reinforcement for the child) will be a fun way to teach them. You can use horns, whistles, flutes/recorders, etc. Remember, they will never know they are actually learning when you make it silly and fun!

Words/sounds to include: ahhhhh, eeeee, lalalala, pop, blow, bubble, mouth, tongue, lips, teeth, etc.

GROW A GARDEN!

Gardening can be a fun way to grow your relationship with your toddler! Whether planting in the ground or in pots, giving your child a way to learn a ton of vocabulary and to follow directions while getting messy can be so much fun. They won’t even know they are learning! Whatever you choose to plant, tell your child what it is you are planting and what you are doing. For example, “ Let’s plant the beans!” “Here are the seeds.” “We need to use a shovel to dig a small hole.” “Dig, dig, dig!” “Put the seeds in the hole.” “Then cover up the seeds with the dirt.” “Now we need to water them.” “Pour!” “The sun will help them grow too!”. Take turns with the tasks and use phrases “My turn” and “Your turn” as you do. Ask them what they need so they can request the materials(Seed please, More dirt, I want shovel, I need water, etc.). As they watch them grow, they will know they helped and maybe(if you plant vegetables or fruit)eat what they planted and nourished!

Word/sounds to include: names of fruits, vegetables, or flowers, dig, hole, scoop, dump, pour, seed, water, sun, dirt, sprout, bloom, pick, dirty, clean, wet