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Speech Therapy: It's Play Time
Play is a child's "work". Most of the learning a child does is through play activities. During play, many communication skills are learned and can be practiced. It's a wonderful time to:
- Take turns
- Make eye contact
- Use gestures and body language
- Label actions and objects
- Repeat words over and over again
Your child's speech/language therapist (SLP) uses play as a medium in which to enhance the way language is understood and expressed. You can use some of the same techniques the SLP uses in therapy to help your child expand his/her language in the home.
1. Planned Stupidity- You essentially "play dumb" and pretend not to understand what your child is trying to say. This encourages your child to revise his/her communication and use multiple modes of expressive communication.
2. Choice Making- Give your child options during activities. Let him/her choose between two toys or choose between snack foods, etc.
3. Repetition and Expansion- When your child makes a request or statement, repeat what they indicated and expand upon it. For example, if the child points to juice, point to the juice and say juice and sign juice. This will show the child what he or she did to get the juice and it will also give them examples of other ways to communicate juice.
4. Developing Routines- Play games and make up routines (singing songs, reciting rhymes, setting the table, getting dressed, etc.). When your child is familiar with the routine, the routine can be changed. For example, when setting the table put the plates on and then ask the child to put the placemats on the table. If the child does not recognize that this is silly and communicate this, than show them how to say that was silly, i.e., point at the plate under the placemat and laugh or say, "Oh my gosh where are we going to put the food?".
*When communicating with children with expressive language delays be sure to accept any form of communication, i.e., pointing, gesturing, pantomiming, signing, pointing to representational pictures or speaking. Be sure to encourage any form of communication. This will allow the child to practice communicating, even when they don't have the skills to communicate with words. Always expand upon what the child is saying and give them models of other means to communicate such as signing or speaking.
Resource: http://aac.unl.edu/intervention/Encourage_Communication.html
http://www.erinoak.org/preschoolspeech
Remember--HAVE FUN!!
