Parents often ask, "What toy can we buy that will teach my child to say more words?" But the answer is simple, you already have what it takes!
Parents are amazing! Often times, before speech therapy services even start, parents have a list of questions. How should we teach this, what are the best toys, do you have any favorite books that promote language? As much as we love hearing these questions, we can often find all of these answers in a much more simple form. In return, we ask parents, "Do you know of a place you can sit outside with your child and talk about the things going on around them? Do you go to the grocery store together? Even questions like, Do you know of a place outside where you can take your child on a small scavenger hunt? All of these activities can promote language and increase your child's exposure to essential vocabulary.
“Do you go to the grocery store together?”
We love to promote language in the simplest and most meaningful form. By increasing language learning opportunities in everyday activities, we increase the likelihood that your child will absorb the information you are trying to teach them. Let's talk about a couple of the activities we mentioned earlier.
Sitting Outside
Nothing is better getting some fresh air! Sitting outside and watching the world around you can be a great activity for children of all ages. While you are sitting outside you can promote language growth by identifying colors, asking WH questions, playing I Spy, or labeling the objects around you.
A Trip To The Grocery Store
Yes, going to the grocery store can be difficult with children, but if you do it can be a wonderful language exposure activity. For our littles, we can explore the produce aisle. Not only are we labeling healthy foods like fruits and veggies, but we can also target colors, adjectives, shapes, and much more! If you are going to the grocery story with an older child, trying giving them a small list of things they need to find on their own. By doing this you are targeting your child's ability to follow multi-step directions, executive functioning skills, and problem solving.
A Scavenger Hunt
Do you live near a park or enjoy going on walks? If so, this too can be a great activity to promote language and increase your child's vocabulary. Make a list of things you are going to find together (acorn, leaf, stick, rock, etc.). Once you have gathered everything from your list, sit down and talk about each item. You can talk about the color of the object, how big/small it is, what it is, and how each object feels. By talking about the attributes of each item, you are teaching your child incredibly beneficial language while using hands-on learning.
Overall, there are many ways to promote language and increase exposure to vocabulary. Whether you decide toys, books, or everyday activities are the best way to teach your child language you are doing an amazing job!
Have questions? We can't wait to answer them on our Contact Us page! https://www.thegrovetherapy.com/contactus
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