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Enriching Language Skills Through Play
Do you remember how much fun it was to play? I do.As a speech and language pathologist I use play every day to help children develop their speech and language skills. It's a lot of fun and educational, too! Play is how children learn many new skills including social skills, language development and problem solving.
I often see parents "playing" with their child. They grab a squeaky toy and wiggle it in front of their toddler's faces. This is not play; this is just trying to entertain a toddler. When I am working with a child, I will get little accomplished if I'm just sitting there on a chair holding a toy. The child will not be engaged and will wander away probably looking for someone to play with! However, if I sit on the floor, snatch a toy and make silly noises and faces, then I will gain that child's attention. He will come over to see what I'm doing. This is the time to enrich speech and language skills!
How to Play
During play, it's best to be at eye level with the child. Getting down to a child's level will decrease the authority figure role, and your child will know you're ready to have some fun. Furthermore, your child will be better able to see your face and lips as you speak.
This is a great way to emphasize the imitation of speech sounds. I love to play with pretend food toys. There are so many sounds that can be modeled for children using these toys. For example, pretend to drink from a cup while saying, "ga, ga, ga." Toddlers love these sounds and you're modeling the use of the consonant "g." Sizzle a hamburger in a pan while saying "sssssss." You just showed your toddler how to make an "s" sound! Pretty soon you will hear your toddler imitating these sounds as he plays and will start forming these sounds into words. So kick off your shoes, grab a banana and take a seat on the floor.
"For some children, saying words clearly and correctly is easy," says Dorothy P. Dougherty, a speech-language pathologist and author of Teach Me How to Say It Right: Helping Your Child With Articulation Problems.
(New Harbinger Publications, 2005). "However, many children need a lot of practice listening to sounds made correctly and saying the sounds themselves before they can say all the sounds of their language."
Dougherty suggests using words in play with the sounds you want to over-emphasize. She recommends giving your child many opportunities to hear the sound(s) said correctly. "Some fun ways to give your child many opportunities to hear sounds said correctly are to play with a ball together or make a list of things you like to do or people you love," says Dougherty.
What to Play
It doesn't really matter what you play with as long as you're talking while you play. "I generally pull out several baby toys and see what she gravitates toward," says Lisa Lewis, a mother of two, including 11-month-old Charlotte,from Alameda, Calif. "I am there to help her figure out how the toys work, but usually I let her explore on her own and provide lots of verbal encouragement."
Stuffed animals, trains, puzzles they all have "talk-ability." A lion can roar and run. They have soft fur. Trains can go fast and slow. They can go through a tunnel and under a bridge. You put puzzle pieces in and take them out. Puzzles come in all types of categories such as animals, vehicles, fruits and vegetables. In just a short time, you can encourage various language skills including following directions, basic concepts, categorization and vocabulary development. That's a lot of language from one small toy box! "Talking can and should be part of everything you and your child do together," says Dougherty.
Books, books, books. You can never have enough books. Reading is a great time to be together andenrich language skills and literacy skills. Research suggests that exposing infants and toddlers to rhyming and sound play with words is critical for reading and writing success. Believe it or not, when your toddler asks you to read that same Dr. Seuss book again and again, you may actually be helping her be a better reader.
When to Play
Children love to play. Play is what children do best. So anytime is a great time to play. Whether it be on the rug at home or while sitting in the waiting room for a doctor appointment, it's always the right time to play. Be prepared. Bring along favorite toys when you travel. Toddlers love repetition, so if she loved "talking teddy" last week, she will love it this week.
I know what you're thinking: When do I have the time to play? In our busy lives as parents, finding the time to play is the hardest part. If we get our children to sit with a toy for just five minutes, that gives us five minutes to empty the dishwasher or throw in a load of laundry. All I can say is try to find the time. Five minutes on the floor engaged in play with your toddler can significantly enhance her language skills. It's all about fun, so don't sit down when you're rushed or frustrated because you "have to play" and the laundry isn't done. Enjoy the time with your toddler and worry about the laundry later.
And don't go out and buy new toys just because they were mentioned here. Look through your toddler's toy box and pull out a toy. It could be a favorite toy or a soon-to-be favorite toy. It's really not about the toy. It's about you playing and talking with your toddler. So get a toy and say, "Let's play," and soon you will see the smile on your toddler's face and hear the sound of her sweet words!
next: Stages of Social-Emotional Development In Children and Teenagers.
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