Top 10 Tips to Facilitate Language Development
A: Click here for more ideas on how to support your child’s language development.
A: Join in and play with your child. Follow your child’s lead and play as if you are your child. It is important to be child-led and use actions, songs and playful sounds to make the activity fun and engaging.
A: For those who aren’t using words, have fun playing around with meaningful sounds with toys, everyday routines or during play. For example, when you are playing games such as ‘Peekaboo’, you can make playful sounds such as ‘boo’. When playing with toy vehicles, you can make different sounds such as cars – ‘beep beep’, ‘vroom’.
A: Repeat what your child says then add one word or a new vocabulary. For example, If your child says : “car”, you can say “Red car”, or “ The car is fast”.
A: You can keep desired items out of reach or out of sight so your child has to ask for it. This could be putting snacks on a higher shelf, in a tightly closed container or a ziploc bag. This way, your child can still see the desired items but unable to obtain them on their own. Hence, having the opportunity to ask you for help.
A: Young children often make mistakes. Show them that you understand, rather than asking them to repeat words correctly. Repeat the word or sentence again so that your child can hear the correct way.
A: Make sure you say your child’s name first to get their attention. Give them enough time to process the questions. If your child is still not answering, simplify the question or use different words.
A: It is important for your child to be able to see your face and all the non-verbal cues such as facial expressions, pointing and body language for them to learn language.
A: Start by offering a favourite item and something you know your child does not like. Ask them to choose by saying ‘Do you want orange or lemon?’. Wait for them to reach out. As soon as they understand the idea, you can offer two favourite items.
A: Talk about what you are doing, seeing, smelling and hearing when you are interacting with them. For example,’I am building a tower’, ‘I’m making pizza’.