Beginning To Teach Language
Up until now we have been teaching basic nonverbal communication. However, as you move through your day with your child there will be many chances to teach language in a fun way. When we talk about teaching language, we are talking about both speaking and understanding language. We will be giving you lots of ideas for how to teach your child to understand words when he hears them spoken by others. We will also give you ideas for teaching your child to begin to say words.
Very young children like repetition and learn better with repetition. You might want to make a list of simple words to start with (not too many – maybe start with just 5-10 words). Then use these words as many times as you can throughout the day. Of course, you will still use many other words during the day, but we suggest that you choose 5-10 words to focus on. By keeping them in mind, you will be able to find more chances to use them in ways that will help your child learn them.
Talking about what the child is doing can be very helpful in teaching language. For example, you might say, “We’re eating! Yum! Eating Cheerios.”
But, remember, the child must be paying attention to you for this to work well. If you’re just commenting on what he’s doing when he’s not paying attention, he most likely won’t learn the new words you want to teach him. In fact, he may not even hear them at all! He might even learn to tune you out! So, make sure you have his attention first. It usually helps to place yourself in front of your child and close to his eye-level. Be sure to use very simple language and try not to talk too much!
Make sure you have your child’s attention before you talk to him. It usually helps to position yourself in front of the child and lower yourself to his level. Also, be sure to use very simple language and try not to talk too much!
Using Language as the On-Off Switch for Fun
Remember how we said you could use eye contact as the on-off switch for a fun activity? You can do this with language too. Here are a couple of examples.
Suppose your child LOVES when you pick him up and swing him around. To teach him to understand the word “Up” you can say, “Up?!” in a happy, questioning tone of voice. Then right away use a physical prompt to raise his arms in a gesture that means, “Pick me up” or “I want up.” Then immediately pick him up and swing him around, as the mom does in the next video clip.
Repeat this several times in a row. Then on the third or fourth try, say, “Up?!” just as you did before. But this time, don’t use a physical prompt to raise his arms. Instead, just wait for a moment and look expectantly at your child. If he raises his arms at all, even only slightly, pick him right up. Swing him around again, saying something like, “Up, up and AWAY!!!”
In this way his “up” gesture is the “on switch” for the fun! If he doesn’t raise his arms, you just prompt him again and then continue on as before for a few more tries.
If he does raise his arms, great! If not, go back to a physical prompt. Delay your prompts from time to time until you see that he is beginning to do it by himself. If you do this every day for even a few days, your child may soon learn to raise his arms when you say, “Up?”
If you think your child is ready, you can start teaching him to say some simple words. Use this idea of prompting and then reinforcing the words he says by immediately doing whatever he has asked of you. This should really show your child how powerful his words are!
Here’s an example: if your child likes to be tickled, you can teach him a little routine. Say, “I’m going to tickle, tickle, TICKLE you!” Each time you say the word tickle, move your fingers in a tickling motion. Move your hands closer to him each time you say the word. Also say the word a little louder each time, drawing out the suspense. The third time you say the word tickle is when you actually tickle him, as the teacher does in the next video clip.
Make it as much fun and as suspenseful as you can! Once your child becomes familiar with this routine, you will probably see that he is paying special attention to you just before the third time you say the word tickle. When you see him doing this, try to pause and look at him expectantly. See if he fills in the blank and tries to say the word himself! If he does, give him the best tickle ever! Let’s watch that clip one more time. Notice how the little girl looks right at her teacher just before the third “tickle.” And she even tries to say the word, making the “T” sound!
Even if your child does not try to say the word “tickle” you can try to prompt him by giving him a model, saying “tickle”. You can also prompt by giving him just the first sound of the word you would like him to say; in this case, “t.” If he doesn’t follow your prompt, just pause for a moment, and then start the routine over. Keep doing this fun routine. Try to check now and then to see if your child will fill in the blank. You can check by pausing before you say the word, “tickle” on the third try. Even if he isn’t quite ready to begin saying words, you are still teaching him that interacting with you is a whole lot of fun. Remember, that’s the most important lesson of all.
Leave Off the Endings of Familiar Phrases and Songs
What we just showed you, where you leave off a word and see if your child fills in the blank, is sometimes called the CLOZE procedure. You simply teach the child a routine and once he becomes familiar with it, you leave off a word or two. For example, during dressing, you could say, “Sock is on. Sock is off,” while you’re actually putting on and taking off your child’s socks. Then you could say, “Shoe is on. Shoe is off,” when you are putting on or taking off your child’s shoes. Then, just afterwards, you could use a hat to practice these words.
A hat, especially a cap, can be easily and quickly put on and taken off repeatedly. Do this a couple of times, saying, “Hat is on. Now, hat is off!” Tickle the child or do something else that he enjoys, just after you say the words “on” and “off.” Do this routine several times in a row, quickly. Then as you are taking the hat off for the third or fourth time, say with a questioning tone of voice “Now the hat is ______.” Pause while you’re taking the hat off. If you think it would be easier for your child, you can just use the words “on” and “off.” Look how much the child in the next clip is enjoying the game.
If the child tries to say “off,” give him another tickle, along with enthusiastic praise. Repeat a few more times with the hat or with other pieces of clothing. Reward any attempt he makes to say, “off” with praise and a tickle. Of course, the tickle is just an example. Some children love to be tickled and others do not. You should reward your child with whatever he enjoys.
You can practice this method with very simple concepts such as “in” and “out,” or “up” and “down.” Watch how this child’s teacher is beginning to work on establishing a routine for working on the words “up” and “down.” He really likes it when his teacher builds up a tower with the ice cream cone toy and then knocks it down. He doesn’t yet say the words clearly or by himself, but he’s paying very close attention to the words and the game. Soon his teacher will be able to use the CLOZE procedure to encourage him to make an approximation of the word “down.”
Songs work very well with this CLOZE procedure too. If there’s a song your child likes and has heard many times, you can leave off the final word, or a familiar word in the middle. Then reward your child for filling it in. If he doesn’t fill it in, wait 3 or 4 seconds to make sure he’s not going to try, and then fill it in yourself as in the next video.