{"id":2505,"date":"2016-08-18T17:50:46","date_gmt":"2016-08-18T21:50:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/?page_id=2505"},"modified":"2026-02-15T16:36:08","modified_gmt":"2026-02-15T21:36:08","slug":"colors-shapes-people-and-actions","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/colors-shapes-people-and-actions\/","title":{"rendered":"Colors, Shapes, People, And Actions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The method for teaching your child to label\u00a0colors, shapes,\u00a0familiar people\u00a0and\u00a0action words, is just the same as what we described for teaching the words for animals and objects. The only difference is that you\u2019ll teach these words along <strong>with other words of the same type or category<\/strong>. And you\u2019ll teach each of these categories as a separate teaching program.<\/p>\n<p>You will use the exact same materials to teach expressive colors, shapes, familiar people and action words, that you used to teach your child receptive colors, shapes, familiar people and action words. \u00a0And, you will teach these words in exactly the same way that we have just described above when we talked about teaching Expressive Labels. \u00a0Here are the instructions as well as the item lists for each of these teaching programs.<\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Expressive Colors: (&#8220;What Color Is This?&#8221;)<\/b><\/h2>\n<table style=\"background-color: #a0ded1;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<ul>\n<li>Sit knee-to-knee with your child.<\/li>\n<li>Hold up one\u00a0color card\u00a0in front of your child.<\/li>\n<li>Give a clear and simple instruction. For example, \u201cWhat color is this?\u201d or, &#8220;What color?&#8221; (Note that you do not need to use a verbal instruction on every trial.)<\/li>\n<li>Prompt, as needed, using a verbal imitation prompt. \u00a0You can model the full word, part of the word, or just the first sound.<\/li>\n<li>Reinforce your child for labeling\u00a0the color.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2><b>Expressive Shapes: (\u201cWhat Shape Is This?\u201d)<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/138.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1420 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/138-86x300.png\" alt=\"138\" width=\"104\" height=\"363\" srcset=\"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/138-86x300.png 86w, https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/07\/138.png 138w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 104px) 100vw, 104px\" \/><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<table style=\"background-color: #a0ded1;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<ul>\n<li>Sit knee-to-knee with your child.<\/li>\n<li>Hold up one shape\u00a0card\u00a0in front of your child.<\/li>\n<li>Give a clear and simple instruction. For example, \u201cWhat shape\u00a0is this?\u201d or, &#8220;What shape?&#8221;\u00a0(Note that you do not need to use a verbal instruction on every trial.)<\/li>\n<li>Prompt, as needed, using a verbal imitation prompt. \u00a0You can model the full word, part of the word, or just the first sound.<\/li>\n<li>Reinforce your child for labeling\u00a0the shape.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>The little boy in the following clip already knows how to label circles, triangles and squares, although he has difficulty saying the word \u2018square\u2019 correctly. You can tell that the new shape he is learning is \u2018oval\u2019 because this is the only one being prompted. \u00a0You will also note that the teacher does not ask him, \u201cWhat shape is this?\u201d on every trial. \u00a0In fact, she only does this on the first trial. \u00a0After that, she just holds up the shape card and looks at him expectantly. Then, if she is going to give him a prompt, she does so right away, without asking him a question.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Preston-27 1920x1080\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/201764827?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In the next clip the same little boy is now working on adding another a new shape, \u2018rectangle\u2019. \u00a0He\u2019s doing well with his recently acquired shape, oval, but not surprisingly, begins to confuse triangle and rectangle. \u00a0This is quite common. \u00a0Watch how the teacher responds to his errors. \u00a0She says something neutral, like \u201cGood try,\u201d or \u201cTry again,\u201d or \u201cClose,\u201d and then immediately re-presents the same shape and prompts the next trial to be sure he\u2019ll get it right, fading the prompts gradually over time.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Preston-28 1920x1080\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/201764872?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"text-align: justify;\"><b>Familiar People\u00a0\u2013 Expressive\u00a0(\u201cWho Is It?\u201d or \u201cWho Is This?\u201d)<\/b><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Include the names of:\u00a0<\/span>Parents, siblings, grandparents, close family friends and your child\u2019s name too. \u00a0Also include any teachers or child-care workers and peers.<\/p>\n<table style=\"background-color: #a0ded1;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<ul>\n<li>Sit knee-to-knee with your child.<\/li>\n<li>Hold up one picture of a\u00a0familiar\u00a0person\u00a0in front of your child.<\/li>\n<li>Give a clear and simple instruction. For example, \u201cWho is it?\u201d or, &#8220;Who is this?&#8221;\u00a0(Note that you do not need to use a verbal instruction on every trial.)<\/li>\n<li>Prompt, as needed, using a verbal imitation prompt. \u00a0You can model the person&#8217;s first\u00a0name, part of the name, or just the first sound.<\/li>\n<li>Reinforce your child for labeling\u00a0the\u00a0name of the person in the picture.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2><b>Action Words\u2013 Expressive\u00a0(\u201cWhat Is He\/She Doing?\u201d)<\/b><\/h2>\n<table style=\"background-color: #a0ded1; width: 424px; height: 186px;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 84px;\">Eating<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 87px;\">Drinking<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 93px;\">Sleeping<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 91px;\">Reading<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 84px;\">Cooking<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 87px;\">Playing<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 93px;\">Brushing<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 91px;\">Running<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 84px;\">Walking<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 87px;\">Jumping<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 93px;\">Riding<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 91px;\">Sitting<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 84px;\">Hugging<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 87px;\">Kissing<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 93px;\">Smelling<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 91px;\">Looking<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 84px;\">Holding<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 87px;\">Washing<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 93px;\">Throwing<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: center; width: 91px;\">Catching<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<table style=\"background-color: #a0ded1;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<ul>\n<li>Sit knee-to-knee with your child.<\/li>\n<li>Hold up one action\u00a0card\u00a0in front of your child.<\/li>\n<li>Give a clear and simple instruction. For example, \u201cWhat is he\/she doing?&#8221;<\/li>\n<li>Prompt, as needed, using a verbal imitation prompt. \u00a0You can model the full word, part of the word, or just the first sound.<\/li>\n<li>Reinforce your child for labeling\u00a0the action<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2><b>Some General Rules<\/b><\/h2>\n<table style=\"background-color: #a0ded1;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Here are some general rules to keep in mind when working on expressive language skills:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Begin with three items each from the lists of receptive colors, shapes, familiar people and action words.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Present them one at a time in an order that is not predictable, with no pattern.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prompt using verbal imitation (that is, you demonstrate the word). Give as much help as your child needs to be successful.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fade your prompts over time. One way to fade verbal imitation prompts is to use a time delay. Give the child a few seconds to respond before you give the prompt, and see if he can do it without the prompt. Another way is to offer only a partial model, for example, only the first syllable of the word or even just the first sound of the word. \u00a0(For example, &#8220;rectangle,&#8221; &#8220;rec,&#8221; or &#8220;rrrr&#8221;)<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Reinforce independent responses with the most enthusiasm or the most highly preferred reinforcers.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After the first three items in each teaching program are mastered, add new items one at a time, keeping track of how many times your child is responding correctly with new items, until he is consistently responding correctly on unprompted trials at least 8 out of every 10 trials.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your child makes mistakes on any mastered items, add in extra practice for those items.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once your child has learned to label a few new words, add at least a few different pictures or examples for each word. Add new pictures\/examples of each word, until your child can label new examples the very first time she sees them. With Familiar People, make sure to include several pictures of each person, wearing different clothes, taken in different places, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Be sure to practice all previously mastered items. If you can, encourage your child to label items in the natural environment (e.g., playground, grocery store, meals, etc.).\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When your child has mastered at least 10 new words in a particular teaching program, try laying them out in rows and seeing how quickly your child can label them. Be sure to change the order of pictures each time.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/expressive-body-parts\/\">Next: Expressive Body Parts<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-summary\">\nThe method for teaching your child to label\u00a0colors, shapes,\u00a0familiar people\u00a0and\u00a0action words, is just the same as what we described for&hellip;\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/colors-shapes-people-and-actions\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &ldquo;Colors, Shapes, People, And Actions&rdquo;<\/span>&hellip;<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2505","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2505","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2505"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2505\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10414,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2505\/revisions\/10414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2505"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}