Speech and Language Tips
If your child is struggling with any area of Speech, Language or Communication, it can be really difficult to know how to support them. Here are some top tips that we use in school that can be easily implemented at home:
- Use speech, signs and gestures to communicate with your child
- Reduce longer sentences into smaller chunks to support processing and understanding
- Model language by commenting on things with one or two words
- Use consistent phrases for routines
- Read picture books and use simple, repetitive language to describe the pictures
- Develop language through songs, rhymes and rhythms
- Match plus 1 - adult adds one more word onto what a child is saying. For example, a child says "duck", the adult says "yellow duck"
- Play, play, play! This can provide wonderful opportunities for language and commentary from an adult
- Mirroring - copy your child's actions and sounds.
Slough SALT gave us the below visual of a communication tree. The basic needs of the child are at the bottom, including sensory needs. Play, turn-taking, listening and attention are the roots of the tree. These are the key foundations that need developing before anything else, including initial sounds. Understanding is the trunk and leads to speech sounds. I thought it was a great way to demonstrate how the foundations need to be secure because a child can start producing speech sounds.
If you would like any more information, or are concerned about your child's speech and language development, please speak to Miss Austin.
