Speech and Language Development Activities
Birth to 2 Years
- Repeat simple sounds like “ma,” “da,” and “ba” to your baby, encouraging them to imitate you.
- When your baby makes sounds, engage with them by responding and imitating what they say, creating a pretend conversation.
- Respond to your baby’s laughter or facial expressions by mimicking their actions.
- Encourage your baby to copy your actions, such as clapping hands or playing peek-a-boo.
- Talk to your baby while doing daily activities like bathing, feeding, or dressing them, narrating what you are doing or where you’re going.
- Point out different colors and shapes.
- Count items you see, introducing numbers early.
- Use gestures like waving or pointing when communicating.
- Introduce animal sounds by connecting the sounds with their animals, such as, “The dog says woof-woof.”
- Expand on your baby’s words. If they say “Mama,” you might say, “Here’s Mama. Mama loves you. Where is baby? Here’s baby.”
- Read books with large, colorful pictures to your baby. Discuss the images and ask questions like, “What’s this?” to encourage pointing and naming.
2 to 4 Years
- Speak clearly to your child, providing good speech models.
- Rephrase what your child says to show understanding, and build on their statements. For example, if they say, “Want juice,” you can say, “You want juice? I have apple juice. Do you want apple juice?”
- Occasionally use baby talk, but always pair it with the adult version. For instance, “It’s time for din-din. We’re having dinner now.”
- Create picture categories (e.g., things to ride on, eat, or play with). Mix and match pictures to create silly combinations and talk about how to fix them.
- Help your child understand yes/no questions by playing a game where you ask questions like, “Are you Marty?” or “Can a pig fly?”
- Ask questions that offer choices, such as, “Do you want an apple or an orange?” or “Do you want to wear the red shirt or the blue shirt?”
- Teach new vocabulary by naming body parts and explaining what each one does. For example, “This is my nose. I use it to smell flowers.”
- Sing songs and recite nursery rhymes to help your child learn the rhythm of speech.
- Play with familiar objects, asking your child to name them and explain how they are used, such as, “This is my ball. I bounce it.”
- Show pictures of familiar people and places, discussing who they are and what they do. You can even make up new stories together.
4 to 6 Years
- Give your child your full attention when they speak.
- Get their attention before talking to ensure they’re focused.
- Praise your child when they share information, showing you understand what they’re saying.
- Pause during conversations, giving them time to respond.
- Introduce new words by using them in context and explaining their meaning. For instance, “I’m going to drive the vehicle to the store because I’m too tired to walk.”
- Use location words like “first,” “middle,” “last,” “right,” and “left,” as well as opposites like “up/down” and “on/off.”
- Play guessing games, giving them clues to figure out objects. For example, “It’s something we use to sweep the floor,” and let them guess “broom.”
- Teach your child to categorize items and identify things that don’t belong. For example, “A shoe doesn’t go with an apple and orange because you can’t eat it.”
- Practice following multi-step instructions. For instance, “Go to your room and bring me your book.”
- Encourage your child to give directions, like telling you how to build a tower with blocks, then follow their guidance.
- Engage in pretend play by switching roles. Let them be the parent while you play the child, discussing rooms and objects in the house.
- Watch movies or shows together and talk about the story. Ask questions about what might happen next or how characters are feeling. You can also act out scenes together or come up with alternative endings.
- Use everyday tasks as opportunities to develop language. In the kitchen, talk about colors, textures, and tastes of different foods, and where to place items. For example, “Put the napkin on the table, in your lap, or under the spoon.”
- Take your child grocery shopping and discuss what you’ll buy, how much you need, and how you’ll prepare the items. Talk about shapes, sizes, and weights.
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