Does your child make errors on speech sounds? Do family and friends have trouble understanding what they are saying? Do they get frustrated when they aren’t understood? Are you looking to help your child work on Speech over the summer?
Let’s explore 5 Fun things to do to build those Speech skills!
1. Bubbles, horns and whistles- are all great for oral motor practice. Build mouth strength, control and coordination in a fun way! Your local dollar store will have a variety of fun choice that come in multi-packs so the whole family can join in! Take it outside and have parades or just have fun blowing and popping bubbles! Reminder the best bubbles are the ones they are blowing. An extra tips, popsicles and ice cream cones are also fun ways to work on oral motor skills-get those little tongues moving with control!!
2. Books and Reading- have your child repeat words and phrases form their favorite story. Repetitive books are great especially if you want to focus on certain sound or words! Some of my favorites for speech practice include “Moo, Baa, La La La” by Sandra Boynton, “Old McDino had a Farm” by Becky Davies, and “Hi Pizza Man!” by Virginia Walter, but any book that your child loves will work! Bonus tip, if your child is working on a certain sound find a book that has a lot of words containing that sound, listening to it will provide auditory bombardment (hearing the sound a bunch of times) and then they can practice it!
3. Nursery Rhymes and Songs- practice those simple words in a fun way! Pause to give your child time to say the word on their own! There are so many songs and rhymes to use while practicing speech- Old McDonald, Wheels on the Bus, the Itsy Bitsy Spider, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, 5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, and the ABC’s! Teach them your childhood favorites and give them lots of opportunities to practice speech.
4. Verbal Routines -say the same thing each time you play something. Does your child like playing with cars? Practice “Ready, Set, Go” as the car goes down ramps or as you push it back and forth or set up a tower and use “crash” as the car knocks it down. This can also be done with balls, on the slide, or as they jump into a pool! Counting is another great way to practice words- count as you go upstairs or downstairs, count houses or rocks as you take a walk, or count pushes on a swing. There are so many opportunities to practice sounds and words!
5. Narrate Life- Talk about routines as you are doing them. “We are going outside!”, “Let’s make lunch.”, “Yum, we are eating goldfish crackers”, “Let’s take a bath.”, “Washing your toes.” -the possibilities are endless! You can also comment on what your child says by using modifiers. For example, if they say “ball” respond “Oh you want the big ball” or “Here’s the blue ball”. The more you model, the more they learn!
Bonus Tip- Have Fun!! Playing and spending time together is the best way to practice Speech!
Want to connect? I would love to help you find more games to Laugh and Learn Through Play with your family! https://www.facebook.com/TinaWilliamsSimplyFunIndependentConsultant/
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