What methods do children use to learn how to communicate? Is language something that can be nurtured and how does it happen? Humans are hardwired to communicate, and spoken language is a natural process. All youngsters can learn to speak unless they have a neurological or hearing problem.
But how can we cultivate the
communication skills that are essential for a child to become a successful
talker if they do not talk by an 'anticipated' milestone or defined age? Keep
reading this article to find out various ways you can encourage speech and
language development in kids:
1. Creating a safe
space for talking: Have you ever noticed how difficult it is to
hold a meaningful conversation at a crowded and noisy pub or restaurant? You
try your best to understand what that person is saying but you end up getting
distracted. Imagine that the person you're conversing with is speaking a
foreign language, and you're desperately trying to listen and concentrate, but
nothing is making sense. This is exactly what happens when we try to converse
with babies. Try creating a calm and quiet environment as calmness helps with
better concentration and promotes effective listening.
2. Try interacting with
them during games: Try talking to them while playing games. You
could learn new words together, take turns and try saying new words. Try the
OWL method when playing with your child: Observe, Wait, Listen. Face-to-face
play and connection are essential, and while spoken language may not be
present, other forms of communication, such as eye contact and facial
expressions, are equally crucial to respond to.
3. Play interactive
games: You could play games like a ball, puzzles, have sing-alongs, and play with soft toys. Reciprocal
play, such as passing a ball from one hand to the other, trains your child to
take turns. Turn-taking is a learned skill, and while it may appear to be
simple, the benefits of maintaining eye contact, forming relationships, and
waiting for their turn all provide the groundwork for taking turns in talks as well!
4. Read books together: Books are
an obvious choice, but choose basic books with clear images on each page
because newborns struggle to filter out too many visual distractions, which can
hinder language progress. The finest photographs are those with basic
background, and those that closely resemble real-life images are even better!
5. Miko: Playing with dolls has a lot of advantages; children need to
hear words over and over again, so instead of being prescriptive, make it fun
by encouraging them to play while also developing their language. Making the
doll the focal point of the exercise relieves your child of any strain while
teaching verbs and action words. Miko helps you with just that, it is a
kid-friendly robot that can converse in over 8 different languages and can do
many other activities as well.
6. Encourage
imaginative play: At this period, imaginative play is coming
into its own, and small world play can be a great method to encourage speech
development. Children can act out events by playing with characters, animals,
and vehicles, and an on-hand adult, friend, or sibling can be the perfect
'teacher' to aid them with their ever-growing language skills. Toys like
dollhouses, kitchen sets, softs toys also help them in role-playing.
These were a few ways
you could encourage speech development in your kids but always remember, this
isn't some race and every child is different so give your kid some time and be
patient because it is a big change for everyone. You can also buy some of the
above-mentioned toys from FunCorp. FunCorp is the largest online toy shop where you can find all kinds
of toys at amazing discounts. Visit their official website to learn more about
their products!
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