#5 Ask about his day.

It sounds so obvious... Ask about your child's day.

But how many times do you find yourself asking the babysitter how much the kids ate, if they took a bath, or if there were any problems? Or when you pick them up from Grandma's, do you ask HER if they behaved and what they did together?

Those are the types of things your child could be telling you. Ask your child! It will improve his expressive language skills and build confidence in his ability to communicate when he's able to answer your questions. Yes, questions (plural)! Not just one general question: How was your day at Grandma's? Besides being too general, it could also leave you with a one-word answer. Try using open-ended questions that will lead to conversation.

What was the best thing you did at Grandma's?
What was the funniest thing Grandpa said?
How did you help Daddy today?
What did you eat for lunch?
Who else did you see today?
Where did you get to go to today?
Who did you play with at recess?
What did Aunt Anita do when ____?
What did your teacher say when _____?
What's one thing you learned at school today?
Why are you you sad?
How did that make you feel?
What did you do with your friends today?
Where did you get your bracelet? (refer to photo above)

Ask one question at a time, and give him your undivided attention when he responds. Follow up with a related question and keep the conversation going. Back and forth, taking turns talking about his day.

You'll learn alot about your child, from what HE says. And if he's unable to give you enough information, given lots of prompting and prodding, then go ahead and get the information you need from his teacher or Grandma or whoever. But start with your child.

#4 Opposites

In working with young children who have Language Impairments, my goal is to introduce as many new words as I can. So many of them communicate in short, choppy, ungrammatical sentences without any descriptive words. My job is to teach vocabulary and semantics.

Semantics?

se-man-tics
Definition: the meaning of words

Sometimes this is best done by using opposites. If a child already knows a word that can help you teach another word, use that to your advantage. Just first be sure he understands the meaning of opposites. It alone can be a hard concept for a child to understand. But when he grasps it, you can teach so many descriptive words.

If a child knows "old" but doesn't know "young," use what he knows to teach him what he doesn't know. Show a picture of an old person and a picture of a young person and talk about the differences between "old" and "young." An old person might have white hair and wrinkles. She might might walk slowly with a cane. A young person might be a kid who runs and plays. Don't forget to ask questions that ensure understanding like "Are you young or old?" and "Is grandpa young or old?"

Show pictures of lots of people and have your child use the words "young" and "old" in sentences to describe people. If you need to get him started, use a leading statement like "Baby Carleah is _____." It will seem redundant to you, but that's what will help him learn. "Grandpa Huber is _____." "The baby chick is _____." After getting him going, let him start and complete his sentences on his own. He'll feel a sense of pride and you'll praise him for showing you he knows and can use a new word.

Teach as many opposites as you can.

hot/cold
night/day
wet/dry
big/small
heavy/light
bright/dark
loud/quiet
hard/soft
fast/slow
up/down
happy/sad
long/short
sick/healthy
in/out
rich/poor
sharp/dull
over/under

* This post is written in honor of my Grandma Huber, who recently celebrated her 98th birthday and may appear "old" but still acts "young".

#3 Tell Me 3 Things...

Categorization is very important cognitive/linguistic skill for children to understand. It helps them to see how things go together. How they are alike and how they are different. Naming and giving examples of "crunchy things" often puts meaning to such descriptive words for young children.

I love playing categorization games with my little boy. It's something fun we can do anywhere. In the car on the way to church. In the bathtub. While we're waiting for a parade to start.

Ask your child to tell you 3 things that belong together and tell him the category.

TELL ME 3 THINGS...
-That are red.
-That you can sit on.
-That you can read.
-That you eat at breakfast.
-That you can draw with.
-That you wear on your feet.
-That are soft.
-That are stinky.
-That are hot.
-That's crunchy.
-That live in water.
-That can fly.
-That have fur.
-That you wear when it's cold.
-That you can do when it's hot.
-That you can do with your grandma.
-That you see at a birthday party.
-That live on a farm (refer to picture above).

As a variation, name a category (or better yet, let your child name a category) and take turns naming something that belongs in that category. For example, on the way to Uncle Randy's farm, say "Let's take turns saying different animals on a farm. You can go first." He might say, "Cow." You say "Horse." He says "Duck." Keep it going as long as you can. Whoever runs out of farm animals first loses.