Children all have their different ways and timeline of developing certain skills. When it feels like your child is staying at the back of the pack when it comes to their verbal skills, it shouldn't really cause you to panic. Be patient with them and provide them with ways they can eventually develop that skill without them feeling pressured. Playing is an efficient approach you can do to help them develop their ability to talk; they get to have fun while expanding their vocabulary and getting exposed to communicating with other people. There are many play ideas you can start with--here are a few you can try.
Creativity and exploration go hand in hand for your kids to be able to express themselves and communicate. This is why open-ended games are so important for them to explore. This is a type of play that pushes them to be creative and use their imagination, making use of materials that are open to anyone's own interpretation. Unconventional toys like the ones from Moluk, Wobbel, and Grapat (you can check more about their toys on our site) are great options you can try to get them to play and learn.
As a parent, you know that they need your assistance with a lot of things. This is also true with playing and expressing their feelings while engaged in that activity. Sit with them, guide their actions, and put a label on everything that they do. For instance, if they're playing with blocks, you can tell them that a piece of block's shape is square and that its color is red. Make them repeat the words you say. Make sure that you have an excited and even silly tone when talking (they love that!). This is also a chance for you to bond with them!
This doesn't just apply to the books you have during bedtime. Reading and speaking practices can be applied while playing too. Let's say they're playing with an animal bingo. When you're explaining the rules, you can read the instructions while showing it to them. You can point out the words in the flashcards and make them repeat and spell the words.
Children love physical activities. They need that release for their energy. Take advantage of that by doing some simple exercises with them. Put a spin on it by labeling all your actions and as usual, making them repeat the words that you say. Like if you're doing stretching with your arms, you can repeat the word "arm" over and over again while doing circular stretching motions with your arms. You can also try doing animal actions like bunny hops or turtle crawls while repeating simple sentences that describe what you're doing.
What activities will you try with your kids? Share with us your experiences!
