TAKE-HOME STRATEGY

Encouraging Communicating and Speaking at Home

Aerial view of child-sized shoes beside backpack

What It's About

Communicating and Speaking is our ability to understand what is being said and using language, signs, or gestures to share ideas and connect with others. When you respond to your child’s attempts to communicate, you show them what they have to say is important. This encourages them to continue communicating with you.

You can support this skill by helping your child express their ideas and needs and by giving them your attention, showing care, and responding with words.

ACTIVITY CHOICE BOARD

Here are some ways you can support Communicating and Speaking at home. Keep in mind that you can change these activities to work for you and your child based on their current abilities, interests, and what you have available at home. Make sure to use safe materials and watch your child closely during these activities.

Take a look, and try out your favorites!

Tell Me More

As you read with your child, ask questions about what is happening in the story. When your child responds, say “tell me more.” If your child points without words, tell them more by describing that part of the story.

Picture Walks

Take a picture walk when looking at books, magazines, or even store ads. Ask your child to talk about or show you interesting pictures on the pages. For example, “You pointed at the flower. It is a big, red rose!”

Puppet Play

Make puppets out of socks, paper bags, or even sticks. Let your child help decorate the puppet. Once you have your puppets, use silly voices to have them to talk to each other or act out favorite stories.

Pause and Complete

Sing fingerplays and nursery rhymes with children. Pause to give your child a chance to respond with a word or gesture (e.g., “the doors on the bus go open and...shut!”). Or, encourage your child to repeat after you.

Talking Stick

Create or choose an item to use as a “talking stick,” which is from a Native American tradition. Pass it around to give everyone a turn to share during a meal or a family discussion.

Describe It

Choose an object that is new and interesting. Describe the object in great detail. Talk about how it looks, feels, smells, and any features you see. Encourage your child to describe what they feel or see.

Quick Cues for Supporting Communicating and Speaking

Some things you might do or say to help strengthen your child’s Communicating and Speaking skills

Say What You or Others are Doing

Describe in detail what you, your child, or others are doing.

This can sound like:

“We are washing your hands. Wash, wash, wash! Now, let’s dry them.”

“I am stirring this pot of water. I go round and round when I stir.”

“You were running fast, then you jumped!” 

Repeat and Add On

After your child is finished talking, repeat what they said and add more details to their comments.

This can sound like:

Child: “Duhduh!”
Adult: “Yes, that’s a dog! Hello, dog!”

Child: “More.”
Adult: “More? You want more water. You must be thirsty if you want more to drink!”

Child: “I put on my shirt.”
Adult: “You put on your dark blue shirt with sparkles.”

Support Back-and-Forth Exchanges

Prompt children to interact with you by using words or gestures. Engage with multiple conversational turns.

This can sound like:

Caregiver: “What is happening with your car?”
Child: (makes a vroom noise)
Caregiver: “Oh! Is your car going fast?”
Child: (nods and bumps the toy car into another one) “Boom!”
Caregiver: “Oh, did your car have a crash? I hope everyone is safe! How can we help the cars get fixed?”

Our Book Recommendations for Communicating and Speaking

Engaging stories that support children's Communicating and Speaking skills
Where's Lenny book page

Where's Lenny?

Written and illustrated by Ken Wilson-Max, this story follows a boy named Lenny playing hide-and-seek and is great for discussing the actions of characters.

Have fun with it:
Play hide-and-seek with your child. When you find them, comment on where they decided to hide.

Little Owl's Snow book cover

Little Owl's Snow

Written and illustrated by Divya Srinivasan, this story is about an owl’s first experience with snow as they talk to the creatures of the forest.

Have fun with it:
Remind your child about the first time they did something when they were younger. Show pictures if possible, and encourage them to help you tell the story.

More Take-Home Strategies

We’re creating a library of resources like these so families and other caregivers can quickly and easily promote children’s development at home. Be sure to see all the strategies we have available!

visit our take-home strategy library