3. Developing your child's vocabulary

• Put a few items in a bag such as everyday objects e.g. brush, cup, spoon, ball / toy food / toy vehicles / toy animals / toy furniture. 
•  Take turns to pull an item from the bag and name it. 
•  Encourage your child to name it by saying “it’s a ….” and then pause to see if they can fill in the word.
• If your child is struggling to say or copy words you could:
               o Try using pictures in this activity e.g. of the different things in the bag. 
               o Cut the pictures up and have 2-3 out at a time and see if your child can look at/touch/point to the picture that corresponds to the object they have taken out the bag.
               o Alternatively, you could teach them the Makaton signs for the items.
• Click here  to see a video showing a version of this game.

•  e.g. Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes; Old MacDonald.
• If the songs have actions support your child to try doing the actions.
• If you are singing about animals in Old MacDonald then you could always have a picture or toy of that particular animal out for them to look at when you are singing about that animal. You could offer them choices of what animal to sing about next.
  

• Take turns to take a puzzle piece, name it and put it in the right place. 
•  You could keep control of the pieces and offer your child a choice between two puzzle pieces at a time e.g. “boat or helicopter?”.
• Your child may indicate their choice either by saying the item they want or by looking at/pointing to/reaching for a puzzle piece.
• In whatever way they make their choice accept it
• Give them what they are asking for
• At the same time name the item for them again.

• Gather two sets of identical objects (e.g. toys, food, animals etc.) – maybe four items in each set.
• Put one set in a bag and one on a table.
• Take turns to pull one out from the bag, name it and then match it with the one on the table.
• You can try the same thing but instead match objects to pictures of those objects laid out on the table.
• You could also try picture to picture matching e.g. in a simple ‘lotto’ game.
• Click here  to watch a video showing picture to picture matching.

• This toy is good for teaching the names of body parts.
• Take turns to choose a body part piece, name it and stick it into the potato.
• You could keep control of the pieces and offer your child a choice between two body parts e.g. “arm or leg?”. 
•  If your child has difficulty naming a body part could you model another way they could communicate which part they want e.g. by pointing to the body part on you or by pointing to a picture or symbol of the body part.
• Click here  to watch a video about the different ways in which you can use the Mr Potato Head toy to support language development.

• See if your child can get the item you ask for when it’s time to tidy up. 
• If they can follow these instructions easily, can they remember two items you ask them to get without you repeating the instruction.
• You can try gradually increasing how many items you ask them to get at a time.

• Put a few items in a bag e.g. cup, a toy apple, hat, paint brush.
• Take turns to pull an item from the bag
• Demonstrate an action with the object and name the action e.g. cup – “drinking”, apple – “eating”, hat – “put on”, paint brush – “painting”.
• If your child has difficulty saying or copying the words you could draw some pictures of the actions on pieces of paper
• Then cut the pictures out and model pointing to the action and then doing it
• or encourage them to act out the action or make Makaton hand signs of the different actions.
  

• For example, when playing with play dough – “shall we roll or cut?”
• When playing with a ball – “shall we throw or kick?”
• In physical play – shall we spin or run?
• Demonstrate what each action is as you say each action word.

• Take turns to tell each other an action to do e.g. “Mummy says jump”.
• If you get another child/adult involved too they can model the different actions.
• You could put together a board of pictures showing different actions that you and your child can choose from.
• If your child can consistently follow instructions to do one action then see if they can remember two actions e.g. “Daddy says jump and turn around”.
• Your child may be more motivated in this game if you use their favourite toy figure/puppet to give instructions.
• If your child has difficulty naming the action they want you to do could they
• point to a picture/symbol of the action on a simple choiceboard
•  or use a gesture or Makaton hand sign instead.

e.g. “If you’re happy and you know it…clap your hands / stamp your feet etc.

• Picture books, photos, TV programmes, Youtube clips.
• You can support your child to do the actions or get toy figures/animals to do the actions.

• Where it’s safe to do so involve your child in washing/mixing/pouring etc. and talk about what you are doing.
• If your child has difficulty saying the different action words you could draw out 2-3 pictures of different actions and model pointing to an action as they are doing it or mode.

• During routines such as washing, brushing teeth, dressing, preparing food and other regular household chores/activities talk about the actions you are doing.
• Use sentence starters e.g. “we need to …(brush) and see if your child can fill in the last bit of the sentence.
• If your child has difficulty saying the word could they
• do a gesture of the action or a Makaton hand sign
• or can they point to a picture showing the next action

• Put a few items in a bag that have distinctive features e.g. they are hard or soft, red or yellow, big or small.
• Take turns to pull an item from the bag and talk about what it looks like (e.g. the colour/size/shape) what it feels like (e.g. hard/soft).
• If your child has difficulty copying the words could you model
• gestures
• Makaton hand signs
• pointing to symbols to indicate the different words.
  

• At snack time – “Big or small?” (biscuits)
• When playing with playdough – “red or yellow?” (playdough)
• When playing with a shape sorter – “round or square?” (shapes for the shape sorter) etc.

• Gather together some objects where some of the objects all fit within a particular category (e.g. they are all yellow).
• Support your child to sort all the yellow objects into a pile/box.
• Model language e.g. “yellow sock…yellow car"

• Talk about where the items go e.g. “on the table”, “in the fridge”, “in the cupboard”, “on the bed”, “under the table”, “in the bedroom”, “in the bathroom”.
• You could use Makaton hand signs for the different location words (e.g. on/under/in etc)

• Talk about where you are looking and where you found somebody.
• Give your child choices e.g. “shall we hide under or behind the bed?”.
• You can play this game but take turns to hide an object in different places.
• You could use Makaton hand signs for the different location words (e.g. on/under/in etc) as you use them.

• Make an obstacle course using objects from around the house.
• Talk about where you are going e.g. under the blanket, through the chairs, over the box etc.
  

• Talk about where things are in the picture/clip e.g. “in the park”, “at the shops”, “in the woods”.
• You could use Makaton hand signs for the different location words (e.g. on/under/in etc) as you use them.

Offer choices as to where to put something e.g. “on or next to the tree?”.

• If playing with a doll’s house or pretend play toys talk about where things are e.g. in the bedroom, under the bed etc.
• You could use Makaton hand signs for the different location words (e.g. on/under/in etc) as you use them.

• “Daddy’s turn”, “Tommy’s turn”.
• Some ideas for turn taking games are:
• rolling a ball to each other
• putting cars down a car run or balls down a ball run
• putting a block on to build a tower

• “Mummy’s sock”, “Tommy’s sock”.
• As you say whose sock it is use a gesture e.g. touch you or your child depending on whose sock it is.

e.g. “Daddy’s potato”, “Mummy’s potato”.

For details of how to use this strategy please click here.

• You could ask your child ‘what?’, ‘who?’, ‘where?’, ‘when?’ questions to help expand what they say initially when looking at the pictures/clips.
• If they struggle to answer the question you could give them a choice of two answers e.g. “is Mohammed at the park or the shops?”. Then model a sentence using that answer e.g. “Mohammed is in the park”. For ‘when?’ questions you could ask questions relating to whether it is daytime/night time/lunchtime/bedtime etc.
• If using pictures you can make the activity motivating by trying some of the following ideas:
• hiding the pictures to find around the house
• ‘fishing for them’ – by attaching metal paperclips (if safe for the child) and using a magnetic fishing rod to ‘catch’ a picture
• making stepping stones where you jump from one to the other
• cutting out from card a detective’s magnifying glass and move it over the picture to look at one bit of the picture at a time
• using pictures containing their favourite TV programme characters
• using photos or video of different family members doing actions in different places.