Early Talk? Get Specific!

Today let’s chat a bit about one of my most favorite topics: Early Language Development!

Research shows that children learn to imitate words through repetition. The more they hear the words, the more likely they are to repeat them. 🗣️

But I often hear parents and caregivers using very non-specific words like “it” or “that” (e.g., “Look at it!” or “Go get that!”) — myself included sometimes! And those non-specific words are great to use as the child gets older or if he has mastered labeling (aka naming) the item.

But if you’re trying to teach a new word or encourage a child to imitate, try replacing “it” or “that” with the name of the item.

Here’s an example - - your kiddo wants to play with a toy car. 🚙

You might say things like:

• Oh look at your car!

• Can you give it to me?

• Push it to me!

• Can you get it?

• Go get that!

Here, the child was only exposed to the word “car” one time! 😳

Instead you could try something like this:

• Oh look at your car!

• Can you give me the car?

• Push the car!

• Can you get the car?

• Go get the car!

Here, the child was exposed to the word 5 times! 🖐🏾

During any interaction, try using the target word at least 3-5 times. Redundancy is an speech therapist’s best friend! 📣

Such an easy swap to do, yet so impactful for your child’s language development! 📖

Will you give this tip a try?! Let me know how it goes if you do!