Spring Language Ideas
A child’s language development depends in part on what we say and do each and every day. Here are some egg-cellent ways to introduce, incorporate and reinforce language into activities that you may be doing in the next few weeks.
Coloring Eggs
Dyeing eggs can seem like magic. White egg + dye = colorful eggs. When helping your child dye eggs, you’re reinforcing sequencing steps and using location words.
FIRST, place the egg IN the holder.
NEXT, put the egg in the bowl.
NOW scoop the egg OUT of the bowl.
FINALLY, let the egg dry.
If you’re using a dye kit with stickers, crayons, or other creative touches, you might provide these types of instructions:
Place the stickers ON the egg.
Wrap the rubber band AROUND the egg.
Add the pom pom to the TOP of the egg.
Finding Eggs
If your family goes to an organized egg hunt or has informal one in your backyard, then your children are learning lots of location words. Help them find the eggs by looking UNDER the sofa, IN the mailbox, BY the door, NEAR the flowerpot, BEHIND the rock, or ON the ledge.
Opening Eggs
Set out plastic eggs and some trinkets and toys of various sizes. Have your child figure out if the items will fit in the eggs. If the items don’t, then talk about WHY they don’t fit or problem solve to see if something can be done to make it fit. A pencil might be too long. A box of cards might be too rectangular to fit. A sheet of stickers might be too big, but if you cut out a sticker or two, then it might fit. A piece of paper might be too large, but it might fit if folded.
You could also pre-fill eggs and have your child guess what is inside using different words to describe what they hear, see or even smell. Some objects might make the eggs heavy while some might make the eggs light. Some objects like a bell might jingle but a cotton ball might be quiet.
Peeps Battle
Help your child with predictive and WH skills by having a Peeps battle!
With adult supervision, have your child place a toothpick in two Peeps marshmallow treats – the Peeps chick shapes works well. Place the treats on a microwave-safe plate facing each other so the toothpicks are touching, as if the animals were jousting. Put the plate in the microwave for just a few seconds. Predict which Peep will win and root for your color. The marshmallow treats will inflate and it will appear that these critters are having a sword or light saber match.
While enjoying your Peeps – yes, they’re still edible – provide a replay WHO won, WHAT happened, WHERE the Peep ended up if it was in a different spot from where it started, and WHY it won.
Enriching your child’s language skills is always an egg-cellent idea. We can do it every day during activities special activities and things we are already doing.
Jann Fujimoto, MS CCC-SLP is a speech-language pathologist and owner of SpeechWorks LLC, a speech therapy practice serving children in Oconomowoc, Watertown, Delafield, Dousman, Hartland, and Pewaukee. SpeechWorks helps children become confident communicators and empowers parents to be their child’s speech-language advocate. Reach her at 262-490-5653.