Essential Speech Therapy Tips

Hello, readers. My name is Fakiha and I’m a Speech & Language Therapist. Today, I’m sharing a few highly impactful speech therapy tips for parents. The items in this brief list are simple. I employ these methods from time to time in my class. It helps liven up the classroom environment and gives us all a respite. The great news is that parents don’t need to spend a dime on this. However, they do require quality time. Being consistent will help encourage your child to perform better.

1. Establish a Daily Routine

Routines are important. Make a list of things that you do at home: waking up, breakfast, going to school, lunch time, playing, homework, and sleep time (to name a few). It is these activities that provide context for the child and help them make sense of the world around them. Daily routines help children understand sequence of events, words that people use in each case, social roles, and participation in conversation.

2. Use Repetitive Language

“Practice makes perfect”. This is the philosophy behind repetition. Repetition gives children a chance to become familiar with a word or phrase. Hearing and saying the same thing is reassuring for children. It is also fascinating. Repetition helps children realize they have some control while producing expected results. Instead of introducing a large vocabulary, begin small. Keep repeating whatever words the child is familiar with. When children practice words and phrases repeatedly, it helps improve their language skills.

3. Less Questions, More Statements

In adult-child interactions, parents often ask questions so that the child can answer. This approach relies on brief answers, not conversations. For example, parents often point towards an object and ask, “What’s that?”. The expected reply is the name of the object – “car”, “aeroplane” etc. Reducing the number of question and increasing statements will aid language development. When parents do this, they are introducing new words to the child. Additionally, it encourages children to spontaneously speak up.

4. Play Tricks on Your Child

Kids love it when parents play little games with them. Speech therapists use the term “Sabotage” to describe this. The adult can create a little problem for the child. The child will use their vocabulary to request something (please give me…) or express something (oops!). Moreover, the child will enjoy this game immensely, especially when they’re boss you around a little bit.

5. Tell Bedtime Stories

Bedtime stories  are not just part of a bedtime routine, they also improve their relationship with their child. Researchers found that stories are a vital tool for improving a child’s brain development. Telling stories to your children helps them learn verbal interactions, and logic skills. Additionally, storytelling also helps lower children’s stress levels.

I hope these speech therapy tips will help parents enagage their children at home. My only advice while practicing these is to not lose hope, when you don’t receive immediate responses. Good things take time. As I mentioned above, consistency is the key!

About the Author: Fakiha Rehman is a Speech & Language Therapist at Future Smart Inclusive School. She is very dedicated and highly professional. When it comes to children under her care, she leaves no stone unturned. 

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