Communication Development
Strategies to support your child's communication development within their everyday routines and play.
On the Blog...
Language Development Tip: Reading on Repeat
You don’t always need new books. Sure - it’s nice to have new stories to read but I already know that your little one likes their favourite books on repeat....
Speech errors kids make: Gliding
The /r/ and /l/ sounds are often quite hard to say for little ones. That’s why they often replace them for a /y/ or a /w/ sound instead. We’ve all...
Where did I come from? Photos from Language Development
Most kids LOVE to look at pictures of themselves when they were younger. I know the mums who went to SPACE class with me thought I was a little nuts...
Tempt them to communicate: Do the unexpected
If you were looking for permission to be really silly - here it is. Doing the unexpected is a wonderful way to spark your child's interest, get their attention and...
Speech errors kids make: Cluster reduction
When a Speech and Language Therapist talks about 'speech', they mean the sounds that words are made up of (not the words themselves). A child with speech difficulties may say...
Use their special interest
Many of your little ones may have already developed a special interest. A special interest is just something that they love and are drawn to. For August - it's bins!...
Speech errors kids make: Final consonant deletion
When a Speech and Language Therapist talks about 'speech', they mean the sounds that words are made up of (not the words themselves). A child with speech difficulties may say...
Language Everywhere: 🐝🐝🐝
Language is everywhere and there's an infinite amount of new words that your little one has the potential of learning. Remember - language isn't inside your child waiting to come...
Clap out the syllables in longer words
ALL CHILDREN drop syllables from longer words at some point in their development. Its called 'weak syllable deletion' - and it just means that they drop the weaker, less pronounced...
Fun ways to teach body parts
My heart hurt as I wrote 'hokey tokey' for my fellow kiwis. It's 'hokey cokey' in the UK (where I'm from) and I've learned it's 'hokey pokey' in the USA....
How speech sounds develop: The early 8
Some sounds are harder to say than others, so we don't tend to hear children say them until they're older. Knowing WHEN sounds typically develop will ensure that you're not...
Fill them up with language: Swimming Edition
Just LOOK how much vocab you can teach when you take your little one swimming. And this is MINIMUM - there'll be so many more things specific to your local...
Say it back correctly
It takes a long time for little ones to master saying words correctly, and along the way they tend to have all kinds of cute ways to say things. It's...
Mealtime Signs: A video walk through
This has been on my to-do list for ages! Here's a walk through of the mealtime signs. Tag your friends who are interested in signing to their little ones! It's...
How to teach your toddler to count
Some children learn to to count when they're 1, some take a little longer and count when they're closer to 5. As with all milestones, there's huge variation, but what...
Say it back 3 times
You HAVE to make yourself sound like a weirdo if you want to support your child's communication. Why?! Because sounding weird makes your little one TUNE IN to what you're...
Fill them up with Language: Washing Edition
Just LOOK at all the language you can pour into your little one as you do the washing. There's no need to feel guilty when you need to get stuff...
Why you should teach 'more'
When your little one can sign or say "more", the world is their oyster. They'll be able to request more of anything: think food, toys, stories or cuddles, and you'll...
Talking Tip: Hold things up to your mouth
An oldie but a goodie.If you're showing your baby something new - hold it up to the side of your face, close to your mouth. This way - you've drawn...
Teaching new vocab: Pull
Babies learn the meaning of new words by us modelling (saying) them in context (in the place where they fit) and by using lots of repetition. We can't expect children...
