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 your baby's attention to your face and lips, and they can watch your mouth whilst you say the word. This can be much more effective than you just labelling something whilst they play.

This technique is not just fab for language (vocabulary) but it's great for speech (how we say words). Your baby can see HOW you say the word and how your mouth moves, which can support their attempts to copy you.

OLDER CHILDREN
Many children have difficulties saying words and it's totally normal for some speech sounds to not be fully developed before they start school. Using this strategy can help them to pay more attention to your mouth as you say the word clearly. Then can then copy what your lips are doing.

EXAMPLE
If you're doing a simple animal wooden puzzle with your baby, hold each piece up to your mouth to get their attention and say what it is before you support them to put the piece in.

Has anyone tried this? There's an example in my 'communication' highlight. Let me know how it goes!