Over the years, I have met many families with children who do not talk.  After the onset of speech therapy and some home suggestions, many of those same families say, "I can't believe how much my child is talking.  Sometimes it's too much."  I always say, "Be careful what you wish for."  Here are some things you can do at home to help increase expressive language.

STRATEGIES FOR EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE GROWTH

 

*Although you may not always understand what the child is saying to you, acknowledge the communication and attempt to respond  This will let the child know that communicative attempts are encouraged.

 

*When the child uses a single word such as “ball” repeat the word and add an additional thought such as “my ball” or “throw the ball.”

 

*Encourage the child to pair gestures with words.  Instead of just waving bye, encourage the child to say “bye-bye.”

 

*When the child produces a short phrase repeat it back to the child.  This acknowledges the communicative attempt and reinforces the correct production of the words.

 

*Attempt to expand utterances.  When the child says “milk” you may add on to it by saying “more milk.”

 

*Make a list of household items the child is not saying.  Try to slowly incorporate those words into daily interactions with the child.  Encourage the child to say those words.

 

*After the child shows growth and is using two word utterances consistently, begin expanding the two word utterances by adding an additional word.  If the child says, “more milk” then add something like “more milk please.”

 

*Put the child into situations where verbal communication has to be used.  Place a desired item out of reach so the child has to use the word to tell you what he/she wants.

 

*Remember that children need more time to process language.  Forcing a response in a short amount of time may significantly decrease the quality and length of the response.

 

*It is very important to communicate to the child using appropriate sentence length and rate.  If your child is using two word phrases, talk to him/her in two word phrases.  If he/she is using three word phrases, talk to him/her in three word phrases.  Using a slower rate and shorter phrases can be difficult for family members because it feels unnatural, however this is an important factor in language development and use.