Learning language through play

Play helps your child learn how the world works

Through play your child is learning about how things work in the world. They are exploring how to manipulate things and building strategies for play, socialising and planning.  They are learning how to think and to solve problems as they arise. Through play, children consolidate all that they have learned from their everyday lives. Their play shows how much they understand about their world.

Through group play, children develop those all-important social skills. Because your child is deaf, you may need to specifically present to them the language of play activities. Be part of your child’s play time; for you must be on hand to supply the language at the moment that your child needs it. The names of his toys, their colours, how many toys your child has, as well as words to describe what they do with them- these are all part of this language of playtime. Don’t forget the common phrases used in the play of young children such as, “It’s mine” or “My/your turn” or “I’m going to be the driver.” If you provide this language along with opportunities and appropriate materials, your child will do the rest.

So much learning occurs as your child plays. They are learning about themselves, about their body, what they can and cannot do. Your child is learning about the objects that they handle – whether they are soft or hard, rough or smooth, whether they bend or are stiff. Your child learns that some objects – balls, cars, lorries – move when they are pushed, while others – large chairs and tables – do not. They learn that sometimes, toys (objects) break. Your child learns that they can change the shape of some things like clay but not of others like a doll or a bucket. They learns that a ball is permanent and a bubble is not. In short, while your child is developing their fine and gross motor skills, they are also developing their cognitive ability.

Learning the language of social play

Waiting and turn-taking

As your child is approaching the age of three, they will begin to understand the idea of taking turns and of ‘waiting’. As they wait, they must listen and watch for an indication that it is their turn.  Learning to take turns is a natural lead-in to waiting, which is often difficult for any preschool child. Waiting and learning to ‘give and take’ can be introduced in lively action games that require only a short wait for your child’s turn. This will usually guarantee a child’s acceptance of this new concept. There is no doubt that once your child has learned to take turns, the idea of waiting will become much easier for them. When they start to move out of turn, you can say, “Wait. It’s my turn.”

Teaching your child to wait their turn will help them in their play with other children. Eventually your child will be willing to wait when they need to.  Remember though – your child is a preschooler and they simply won’t be able to wait very long! Offer comments like, “Wait. It’s Susie’s turn. Next it’s your turn.”  Reward your child with praise when they do wait patiently, as encouragement in this area is very important for their social play in the future. You might say, “Well done!  You waited your turn” or simply, “You waited” as you give them a smile. Learning to play together takes practice.  Play is an excellent time to use listening and language skills.

Social language and play

As children grow and begin to play with others, they need to learn some social language. “Hello” and “Bye-bye” are often the beginning of social language. But children need many other words and expressions. Even if your child is very young and not yet playing with other children, begin now to prepare him for social play.

As your child progresses through they preschool years, they might enjoy quiet games such as picture lotto or other table games that also involve taking turns. The activities suggested in this lesson offer practice in this, too.

Matching pairs of cards turned face down on a table (sometimes called “Go Fish”) is a perennial favourite of many preschool children. Enjoy it with your youngster. Not only is it an excellent springboard for a language lesson but it also requires good listening. If your child’s language is still limited, you can make a set of colour cards to use in the same way as the more advanced game of “Go Fish” with animal pictures and names.

Rules for games

Games are an important part of group play for growing children. Most games have rules. Begin now to prepare your child for the time when they will need to learn and follow the rules for games. Watching and listening to other children in your neighbourhood or at the park or playground may give you ideas about the games they play and the language needed to learn the rules. Certainly games like Musical Bumps, Musical Statues, Pass the Parcel and Musical Chairs come up regularly at children’s parties. ‘What’s the time Mr Wolf?’ is also a favourite. You can begin with some of the games suggested with each lesson of this course, or you can devise little games of your own. Remember, the idea is to teach your child the words they need to understand the rules of various games.

Language during sports

What sports are popular with your family? Each one has its own vocabulary, explaining or describing the game. In cricket, for example, you will want to teach your child language such as, “Billy is batting.” “Run fast.” “It’s a run.” “You’re out.” There are countless phrases and words you can use when talking about playing the game. And, of course, this is true of every sport.

Setting an example for your child with your play language

When you are involved in your child’s play, you can maximise their opportunity for learning language, as you will have many opportunities for introducing words and using familiar language.

Talk about your child’s toys

Playing with toys promotes your child’s growth and development. Whatever activity you and your child are enjoying, use the natural language that describes the toys or actions to encourage your child’s speech and language. For example:

• While reading a book together, you might say, “Turn the page,” or describe an illustration by commenting, “Oh! It’s a puppy! It’s jumping!”
• When playing with clay, you might say, “The clay is soft. Roll, roll, roll it.”
• Perhaps you and your child are enjoying a game of Follow the Leader. You could say, “How big you are! You don’t fit. Climb over the chair.”

Play is a good time to develop your child’s action-oriented words, so don’t forget about those verbs! All of their toys – and what your child does with them – provide countless opportunities for meaningful conversation. Bikes or tricycles are ridden; wagons are pulled and loaded; doll buggies and toy lawn mowers are pushed; dolls are carried, hugged, loved, fed and put to sleep in bed. Toy cars are pushed and they go fast and slow.

Toys that provide opportunities for interactions with other children are important, such as balls and dress up clothes. Balls are rolled, pushed, caught, kicked and thrown; they are big and little, soft and hard, red, blue and yellow. Sometimes they are even lost: “Where is your ball?” They are also happily found: “You found your ball. It was “under the chair,” “behind the sofa,” “on the shelf,” or “in the cupboard.” Puzzles need to be tipped out, and puzzle pieces put in. You might say, “Put the orange in. Where is the apple? Here are the grapes.” Playing dress-up is a chance for lots of conversation, too.

Remember – if your child might get distracted or overwhelmed if you present them with too many toys at one time. Encourage good tidying-up skills by having a place to put all toys away when your child is finished or when it’s time to clean up.

Your language is a model for your child

While you are working around the house or garden, your child is busy at their ‘job’ too – they are playing! Even as you go about your daily routine, you can provide the language to go along with your child’s activities. Since your child probably likes to play near you, watch them as they play. Think about the language your child needs to describe what they are doing. Take a look at your child’s toys and playthings. Think about the language that goes with each one!

As your child places the final block on a tower they have built, you might say, “You built a tower! It’s high!” Or, after one block too many has sent the tower crashing down, say, “Oh, it fell down.” Say it sympathetically if they are upset. If they are elated by the crash, say enthusiastically, “Wow! It fell down!”

At times your child will start a ‘conversation’ with you by pointing. They may be asking for help, expressing frustration, showing pride in their accomplishment or asking for your praise. Even if your child hasn’t used any words in this ‘conversation,’ you can provide examples of the appropriate language. You might ask or say, “Do you need help?” “It doesn’t fit.” “Oh, that’s pretty.” “What a good job!”

As your child begins to spontaneously use language while playing, you will have many chances to reinforce and expand their language. If your preschooler says, “ba” for “ball,” you will, of course, be delighted (and you will show them your delight). But you should also model the complete word “ball,” and expand what your child says by adding, “Yes, that’s a ball.” Later, you should expand further by saying, “Yes, here is the big ball. Throw the ball to Daddy!”

If your child is using simple sentences, use playtime to expand and extend their language. When your child says “My ball,” you can acknowledge their communication and expand this to: “Yes, it’s your ball! Can you throw your ball?” Always try to keep the conversation going!

Using language when out and about

Walking and talking

Every neighbourhood is a place of discoveries and explorations. Yours, too, is full of things to talk about. Take a walk with your child and enjoy it from your child’s perspective. Pause whenever you see or hear something that might interest them, or when they show that they has noticed something. Stop and talk about whatever it is: a flower or weed growing in the pavement; something on the ground; a car or lorry; something on a front lawn. A leisurely walk is a time to talk to your child about things which interest them; and it is also a time for you to enjoy each other’s company.

A walk is also a good opportunity to teach some basic traffic rules. Stop at crossings and say, “Look!” Look both ways and then say, “No cars. OK. Let’s go!” Or you might say, “Here comes a car. Wait for the car.” Don’t hesitate to be dramatic – it will help your child understand. If there are traffic lights, point to them. “The light is green. Let’s go.” Or you might say, “The light is red. Red means stop.”

Parks and playgrounds

A change of scenery is always welcome. If there is a park or playground near you, your child will enjoy visiting it. The playground equipment will give you many opportunities for language teaching: “Here’s a slide.” “There is the swing.” As your child plays, talk about what they are doing, “You climbed up!”, “You just went down the slide!”, “You’re swinging high and low!”

‘Rough and tumble’ outdoor play is a great time to focus on verb development. There’s so much running, jumping, falling, bumping, and pedalling! Children often like to play chasing games outside where there are lots of opportunities for them to use their loud voices. Learning to listen to the sounds of other children’s loud voices is one way to be sure to be included in the fun. You can say, “Listen! The children are having fun! They’re running. Do you want to run, too?”

Seasonal changes

In many areas, there are distinct seasonal changes that provide new and different topics for conversation. Before your child goes out to play – whether in sand, water or snow – talk about what they are going to do. Use a picture or look out the window at the paddling pool or snow. Show them a toy or an object that will help them understand: a bucket and spade (for sand), a rake (for autumn leaves), a sled (for snow). And, of course, you can talk about what they are wearing: “Put on your swimsuit” or “Here are your mittens and boots.” So much conversation can take place as your child gets ready to go outside. And the conversation continues as they play and explore – no matter what season of the year it is:

• In the Spring or Summer:
  • On warm days your child may spend hours in a sandpit. If you are sitting close by or working in the garden they will often look up at you. You have the perfect opportunity to say, “So much sand!” “Put sand in the bucket.” “Where’s your spade?”
  • If your child plays in water outdoors – with the hose or in a pool – you may need to remove their hearing aids or speech processors. If you do, your child will now rely on lip-reading and your facial expressions and body language to understand you. But don’t stop talking! “The water is cold,” you say as you wrap your arms around yourself and pretend to shiver. “It’s hot out here!” Wipe your brow and fan yourself. Keep an eye on your child and you will probably notice that they are also watching you as they continue to communicate about their experiences.
• In the Autumn or Winter:
  • If you live in a certain climate, autumn brings with it crisp air and something new to your child covers the ground. Something fun for your child to play in and for you to talk about — the rustling dry leaves! “The leaves came off the trees.” “Run through the leaves!” “Find a red leaf.” “Let’s rake the leaves.” “Let’s throw them up in the air!”
  • If it snows where you live, those mysterious white flakes cover everything and make the world a fascinating new playground for your child. “Watch it snow!” “Catch a snow flake.” “Make a snowman.” “I’ll pull the sledge.”

Each season of the year provides opportunities for introducing new language as you and your preschooler play and explore together. Remember to take some pictures. As you look at winter-time photos during warm summer months, you will review and reinforce winter vocabulary. As a new spring-time approaches, bring out pictures from the previous spring. Talk about what will soon be happening in your child’s world.

Creative play and language

Creative activities – painting, working with clay, drawing, cutting and pasting – provide many opportunities for language learning. You don’t need to watch your child every moment as they paint, draw or cut, but be ready to supply meaningful language when they look at you. Also, remember to pause occasionally as you go about tasks around your house to admire, to comment, to praise.

As your child enjoys creative play, you have many opportunities to introduce new words of all kinds. Your child’s vocabulary needs to expand beyond just nouns to actions words (verbs), adjectives (describing words), and prepositions (relationship/placement words):

• your child can open and close and sometimes stir pots of paint
• your child needs to take off caps are and put them back on, and put paper on the easel then take it off
• your child needs to leave pictures need to dry, and when your child is finished, they will need to wash their hands and dry them
• your child can can mould clay into a big (or little) ball or rolled in a long strip – and your child may pinch off a little piece of clay or a big piece
• your child can make long strokes can be made with a paintbrush, or, they might just dab the paint

Look for opportunities like this to use repetitive language. The more you are able to use the same words in different situations, the more likely your child will be to grasp the full meaning of the word as they learn it.

As your child’s vocabulary grows, creative activities allow for the development of more advanced language. You might say things like: “Here is another crayon”, “You need another piece of chalk” “Do you want more paper” or “Let’s get more paint.” Other comments might be: “You have too much paint” “How colourful” “You’re an artist” “Watch out! It’s dripping!”

Building activities have sounds you can talk about. When your youngster is hammering, say, “Bang! Bang! That’s loud!” Talk to your child about these sounds when they occur. As in all activities, speak close to your child, giving them the opportunity to hear you. As you begin to build more things you can start to make comparisons – “This one is very tall”, “That one is the tallest”, “We made a huge tower”.

Watch and learn

Many times when your child is playing either alone or with other children, you can observe and take a few notes on the kind of play that goes on. Does your child play their own? Does your child watch the other children and possibly copying some of their play, but not yet interacting with them? Do they interact and engage with others? Do you notice your child taking an interest in a particular type of toy? If so, you can talk about this interest using pictures during a quiet time of the day.

By studying your child’s world of make-believe you will learn what many of their interests are at various stages of his development. You can also learn about their social skills and what needs more attention. Is there a way that you can practise play interaction with other children? Phrases such as “Can I play?”, “What are you doing?”, “Can I have a turn?” will come in very useful for social play with other children.

Language opportunities with toys

Miniature toys, including dolls houses, garages and farms equipped with small toy people, furniture, cars and animals are great fun for children. When your child plays with these small toys, they are usually is in one area with them but by themselves will not move a significant distance. They may move their cars or farm animals from place to place. If you sit on the floor, close to your child, they will hear your spoken language, and they will have many opportunities to respond to you.

• Dolls’ houses:
  Dramatic play using a dollhouse and small toy people can provide many opportunities for using the language of everyday life. Daily activities can be re-enacted and the language that goes along with them can be reinforced. Using the dollhouse kitchen, for example, you and your child can make believe that the toy people cook, eat and clean up just as you and your family do during your daily life. The dollhouse bedroom and bathroom are a good setting for playing out – and talking about – the whole bedtime routine. Dolls houses are also wonderful places to emphasise prepositions, such as “Let’s put the mummy in the chair” or “The baby is crawling under the table.”
• Toy farms
  Children who live in the country, or have visited there, can relive their farm experiences through play with a toy farm. Children who live in towns and cities can enjoy learning about a farm, talking about animals and using their imaginations. As your child ‘plays farm’ allow them to use their ideas as you supply the language to match them: “Drive the tractor.” “The sheep are in the barn.” “It’s time to milk the cows.” “The pigs are hungry. Let’s feed the pigs.” “The duck says, ‘Quack, quack.’” Young children are often interested in baby animals and can learn to match the babies with their parents. In this way, your child is expanding their thinking skills during play, too.
• Toy garages
  You can buy or make toy garages and petrol stations. A simple shoebox can serve as either a mechanic’s garage or an aeroplane hanger. Some fancier garages come equipped with ramps for cars to go “down” and lifts for cars to go “up.” Toy garages are great favourites with children who enjoy playing with cars. Think of all the different adjectives and prepositions you can emphasise while playing with cars and garages. “Your big red car is going down the ramp” and “ The little lorry has a flat tyre.” If your youngster’s shoebox is serving as an airplane hanger or airport terminal, your language will match that activity.
• Toy towns
  You can make a ‘toy town’ using a large piece of cardboard with streets and car parks or farmland marked on it, with houses, shops, churches and petrol stations can be made from small boxes. Your child can ‘drive’ toy cars through the town as they relive real experiences. “We’re going to the store.” “The car needs petrol.” “Here’s a parking place.” “Time to go home.” Your child can also develop they sequencing skills as they do this.

Whether your child is just beginning to learn language or is talking in sentences, most of the language they need to acquire can be developed during play. Be involved! Have fun with your child.

Speech sounds

Your child can develop many speech sounds during their play. In fact, it is preferable that speech sounds are associated with toys and other play activities since play provides endless opportunities for practice. Even more practice than in formal therapy!

Take a look at your child’s playthings and the activities they enjoy the most. What speech sounds can you associate with them?  Does your child like to play with stuffed animals? Try “Meow” for the cat, “Woof-woof” for the dog and “Hop-hop” for the bunny rabbit.  Farm animals are fun too, “Moooo” for the cow, “Oink-Oink” for the pig and “Neigh” for the horse.  From just these few animal sounds, your child may learn to listen to and produce varied vowels and consonants, like the /h/ in hop, the /m/ in moo and the /ow/ in meow.

Present the sounds as you play with your child. Smile, keep it fun and encourage imitations while playing. Does your child already have a speech sound that they associate with a toy, such as a siren for their toy police car? Take advantage of this! Imitate the sound back to them, close to your child’s hearing aids or speech processors.

What if your child’s imitations do not sound like yours? Keep in mind that speech sound development is a gradual process. New sounds emerge slowly over time, and even when your child has learned a new sound, it may take a while before they start to use it in all their words. A good technique is to repeat back clearly any words that the child has mispronounced without asking the child to stop or say the word again – for example, if your child points to a cat and says “tat”, you should say “Oh yes, it’s a cat!”). This will let your child know you have heard and understood them, whilst also giving them another opportunity to hear the word pronounced correctly. With time and practice, you will notice that your child’s approximations gradually become closer to your original speech productions. You are developing your ability to listen to your child’s speech during ‘vocal play.’