Speech and language is best learned under the natural conditions of playing and growing up. Language is learned, but is not taught. The best environment for language development is natural and spontaneous. As a parent, you play a unique role in your child's speech and language development. Your pre-school child spends the majority of his day with his family. You are his world. You share many real-life situations which require the use of language. Your child does not learn the complicated rules of language and the complex processes of speech in formalized instruction. He learns language best in the give and take of everyday life.

SPECIAL RECOMMENDATIONS FOR YOUR LANGUAGE STYLE

1. Speak in a slow but natural pattern. Use short phrases with simple but correct grammar. Your speech pattern should be only "slightly" more complex than your child's.

2. Comment on what is happening (e.g. self-talk, parallel-talk).

3. Talk about what you and your child are doing now. Describe what you are doing as you do it.

4. Let your child determine the direction of activity. You follow his lead. He will be more apt to attend longer to an activity he finds interesting.

5. Avoid excessive use of wh and yes/no question patterns (e.g. What is it?, What's the doggie's name?). Comment instead of questioning.

6. Be responsive to your child's attempts to communicate. If you don't understand, be honest and tell him. This will help reduce frustrations and tantrums. The following steps may prove helpful.
   1. First, tell your child you didn't hear him and ask him to tell you again.

   2. If you still do not understand him, ask him to show you what he means or wants.

   3. If communication is still unsuccessful, tell your child you would like to help but don'tunderstand. Let him know you will try again later.

7. Avoid correction of your child's speech pattern. Your child may often say words that do not sound like real words to you (e.g. tani for candy). Show your approval for his attempt to communicate. Repeat the word he said in the correct adult form. Avoid telling your child that what he said was incorrect. Negative feedback may further decrease his attempts to speak.

   Child: "tandi"

   Adult: "Candy. Here is candy. Candy is sweet. Candy."

8. Encourage requesting behavior. Your child will not develop language skills for which he has no use. Encourage him to express his wants and needs with words instead of gestures (i.e. pointing).

   
   Situation: A child is reaching for a toy which has been placed out of reach. He is gesturing and vocalizing that he needs help.

   Response to Behavior: "Ball. You want ball. Ball. I'll give it to you." Pause and provide your child time to ask. If he doesn't ask, provide an opportunity to learn. Pick up the object. Say, "ball." "Tell me." "Ball." Pause and give him time to approximate the target word. If unsuccessful, repeat again. If he still does not respond, give the child the desired object. As you give it to him, state the name and tell him about the object. For example, "Ball. Joey's ball. Play ball. Ball."

A child learns to talk by listening to those around him. This makes you an important model and a valuable source of language input. You show your child that things have names, words have meaning and language will get him what he wants.

How do I provide this language rich environment?

SELF-TALK: Describe what you are doing as you do it. Name the actions as you perform them in your daily routines. Use sentences only slightly longer or more complex than the speech pattern your child is using.

PARALLEL-TALK: Describe what your child is doing as he does it. Again, use sentence patterns only slightly longer than what your child is using.

For the activity "Taking a Bath," you might say: "Joey taking a bath. Mommy turn on water. Water feels warm. Splash. Splash. Splash the water. Joey has duck. Duck is yellow. Duck swims. Here's the soap. Soap makes bubbles. Mommy wash Joey. Mommy wash Joey's ear. Mommy wash Joey's nose. Joey laughs. Joey is all washed. All done."

RESPONDING TO YOUR CHILD'S SPEECH

EXPANDING: Add sentence structure to what your child says. Respond with a slightly longer or more complex sentence.

CHILD: "Ball."
ADULT: "Big ball. This is ball. It is Joey's ball."

CHILD: "Ball."
ADULT: "Ball is round. Roll the ball. We can catch the ball. The ball is red."