I'm baaaacckkk!!!
So it's been almost 6 months since my last post, but i've decided to pick up this project up again. Who knows how frequently i will post or how long i will keep it up this time, but we'll give it a go.
I want to pick up where i left off with a post from early April: http://talktips.blogspot.com/2008/04/communication-isnt-just-talking.html
Basically I explained the "how" (gestures, sounds, words) and "why" (refuse, request, comment) children communicate. Then I described the different types of communicators (discoverers, communicators, first word users, combiners).
So go back to that post if you want and read the specifics.
If you want help in deciding which stage your child is currently here is a more thorough description of each. Each stage is listed with the expressive skills first and then the receptive skills. Think about which item describes your child. It may be "always", "often", "rarely" or "never" true of how your child understands and communicates. When you've gone through the descriptions look at the highest stage for both expresion and understanding where you have listed at least 3 "always" or "often". Your child may not be in the same level of understanding as he is in expression. That's okay!
Discoverer:
expression-
-cries or fusses when he is sleepy, hungry or uncomfortable
-has different cries for different needs
-makes sounds when spoken to or smiled at
-makes vowel sounds "ah", "uh", "eh"
-makes consonant sounds "buh", "guh", "ma"
-imitates some sounds he hears
-imitates simple actions--banging on the high chair
-babbles
-closes his eyes or turns away when he doesn't want something
-reaches towards items of interest
understanding-
-looks at you when you talk or sing to him
-recognizes familiar voices
-turns his head toward sounds he hears
-recognizes a few gestures--"up" or "no"
Communicator:
expression-
-takes me by the hand towards an object he wants
-draws my attention (by giving, showing or pointing) to items of interest
-imitates actions such as clapping
-uses a few gestures, shaking head for no or waving goodbye
-makes sounds that resemble words
-imitates sounds
-uses jargon (strings of sounds together that sound like speech)
understanding-
-understands familiar words in routine situations ("bye bye" or "up")
-understands names of familiar objects
-responds to simple questions ("where is your teddy bear") by moving to the object, looking at it, or pointing to it
-can follow simple commands ("wave bye bye")
-understands the meaning of "no"
First Word Users
expression-
-uses at least 3 words (or signs or points to pictures) to communicate
-uses more gestures or sounds than he used to
-imitates sounds (animal sounds) and words
-uses between 10 to 25 words or signs
understanding-
-points to familiar body parts and objects
-follows simple instructions even without your gestures
-can answer yes-or-no questions
-responds to questions like "where's the cup?"
-understands the names of many familiar objects, people and animals
Combiner
expression-
-combines 2 words or signs together, as in "want juice" or "no bed"
-uses at least 50 words
-asks questions using a rising tone ("mommy sleep?")
-asks questions that start with "what" and "where", like "what's that?"
-combines 3 words together, "want more juice" or "me no hat"
-refers to himself by name
understanding-
-can answer questions like "what do you wear on your feet?"
-understands questions that start with "who", "who is at the door?"
-understands the concepts: in, on, under, big, little
-can sort objects by category: animals vs food
-listens to simple stories
**This information comes from the book "It Takes Two to Talk" by Jan Pepper & Elaine Weitzman (The Hanen Program).
Monday, October 20, 2008
Monday, May 5, 2008
When is "wabbit" no longer cute?
For a mom when a child says "wabbit" for "rabbit" it may be endearing (for me it's when my son says "sowwy" for "sorry"...so cute!). However, when sound substitutions affect intelligibility and the child is too old to be making such errors it may be time for speech-language therapy.
Some speech sounds are mastered earlier than others. So if a 2 year old is not producing "r" or "th" I'm not as concerned as if the same were true of a 9 year old.
There is usually a range from when sounds emerge to when they are mastered. Also children vary from one another on when they master sounds.
Here is the list of sounds and the ranges of development:
"p", "m", "h", "n", "w"= 90% of children produce these sounds by age 3
"b", "k", "g", "d" = 90% of children produce these sounds by age 4
"f", "y" = 50% of kids start to have these sounds at 2 1/2 years and 90% by 4 years
"t" "ng" = 50% of kids start to use these sounds at 2 years and 90% by 6 years
"r", "l" = 50% of kids start to use these sounds at 3 years and 90% by 6 years
"s" = 50% start to use this sound at 3 years and 90% by 8 years
"ch", "sh" =50% start to use these sounds at 3 1/2 years and 90% by 7 years
"z" = 50% start to use this sound at 3 1/2 and 90% by 8 years
"j" = 50% start at 4 years and 90% by 7 years
"v" = 50% start at 4 years and 90% by 8 years
voiceless "th" ("bath") = 50% start at 4 1/2 years and 90% by 7 years
voiced "th" ("bathe") = 50% start at 5 years and 90% by 8 years
"zh" ("measure") = 50% start at 6 years and 90% by 8 years
more on this topic to follow...
Some speech sounds are mastered earlier than others. So if a 2 year old is not producing "r" or "th" I'm not as concerned as if the same were true of a 9 year old.
There is usually a range from when sounds emerge to when they are mastered. Also children vary from one another on when they master sounds.
Here is the list of sounds and the ranges of development:
"p", "m", "h", "n", "w"= 90% of children produce these sounds by age 3
"b", "k", "g", "d" = 90% of children produce these sounds by age 4
"f", "y" = 50% of kids start to have these sounds at 2 1/2 years and 90% by 4 years
"t" "ng" = 50% of kids start to use these sounds at 2 years and 90% by 6 years
"r", "l" = 50% of kids start to use these sounds at 3 years and 90% by 6 years
"s" = 50% start to use this sound at 3 years and 90% by 8 years
"ch", "sh" =50% start to use these sounds at 3 1/2 years and 90% by 7 years
"z" = 50% start to use this sound at 3 1/2 and 90% by 8 years
"j" = 50% start at 4 years and 90% by 7 years
"v" = 50% start at 4 years and 90% by 8 years
voiceless "th" ("bath") = 50% start at 4 1/2 years and 90% by 7 years
voiced "th" ("bathe") = 50% start at 5 years and 90% by 8 years
"zh" ("measure") = 50% start at 6 years and 90% by 8 years
more on this topic to follow...
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Baby Sign
The poll results are in! Baby sign is the topic of choice!
So let's hit the "hot button" questions first...
Does teaching sign language to your baby delay verbal speech? NO!
In my previous experience working with children who were deaf and then received cochlear implants, I learned that once a child can use verbal language they drop the sign language.
The same is true for infants/toddlers. Infants are cognitively able to communicate before their mouth is able to produce speech. The mouth and oral language is a much more complex process motorically than using your hands to communicate. So have children use their hands to communicate until their mouths are able to produce speech. Once a child can produce a word they will probably verbalize in conjunction with signing and then eventually stop doing the sign all together.
My theory is that you should "tap" into a child's developing language system while they are young through the use of sign language. By doing so, when verbal language is fully developed they will have a richer language system b/c of having used sign language.
The key is also the model the parents give...whenever i sign with my children I ALWAYS say the word at the same time. Example: "are you all done?" (do sign for "all done").
So the child is getting the verbal language and the sign language together.
When should I start using sign language with my child?
Just like any language reception precedes expression. Most likely a child won't start using sign language until he is 10-11 months old. However, i recommend using sign language as early as you want...as long as you can handle months of modeling signs before you get the feedback of your child using a sign back to you.
For example, I used the sign for "water" almost every time I was holding Quade as a baby and getting a glass of water. His first sign he used was "water". But I started to get frustrated wondering if he would ever use sign language. So if you don't think you can keep using the sign then wait to start signs until your child is 6 months.
How do I teach my child sign language?
1) Limit the number of signs you model to 5 or 6 signs. Such as: "milk", "all done", "diaper", "eat", "sleep", "please" & "thank you"
2) Use the signs whenever you say the word in context (during mealtimes use "eat" & "all done")
3) make sure your child is looking at you when you say the word & do the sign.
4) Use simplified verbal language when using the sign
5) Highlight the signed word by making it louder, longer, & repeat the word and sign.
What if my child can't make the sign exactly like the official American Sign Language?
That's totally fine. Just like children use verbal approximations for words ("mama" for "mommy"; "ba" for "ball"), children use motor approximations for signs (clapping hands together for "more").
What's the best book/program to use?
I don't have a single program/book i like best. I would say get a book or video that shows you the signs so you know them REALLY well and will use them consistently and frequently. Then follow my tips above.
Let me know if you have any more baby sign questions.
So let's hit the "hot button" questions first...
Does teaching sign language to your baby delay verbal speech? NO!
In my previous experience working with children who were deaf and then received cochlear implants, I learned that once a child can use verbal language they drop the sign language.
The same is true for infants/toddlers. Infants are cognitively able to communicate before their mouth is able to produce speech. The mouth and oral language is a much more complex process motorically than using your hands to communicate. So have children use their hands to communicate until their mouths are able to produce speech. Once a child can produce a word they will probably verbalize in conjunction with signing and then eventually stop doing the sign all together.
My theory is that you should "tap" into a child's developing language system while they are young through the use of sign language. By doing so, when verbal language is fully developed they will have a richer language system b/c of having used sign language.
The key is also the model the parents give...whenever i sign with my children I ALWAYS say the word at the same time. Example: "are you all done?" (do sign for "all done").
So the child is getting the verbal language and the sign language together.
When should I start using sign language with my child?
Just like any language reception precedes expression. Most likely a child won't start using sign language until he is 10-11 months old. However, i recommend using sign language as early as you want...as long as you can handle months of modeling signs before you get the feedback of your child using a sign back to you.
For example, I used the sign for "water" almost every time I was holding Quade as a baby and getting a glass of water. His first sign he used was "water". But I started to get frustrated wondering if he would ever use sign language. So if you don't think you can keep using the sign then wait to start signs until your child is 6 months.
How do I teach my child sign language?
1) Limit the number of signs you model to 5 or 6 signs. Such as: "milk", "all done", "diaper", "eat", "sleep", "please" & "thank you"
2) Use the signs whenever you say the word in context (during mealtimes use "eat" & "all done")
3) make sure your child is looking at you when you say the word & do the sign.
4) Use simplified verbal language when using the sign
5) Highlight the signed word by making it louder, longer, & repeat the word and sign.
What if my child can't make the sign exactly like the official American Sign Language?
That's totally fine. Just like children use verbal approximations for words ("mama" for "mommy"; "ba" for "ball"), children use motor approximations for signs (clapping hands together for "more").
What's the best book/program to use?
I don't have a single program/book i like best. I would say get a book or video that shows you the signs so you know them REALLY well and will use them consistently and frequently. Then follow my tips above.
Let me know if you have any more baby sign questions.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Baby Talk
I want to take a break from the "play" topic to discuss the topic of "baby talk".
So often you hear that you should not use "baby talk" with your infant, but what does that mean exactly?
If you define "baby talk" as "cootchee cootche coo". Then you should not only talk to your baby in "baby talk".
However, researchers have found that babies respond to "motherese". Motherese is when you use the same words you would use with an adult but with exaggerated intonation patterns and stress.
Example: "Hello baby! Are you eating your toes? yummy toes!" (imagine a sweet mom talking to her baby emphasizing key words and using rising intonation at the end of phrases, etc).
I also think that it's appropriate for moms to "babble" occassionally to imitate their babies' babble. I discussed this in an earlier post, stating that before your child can imitate you, model imitation by imitating their speech attempts. Watch his face light up when he realizes that you heard him!
So often you hear that you should not use "baby talk" with your infant, but what does that mean exactly?
If you define "baby talk" as "cootchee cootche coo". Then you should not only talk to your baby in "baby talk".
However, researchers have found that babies respond to "motherese". Motherese is when you use the same words you would use with an adult but with exaggerated intonation patterns and stress.
Example: "Hello baby! Are you eating your toes? yummy toes!" (imagine a sweet mom talking to her baby emphasizing key words and using rising intonation at the end of phrases, etc).
I also think that it's appropriate for moms to "babble" occassionally to imitate their babies' babble. I discussed this in an earlier post, stating that before your child can imitate you, model imitation by imitating their speech attempts. Watch his face light up when he realizes that you heard him!
Play: Nine to Twelve Months
Active time! This is typically the age group in which mobility takes top priority, whether it's crawling, cruising or walking.
Nine to Twelve Months:
Toys
Rock-a-stack/stacking rings--this is a classic, made in lots of versions...most famous by Fisher Price. You can work on LOTS of concepts with this toy and for a long time
Motion concepts:
-Pulling the rings 'off' will happen before being able to put them back 'on'
Color concepts:
-talking about colors will only be an introduction at this age...use the color names any way b/c remember it takes hearing a word 1,000 of times before he understands or uses a word
-when he is a lot older you can "test" to see if they know the colors ("hand me the red ring")
Size concepts:
-not ready for this yet, but later you can talk about "smallest" and "bigger", "largest", etc
Bead Frame--you've probably seen these in doctor's offices...curvy, metal frame with beads on them that the child can move up and around.
-works on eye-hand coordination
-when older works on color recognition, math concepts (counting the beads) and lots of opportunities for language (especially if you get the one with beads in the shape of transportation vehicles
Books--of course books should be in the discussion on play
-at this age they will love to listen to you read any book--the intonation of your voice is teaching them an important aspect of social language.
-for more interactive book reading get books that have textures or mirrors or flaps to lift.
stacking cups--use these in the kitchens while you have to get some cooking done
-she could even use your plastic bowls that nest in each other or stack tupperware or measuring cups.
Developmental milestones: By the end of the first year your child should have at least one word; respond to 'yes/no' questions; nod head for 'yes'; stop action when they hear "no"; respond to his/her name; and wave 'bye bye'.
Nine to Twelve Months:
Toys
Rock-a-stack/stacking rings--this is a classic, made in lots of versions...most famous by Fisher Price. You can work on LOTS of concepts with this toy and for a long time
Motion concepts:
-Pulling the rings 'off' will happen before being able to put them back 'on'
Color concepts:
-talking about colors will only be an introduction at this age...use the color names any way b/c remember it takes hearing a word 1,000 of times before he understands or uses a word
-when he is a lot older you can "test" to see if they know the colors ("hand me the red ring")
Size concepts:
-not ready for this yet, but later you can talk about "smallest" and "bigger", "largest", etc
Bead Frame--you've probably seen these in doctor's offices...curvy, metal frame with beads on them that the child can move up and around.
-works on eye-hand coordination
-when older works on color recognition, math concepts (counting the beads) and lots of opportunities for language (especially if you get the one with beads in the shape of transportation vehicles
Books--of course books should be in the discussion on play
-at this age they will love to listen to you read any book--the intonation of your voice is teaching them an important aspect of social language.
-for more interactive book reading get books that have textures or mirrors or flaps to lift.
stacking cups--use these in the kitchens while you have to get some cooking done
-she could even use your plastic bowls that nest in each other or stack tupperware or measuring cups.
Developmental milestones: By the end of the first year your child should have at least one word; respond to 'yes/no' questions; nod head for 'yes'; stop action when they hear "no"; respond to his/her name; and wave 'bye bye'.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Play: Six to Nine Months
I am most interested in this post b/c my little guy is right smack in the middle of this age range...
Six to Nine Months:
Your child will be able to do more at this age b/c if he has no physical limitations he will be albe to sit alone for long periods of time, giving him a new perspective of the world and allowing him to use his hands to interact with objects and you!
(if your child can't yet sit up by himself use a highchair or the new bumbo seats to give him the same experience of sitting up and not having to use his hands to hold him up).
This is a good age to remind you to talk about what you are doing with and for him..."hmmm, looks like you need your diaper changed. should we get a new one? okay, let's go." He'll enjoying hearing your voice and begin to understand what you're saying before he starts to say intelligible words.
Toys:
soft blocks--your child at this age may be able to stack 2 or 3 blocks (according to the book)
-you can work on 'up' and 'down' (i've heard though that with opposites you should only work on one at a time...so work on 'up' and then when the child has it work on 'down')
Where's the Cheerio-- babies at this age love disappearing games (object permanence is emerging)
-for this game use plastic cups that you can't see through
-put a cheerio (or puff) under a cup...start with one cup, then add a 2nd and even a 3rd...let him watch you put the cheerio under the cup. then ask "where is the cheerio? Where did it go?" He will lift the cup and look for the cheerio.
magnets on a cookie sheet-- find interesting fridge magnets (animals, foods, etc) and get out a cookie sheet...use the magnets to teach vocab:
"I have a dog here. Look, I can put it on the cookie sheet and it sticks there. It's a magnet dog. Now what's this? A cat--can you stick the cat to the cookie sheet? Good job--you did it. Let's see what this one is. Oh, it's a little mouse. Let's stick that to the cookie sheet also. " (the book recommends then asking the child to hand you the different animals but i think that this is too much to ask for this age group).
Six to Nine Months:
Your child will be able to do more at this age b/c if he has no physical limitations he will be albe to sit alone for long periods of time, giving him a new perspective of the world and allowing him to use his hands to interact with objects and you!
(if your child can't yet sit up by himself use a highchair or the new bumbo seats to give him the same experience of sitting up and not having to use his hands to hold him up).
This is a good age to remind you to talk about what you are doing with and for him..."hmmm, looks like you need your diaper changed. should we get a new one? okay, let's go." He'll enjoying hearing your voice and begin to understand what you're saying before he starts to say intelligible words.
Toys:
soft blocks--your child at this age may be able to stack 2 or 3 blocks (according to the book)
-you can work on 'up' and 'down' (i've heard though that with opposites you should only work on one at a time...so work on 'up' and then when the child has it work on 'down')
Where's the Cheerio-- babies at this age love disappearing games (object permanence is emerging)
-for this game use plastic cups that you can't see through
-put a cheerio (or puff) under a cup...start with one cup, then add a 2nd and even a 3rd...let him watch you put the cheerio under the cup. then ask "where is the cheerio? Where did it go?" He will lift the cup and look for the cheerio.
magnets on a cookie sheet-- find interesting fridge magnets (animals, foods, etc) and get out a cookie sheet...use the magnets to teach vocab:
"I have a dog here. Look, I can put it on the cookie sheet and it sticks there. It's a magnet dog. Now what's this? A cat--can you stick the cat to the cookie sheet? Good job--you did it. Let's see what this one is. Oh, it's a little mouse. Let's stick that to the cookie sheet also. " (the book recommends then asking the child to hand you the different animals but i think that this is too much to ask for this age group).
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
Play: Three to Six Months
From "The New Language of Toys"...
Three to Six Months:
Yea! you made it! your baby is probably on some kind of routine by now and your life is starting to settle down. He will be more interested in playing starting at this age.
Language Activities:
1) Imitate your baby:
your baby may not be able to imitate you, but YOU can imitate HIM! This is my favorite thing to do with infants...say back what they say to you.
-Example...baby coos...you coo back at her...she'll start to wait for you to do your silly sound then she will do hers.
-it's the start of imitation and turn-taking which is essential for language learning.
2) Give babble meaning
**Reinforce accidental combination of sounds...attribute meaning to her babbling.
-Example...she babbles "mamamamama"; you jump in with "you're right, here's mama. Mama. I'm your mama"...to which she may respond with "tata"...no worries..you encouraged her to vocalize, she's playing with sounds and she's listening to what you're saying.
Toys:
1) Mirrors
-they love to focus on faces...what better face than her own or yours
-point out body parts "Hi there.look at you in the mirror. i can see your nose. right there. where are your eyes? those are your eyes..."
2) Ball bounce
-attach a light weight ball (like a beach ball) to a slinky using a plastic coat twist tie and suspend it from a hook in the ceiling (when you're not around you should not leave the ball suspended).
-demonstrate to your baby how ball moves when you hit it with your hands
-encourage him to reach out and bat the ball with his hands or feet (you can help him)
-he learns cause and effect and language to go along with the activity
Three to Six Months:
Yea! you made it! your baby is probably on some kind of routine by now and your life is starting to settle down. He will be more interested in playing starting at this age.
Language Activities:
1) Imitate your baby:
your baby may not be able to imitate you, but YOU can imitate HIM! This is my favorite thing to do with infants...say back what they say to you.
-Example...baby coos...you coo back at her...she'll start to wait for you to do your silly sound then she will do hers.
-it's the start of imitation and turn-taking which is essential for language learning.
2) Give babble meaning
**Reinforce accidental combination of sounds...attribute meaning to her babbling.
-Example...she babbles "mamamamama"; you jump in with "you're right, here's mama. Mama. I'm your mama"...to which she may respond with "tata"...no worries..you encouraged her to vocalize, she's playing with sounds and she's listening to what you're saying.
Toys:
1) Mirrors
-they love to focus on faces...what better face than her own or yours
-point out body parts "Hi there.look at you in the mirror. i can see your nose. right there. where are your eyes? those are your eyes..."
2) Ball bounce
-attach a light weight ball (like a beach ball) to a slinky using a plastic coat twist tie and suspend it from a hook in the ceiling (when you're not around you should not leave the ball suspended).
-demonstrate to your baby how ball moves when you hit it with your hands
-encourage him to reach out and bat the ball with his hands or feet (you can help him)
-he learns cause and effect and language to go along with the activity
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Play: First three months
Most of this info comes from "The New Language of Toys"...
Birth to three months:
-first of all just breathe! these first 3 months can be exhausting.
-for the first 3-6 weeks the optimal focusing distance is 7 to 9 inches from his face and slightly to the right (babies look to the right more than 90% of the time).
-see if your baby is more interested in bright colors OR black/white contrast
Toys:
*Mobile-->visually stimulating, calming if over a changing table
*stuffed animal-->soft texture, stroke baby's arms, legs, face with animal, point out facial features.
*rattles-->they don't have the coordination to hold it at first, but you can use it as sound and sight stimulation; get a variety of rattles.
sound stimulation: The first month-child will react to sound by blinking eyes;
by the end of the 2nd month he will begin to search for the source of sound.
if doesn't respond, move it to the front, talk about the sound and then try it
again from the side.
sight stimulation: hold it in front of his eyes and move it slowly off to the side; watch him
track it with his eyes.
*texture toys-->describe the texture as your child touches it (soft, rough, bumpy)
Homemade toys:
*plate designs-->take a plain white paper plate and use a dark black marker to draw designs (swirls, target, lines) and faces on them. you can hold them up in front of the baby OR make a simple mobile using the plates.
Here's an example of what you could say:
"Look, I made you some new designs to look at. Can you see the black lines on this plate? They go swirl, swirl, swirl around and around. Where is the plate? Can you find it? Good! You are looking at the plate...."
Birth to three months:
-first of all just breathe! these first 3 months can be exhausting.
-for the first 3-6 weeks the optimal focusing distance is 7 to 9 inches from his face and slightly to the right (babies look to the right more than 90% of the time).
-see if your baby is more interested in bright colors OR black/white contrast
Toys:
*Mobile-->visually stimulating, calming if over a changing table
*stuffed animal-->soft texture, stroke baby's arms, legs, face with animal, point out facial features.
*rattles-->they don't have the coordination to hold it at first, but you can use it as sound and sight stimulation; get a variety of rattles.
sound stimulation: The first month-child will react to sound by blinking eyes;
by the end of the 2nd month he will begin to search for the source of sound.
if doesn't respond, move it to the front, talk about the sound and then try it
again from the side.
sight stimulation: hold it in front of his eyes and move it slowly off to the side; watch him
track it with his eyes.
*texture toys-->describe the texture as your child touches it (soft, rough, bumpy)
Homemade toys:
*plate designs-->take a plain white paper plate and use a dark black marker to draw designs (swirls, target, lines) and faces on them. you can hold them up in front of the baby OR make a simple mobile using the plates.
Here's an example of what you could say:
"Look, I made you some new designs to look at. Can you see the black lines on this plate? They go swirl, swirl, swirl around and around. Where is the plate? Can you find it? Good! You are looking at the plate...."
Monday, April 7, 2008
Play is important!
Play parallels language development.
But why?
"While playing, children test ideas, ask questions, and come up with answers. For example, while playing with nesting blocks, your child learns about size relationships--she learns that smaller blocks fit inside larger ones. She learns cause and effect as she builds her blocks higher and higher until they come crashing down. When her blocks come tumbling down, she can link that to the world of experiences and ideas by using the language we are teaching her." (The New Language of Toys: Teaching Communication Skills to Children with Special Needs by Sue Schwartz).
Toys are interactive...
As a parent I am my child's first plaything...grabbing my nose or glasses, then I respond with a kiss as I remove his hand and the two of us are interacting. He learns that what he does has an effect. Also i put words to the interaction..."you got my nose. That's my nose...etc." When a child gets older and his grasp gets a little strong to be tugging on your nose, perhaps you would replace toys for your body. =) You can interact with your child using toys (roll a ball, build a tower, push the car, etc). Toys and play develop social skills (turn-taking, eye contact, joint attention). One of the aspects of language is pragmatics...the social use of the language.
Toys are representational...
They represent a wider world for your child. Toys can bring real-life situations and experiences home. For example, if you are going to go to the zoo the next day you could pull out the Fisher Price zoo play set. Talk about the animals you will see and what they eat, etc. Then when you are at the zoo you can refer back to the toy you played with. Then you can come home and play with the toy again to review what you saw. (also teaching verb tenses).
So the next few posts will be toy ideas to use to play with your child, by age group.
But why?
"While playing, children test ideas, ask questions, and come up with answers. For example, while playing with nesting blocks, your child learns about size relationships--she learns that smaller blocks fit inside larger ones. She learns cause and effect as she builds her blocks higher and higher until they come crashing down. When her blocks come tumbling down, she can link that to the world of experiences and ideas by using the language we are teaching her." (The New Language of Toys: Teaching Communication Skills to Children with Special Needs by Sue Schwartz).
Toys are interactive...
As a parent I am my child's first plaything...grabbing my nose or glasses, then I respond with a kiss as I remove his hand and the two of us are interacting. He learns that what he does has an effect. Also i put words to the interaction..."you got my nose. That's my nose...etc." When a child gets older and his grasp gets a little strong to be tugging on your nose, perhaps you would replace toys for your body. =) You can interact with your child using toys (roll a ball, build a tower, push the car, etc). Toys and play develop social skills (turn-taking, eye contact, joint attention). One of the aspects of language is pragmatics...the social use of the language.
Toys are representational...
They represent a wider world for your child. Toys can bring real-life situations and experiences home. For example, if you are going to go to the zoo the next day you could pull out the Fisher Price zoo play set. Talk about the animals you will see and what they eat, etc. Then when you are at the zoo you can refer back to the toy you played with. Then you can come home and play with the toy again to review what you saw. (also teaching verb tenses).
So the next few posts will be toy ideas to use to play with your child, by age group.
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Answering Readers' Questions: Part Two
What is Apraxia?
Childhood Apraxia of Speech (what it is officially called now), is a pediatric motor speech disorder.
"For reasons not yet fully understood, children with apraxia of speech have great difficulty planning and producing the precise, highly refined and specific series of movements of the tongue, lips, jaw and palate that are necessary for intelligible speech."(http://www.apraxia-kids.org)
Basically they know what they want to say and typically have normal receptive language (understand what others are saying)...HOWEVER, when a child with apraxia tries to communicate an idea they experience difficulty making their articulators (tongue, lips, etc) produce speech.
They have problems with “motor planning”…
I like to use sports examples when explaining motor planning to parents.
In basketball, a player has to create a "motor plan" for shooting a basket. He has to bend his knees, position his arms, hold the ball, visually line up the ball with the basket, release the ball with the correct force so he doesn't over shoot or undershoot. All these aspects of shooting a basketball have to come together in that motor act. With enough practice the basketball player doesn't have to think through each separate piece of shooting a basket...it becomes automatic.
Speech is a complicated motor act. Typically developing kids develop speech automatically and store motor plans for a ridiculous number of syllable and sound combinations.
Unfortunately for children with apraxia they have to start from scratch each time they want to speak. It is more difficult for them to create and retrieve motor plans.
The Apraxia-kids website explains it this way:
"Usually once syllables and words are spoken repeatedly, the speech motor act becomes automatic. Speech motor plans and programs are stored in the brain and can be accessed effortlessly when they are needed. Children with apraxia of speech have difficulty in this aspect of speech. It is believed that children with CAS may not be able to form or access speech motor plans and programs or that these plans and programs are faulty for some reason."
Children with CAS typically demonstrate good receptive language and poor expressive language (i.e., they understand a lot and say very little if anything).
CAS should not be diagnosed until a child is at least 3 years old. It may be suspected before 3 but should not be officially diagnosed at that time.
Some of the most common speech characteristics of CAS include:
-abnormal prosody (i.e., the sing-song aspect of speech)
- vowel errors (children should have all vowels by the age of 3)
-initial consonant deletion (“ar” for “car”)
-variable error patterns (say a word differently each time they attempt to produce it)
-difficulties with sound sequencing (linking sounds together)
Because of the nature of this speech disorder it requires frequent (at least 3x a week), intensive (30 minutes) one-on-one speech therapy. Just like you would need short, frequent practice to improve on any motor task. It also requires an SLP who has worked with the disorder before and knows what techniques to use to facilitate speech production. Kay Giesecke has been working with CAS for over 14 years and is very successful at getting kids with CAS to talk. Some of her kids were nonverbal at the age of 7 and now speak in full sentences!! She is amazing and i feel lucky to have been mentored by her in this area. Check out our website: http://www.apraxiadallas.com
I'm sure over the course of this blog i will discuss Childhood Apraxia of Speech several more times...so that is all for now!
Childhood Apraxia of Speech (what it is officially called now), is a pediatric motor speech disorder.
"For reasons not yet fully understood, children with apraxia of speech have great difficulty planning and producing the precise, highly refined and specific series of movements of the tongue, lips, jaw and palate that are necessary for intelligible speech."(http://www.apraxia-kids.org)
Basically they know what they want to say and typically have normal receptive language (understand what others are saying)...HOWEVER, when a child with apraxia tries to communicate an idea they experience difficulty making their articulators (tongue, lips, etc) produce speech.
They have problems with “motor planning”…
I like to use sports examples when explaining motor planning to parents.
In basketball, a player has to create a "motor plan" for shooting a basket. He has to bend his knees, position his arms, hold the ball, visually line up the ball with the basket, release the ball with the correct force so he doesn't over shoot or undershoot. All these aspects of shooting a basketball have to come together in that motor act. With enough practice the basketball player doesn't have to think through each separate piece of shooting a basket...it becomes automatic.
Speech is a complicated motor act. Typically developing kids develop speech automatically and store motor plans for a ridiculous number of syllable and sound combinations.
Unfortunately for children with apraxia they have to start from scratch each time they want to speak. It is more difficult for them to create and retrieve motor plans.
The Apraxia-kids website explains it this way:
"Usually once syllables and words are spoken repeatedly, the speech motor act becomes automatic. Speech motor plans and programs are stored in the brain and can be accessed effortlessly when they are needed. Children with apraxia of speech have difficulty in this aspect of speech. It is believed that children with CAS may not be able to form or access speech motor plans and programs or that these plans and programs are faulty for some reason."
Children with CAS typically demonstrate good receptive language and poor expressive language (i.e., they understand a lot and say very little if anything).
CAS should not be diagnosed until a child is at least 3 years old. It may be suspected before 3 but should not be officially diagnosed at that time.
Some of the most common speech characteristics of CAS include:
-abnormal prosody (i.e., the sing-song aspect of speech)
- vowel errors (children should have all vowels by the age of 3)
-initial consonant deletion (“ar” for “car”)
-variable error patterns (say a word differently each time they attempt to produce it)
-difficulties with sound sequencing (linking sounds together)
Because of the nature of this speech disorder it requires frequent (at least 3x a week), intensive (30 minutes) one-on-one speech therapy. Just like you would need short, frequent practice to improve on any motor task. It also requires an SLP who has worked with the disorder before and knows what techniques to use to facilitate speech production. Kay Giesecke has been working with CAS for over 14 years and is very successful at getting kids with CAS to talk. Some of her kids were nonverbal at the age of 7 and now speak in full sentences!! She is amazing and i feel lucky to have been mentored by her in this area. Check out our website: http://www.apraxiadallas.com
I'm sure over the course of this blog i will discuss Childhood Apraxia of Speech several more times...so that is all for now!
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Answering Readers' Questions: Part One
My Cousin's wife sent me these questions that i thought i would attempt to answer:
Any tricks up your sleeve for encouraging speech for children with low oral muscle tone (Down syndrome)? Also, I'd like apraxia explained in layman's terms. A speech therapist kind of casually threw that out at me recently as a possible reason for the difficulty in reproducing sounds and I don't really know much about it.
There are a lot of oral motor exercise programs out there that swear you need to blow a series of whistles and bite on blocks to improve muscle tone for speech. I could give you a long list of references of studies that show doing oral motor exercises does NOT improve speech. So my recommendation is to not do oral motor exercises to improve speech in children with low muscle tone.
I had one graduate school teacher who told me that increasing tone does not lead to improved speech. She stated that she has had kids with low tone who can talk.
However, if a child has issues with eating and has limited tongue mobility (moving your tongue around your mouth) then he/she may need to do some "exercises" to improve oral motor function for the purposes of eating.
So my tip for working on speech with children who exhibit low tone is to work on talking! My experience in working with kids with Down Syndrome is motivating them to speak. Finding something that motivates them.
It is true that a large portion of kids with Down Syndrome also have Childhood Apraxia of Speech. It is the apraxia that may be the primary issue making production of speech difficult and the low tone compounds the problem.
In my next post i will define and discuss Childhood Apraxia of Speech (it's my specialty and i want to make sure to do it justice!)...sorry for the suspense!
Let me know Beth if you have any follow-up questions regarding "low tone"
Any tricks up your sleeve for encouraging speech for children with low oral muscle tone (Down syndrome)? Also, I'd like apraxia explained in layman's terms. A speech therapist kind of casually threw that out at me recently as a possible reason for the difficulty in reproducing sounds and I don't really know much about it.
I'll address the first question in this post...
'Low oral muscle tone'---we'll start with the word "tone"...'tone' is your muscle's resistance to stretch. For example, if i flex my arm the muscles on the opposite side of my bicep are also contracting to keep me from over-flexing my arm. I was unfortunately born with lower tone (think of bread dough) than my sister-in-law who has very high tone (tight muscles).
So when a child has low oral muscle tone it means that his/her oral muscles are not resisting the flexing of other muscles and it often leads to open mouth posture and forward tongue carriage, along with delayed speech & language.There are a lot of oral motor exercise programs out there that swear you need to blow a series of whistles and bite on blocks to improve muscle tone for speech. I could give you a long list of references of studies that show doing oral motor exercises does NOT improve speech. So my recommendation is to not do oral motor exercises to improve speech in children with low muscle tone.
I had one graduate school teacher who told me that increasing tone does not lead to improved speech. She stated that she has had kids with low tone who can talk.
However, if a child has issues with eating and has limited tongue mobility (moving your tongue around your mouth) then he/she may need to do some "exercises" to improve oral motor function for the purposes of eating.
So my tip for working on speech with children who exhibit low tone is to work on talking! My experience in working with kids with Down Syndrome is motivating them to speak. Finding something that motivates them.
It is true that a large portion of kids with Down Syndrome also have Childhood Apraxia of Speech. It is the apraxia that may be the primary issue making production of speech difficult and the low tone compounds the problem.
In my next post i will define and discuss Childhood Apraxia of Speech (it's my specialty and i want to make sure to do it justice!)...sorry for the suspense!
Let me know Beth if you have any follow-up questions regarding "low tone"
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Communication isn't just talking
Babies communicate before they start to say words, by crying, making sounds, moving their bodies...
As parents we need to become keen observers of our children.
Ask yourself: "HOW is my child communicating?"
-cries or screams
-smiles
-body movements
-changes in facial expressions
-sounds
-reaching
-pointing
-eye gaze
-taking me by the hand to what he/she wants
-single words
-combining words
Then you need to think about WHY your child communicates:
-tell you what they want/don't want ("want milk", 'no nap')
-get your attention ('mommy!')
-to ask questions ('car go?')
-to make comments (truck! ; 'big dog' or just 'da')
If a child is only using communication to request then i would work on getting them to comment or ask questions. A child should be using a variety of ways to communicate and communicate for a number of different reasons.
Young children (under 3) can be at any of the different stages of communication:
Discoverers-react to how they feel and to what is happening around them, but do not communicate with a purpose in mind
Communicators-send specific messages without using words
First Words-use single words (or signs or pictures)
Combiners-combine words into sentences of 2 or 3 words.
**This information comes from the book "It Takes Two to Talk" by Jan Pepper & Elaine Weitzman (The Hanen Program).
As parents we need to become keen observers of our children.
Ask yourself: "HOW is my child communicating?"
-cries or screams
-smiles
-body movements
-changes in facial expressions
-sounds
-reaching
-pointing
-eye gaze
-taking me by the hand to what he/she wants
-single words
-combining words
Then you need to think about WHY your child communicates:
-tell you what they want/don't want ("want milk", 'no nap')
-get your attention ('mommy!')
-to ask questions ('car go?')
-to make comments (truck! ; 'big dog' or just 'da')
If a child is only using communication to request then i would work on getting them to comment or ask questions. A child should be using a variety of ways to communicate and communicate for a number of different reasons.
Young children (under 3) can be at any of the different stages of communication:
Discoverers-react to how they feel and to what is happening around them, but do not communicate with a purpose in mind
Communicators-send specific messages without using words
First Words-use single words (or signs or pictures)
Combiners-combine words into sentences of 2 or 3 words.
**This information comes from the book "It Takes Two to Talk" by Jan Pepper & Elaine Weitzman (The Hanen Program).
First words: modeling
Since my last post was on getting a child to talk i thought would continue in this genre...
A lot of parents ask me about first words.
Most typically developing children should have at least one word by the age of 1. (a word is defined as the same verbal output, without hearing you say it first, in the same context in more than one instance--"ba" for "ball").
How do you get a child's vocabulary to grow past the first word?
Model! lots of modeling.
I suggest watching your child to see what he/she is interested then talk about what the child is doing. That way you are using language to describe the activity he/she is focused on and he/she is more likely to be listening and applying those labels appropriately.
Try not to use the phrase "say _____". It's so hard. But if you want a child to label "doll", for instance, don't use "say 'doll'". Instead talk about the 'doll'...try to use the word 5 to 10 times in that interaction.
For example: "A doll. She is a pretty doll. The doll has brown hair. Hi, doll. Doll."
Notice i also started with a short utterance (2 words), built it up adding more and more information and then broke it down back to 1 word.
I recently went to a speech therapy lecture on using music to expand children's vocabulary. If a child should hear a word 5 to 10 times in one situation, imagine how many times they would hear a word repeating in music.
For example: "yeah" in the song, "She loves me, yeah, yeah, yeah. She loves me, yeah yeah yeah."
One last point for this post...what you should model.
If a child uses an approximation for a word, don't use that approximation as your model. You should continue to use the target word.
For example: The child says "juju" for "juice". You should not say "Would you like your juju?". You should still ask "Would you like your juice?"
A lot of parents ask me about first words.
Most typically developing children should have at least one word by the age of 1. (a word is defined as the same verbal output, without hearing you say it first, in the same context in more than one instance--"ba" for "ball").
How do you get a child's vocabulary to grow past the first word?
Model! lots of modeling.
I suggest watching your child to see what he/she is interested then talk about what the child is doing. That way you are using language to describe the activity he/she is focused on and he/she is more likely to be listening and applying those labels appropriately.
Try not to use the phrase "say _____". It's so hard. But if you want a child to label "doll", for instance, don't use "say 'doll'". Instead talk about the 'doll'...try to use the word 5 to 10 times in that interaction.
For example: "A doll. She is a pretty doll. The doll has brown hair. Hi, doll. Doll."
Notice i also started with a short utterance (2 words), built it up adding more and more information and then broke it down back to 1 word.
I recently went to a speech therapy lecture on using music to expand children's vocabulary. If a child should hear a word 5 to 10 times in one situation, imagine how many times they would hear a word repeating in music.
For example: "yeah" in the song, "She loves me, yeah, yeah, yeah. She loves me, yeah yeah yeah."
One last point for this post...what you should model.
If a child uses an approximation for a word, don't use that approximation as your model. You should continue to use the target word.
For example: The child says "juju" for "juice". You should not say "Would you like your juju?". You should still ask "Would you like your juice?"
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Parrot talk
Imitation...
to me imitation is the key for working on expressive language.
If a child comes to see me and doesn't have any words or has a limited vocabulary, I see if that child is willing to imitate me verbally. Even if it is a simple syllable (e.g., "ba"), I try to get them to repeat what i say.
I have found that once they start imitating, their speech starts to take off. Even if the child's imitation doesn't match my production, if they are willing to imitate and produce some kind of utterance i can shape it to match mine.
If a child doesn't want to even attempt to imitate me verbally i work on getting them to imitate a motor task (e.g., simon says).
A friend of mine in graduate school did a research project on imitation and she found that imitation was an essential aspect of a child development. So it makes sense that without the ability to imitate children's speech/language will suffer.
to me imitation is the key for working on expressive language.
If a child comes to see me and doesn't have any words or has a limited vocabulary, I see if that child is willing to imitate me verbally. Even if it is a simple syllable (e.g., "ba"), I try to get them to repeat what i say.
I have found that once they start imitating, their speech starts to take off. Even if the child's imitation doesn't match my production, if they are willing to imitate and produce some kind of utterance i can shape it to match mine.
If a child doesn't want to even attempt to imitate me verbally i work on getting them to imitate a motor task (e.g., simon says).
A friend of mine in graduate school did a research project on imitation and she found that imitation was an essential aspect of a child development. So it makes sense that without the ability to imitate children's speech/language will suffer.
"mommy!"
For a mom who is trying to cook dinner, answer the phone, and calm a crying baby, this exclamation can only add to the stress.
However, for another mom this word is all they long to hear their child say..."mommy", "mama" or even "ma". Any term of endearment would be music to her ears.
In my speech therapy career i've worked with families who's children were deaf and then implanted so they could hear, children who have never said a word and children who could speak but were difficult to understand.
Now that i'm a mom i have a whole new perspective on the importance of communication between a mother and child.
The goal of this blog is to educate. All moms are interested to know if their children are developing typical speech and language. So i'm hoping to provide information on normal speech/language development and give tips on how to improve speech/language skills.
So check in to the blog on a regular basis. Feel free to ask for specific information you'd like me to write about or ask questions in the comment section.
However, for another mom this word is all they long to hear their child say..."mommy", "mama" or even "ma". Any term of endearment would be music to her ears.
In my speech therapy career i've worked with families who's children were deaf and then implanted so they could hear, children who have never said a word and children who could speak but were difficult to understand.
Now that i'm a mom i have a whole new perspective on the importance of communication between a mother and child.
The goal of this blog is to educate. All moms are interested to know if their children are developing typical speech and language. So i'm hoping to provide information on normal speech/language development and give tips on how to improve speech/language skills.
So check in to the blog on a regular basis. Feel free to ask for specific information you'd like me to write about or ask questions in the comment section.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
