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Ways to Help Childrens’ Speech and Language Skills

Top Tips to Support Childrens’ Speech and Language Skills

Ensure that your child is looking and listening to what you are saying. If needed, wait for them to finish their activity and look up towards you before you begin to speak.

Use gestures and actions alongside your speech to keep your child’s attention and help them to understand what you are saying.

Talk about things that are happening in the ‘here and now’. Comment on what your child is doing so that your child can match the words to the objects e.g. “Jack is sitting on the chair. Jack is putting his shoes on. Jack has got his coat.”

Repeat back and add a word on to what your child says to help them put more words together e.g.
Tess = “there’s a car”
Adult = “yes, there’s a FAST car”

Give your child lots of opportunities to hear clear models of speech to support them to develop clear words e.g.
Ted = “wat the tar”
Adult = “yes,WASH the CAR”

Give your child lots of time to think about and say their spoken utterances. Try not to make your child feel rushed to get their words out or they will put extra pressure on their language system which might overload it.

The Links Between Speech and Language Difficulties and Literacy Problems at School.

There is evidence which highlights that children who have difficulties with their speech and language skills will struggle with literacy at school. This document from ICan (www.ican.org.uk) explains some of the problems that children who struggle with their speech and language skills can experience: http://www.ican.org.uk/download%20files/ReadOnGetOn%20I%20CAN%20SLCN%20and%20literacy.pdf

What causes stuttering

So far, one specific cause of stuttering has not been identified. Research is, however, revealing different explanations for the condition and looking at possible treatments. Norman Miller’s ‘The Science of Stammering’ article published on The British Stammering Association website (www.bsa.org.uk) gives a very good overview of the current findings from this research.

Click on the link to have a read:
http://www.stammering.org/speaking-out/article/science-stammering