Speaking

Expressive Language skills fall in the realm of vocabulary, morphology/syntax (grammar), describing/defining skills, verbal narrative skills (re-telling a story), and discourse skills (explain, persuade, inform, compare/contrast). For example, “receptive vocabulary” refers to words that a student understands, while “expressive vocabulary” refers to words that a student uses aloud.

When targeting expressive language, always remember the following points:

• Use open ended questions
• Always have your child request an item before just handing it to them
• Have your child request another turn
• Have your child narrate what they are doing or what they want you to do

Grammar! Can't live with it; can't live without it.

Humanize grammar as much as possible. Give your child "hooks" to help him remember the rules. Let me share a few with you.

• When teaching the progressive tense, I spin a tale about a family on my block, the ING family. All in this family have the same last name. There is the dad, workING, the mom, inventING, and the children, learnING and studyING. The progressive family includes the present progressive, is or are studyING, and the past progressive, was or were studyING.
• When I teach the perfect tense, I tell my class about my friend who, fortuitously, is named Ed. I spin a tale about a perfect person I know who is named ED, and that all in this family also have the same last name. The dad's name is workED, the mom inventED, and the children learnED and studiED. The perfect family includes the present perfect, have or has workED, and the past perfect tense, had workED. Then we go on to discuss "dysfunctional families," the irregular verbs.
  • When teaching indefinite singular pronouns, I draw a chart on the board. After students have become familiar with the four words on the chart, they will know sixteen indefinite singular pronouns. The chart looks like this:

• If one word on the left can be combined with any word on the right, an indefinite singular pronoun is formed. Anybody, anyone, anything, and another are all indefinite singular pronouns. I found it is definitely easier for my students to remember four words than sixteen.

• When introducing transitive and intransitive verbs, I draw a giant letter T on the board and a giant letter I. Then I try to hang a direct object (DO) and an indirect object (IO), looking like little DO and IO apples on the tips of the T. I can fit one on each end; however, when I hang direct and indirect object apples on the ends of the capital I, I tip it over, spinning a tale about how the puny letter I can't support the objects' weight.

Try to use visual aids or tell stories humanizing grammar and making learning it enjoyable.

- See more at: http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr075.shtml#sthash.0VE949MX.dpuf