Activities

Games and Toys

simple Games

Make silly faces or do silly things, have your child request “stop!” or "more"
Can be played anywhere
Ideally between caregiver or family member and child

Go Fish

Targets words "Do" "You" "I" and "have"
Also addresses yes/no
Can have multiple players
Played indoors

Cause/Effect toys

Targets words like "go", "more", "fast", "slow"
Can be adapted to use with other toys and games like "Pop the Pig" "Alligator Dentist" and "Pop Up Pirate"

Red light/Green light:

Targets words "stop" and "go"
Can be played indoors or outdoors
Can be adapted for freeze dance activity

I Spy

Targets words "I" and "see"
Can describe objects and location (big, small, on, under, next to)
Can be played indoors or outdoors

Simon Says

Targets phrase "I want (you to)..."
Child can direct adults, siblings, or friends
If parent is Simon: can work on following 1-2 step instructions, teach action words (verbs) such as "crawl", "run", "skip" "jump" etc.

Board games

Targets "my" and "your" [turn]
Addresses turn-taking skills
Can use the game to expand and ellicit language (e.g., two! you have two purples!")
opportunities to model phrases such as: "Oh no!" or "I did it!"

Books

Using picture books you already own is a great way to spend time with your child and provide opportunities to model language. Many of these books include Core words found on static AAC boards, as well as Speech Generating Devices (SGD).