What is a language disorder?
What is a language disorder?
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Language is how we communicate with others! It is the foundation of human interaction and connection, and impacts every area of our lives. We use words, gestures, facial expression, etc. to communicate our wants, needs, and ideas with others. Children with language disorders can have difficulty with their receptive and/or expressive language, and often difficulty occurs simultaneously in both areas. Language disorders are identified by comparing what a child is capable of doing to what they should be able to do for their age.
Receptive language refers to what we are able to understand. Children who have difficulty with receptive language may have difficulty following directions, answering questions, understanding what words mean, sorting items into categories, understanding concepts, (big/little, cause/effect, problem/solution), etc.
Expressive language refers to the language we we use to communicate. Depending on the student, this can include sign language, use of Alternative and Augmentative Communication (AAC), and use of spoken words. Some students may use gestures, grunts, or crying to communicate, while others may use minimal words to request items/action or comment on their surroundings. Other students may have difficulty putting words together words to form a complete thought, using appropriate grammar (including verb tense, pronouns, word order, etc), creating organized and complete stories, predicting what happens next, etc.
What can I do at home to help?
What can I do at home to help?
There are many ways to help your child work on their language skills at home! Here are some ways you can help:
Early Language Learners
Model what you want your child to say, instead of saying "Say cookie" hold up the cookie and just say "Cookie." If your child is only using 1 word, don't overwhelm them with lots of words, like saying "This is a big, warm chocolate chip cookie that I want to eat right now while it's hot". Instead, model 1 to 2 more words than they are able to say, like "yummy cookie" or "I want cookie"
Narrate your play with your child. If you are playing with farm animals, talk about what they are doing. Say "The cow is eating" while making the cow look like he is eating.
Find opportunities to try to get your child to talk. As caregivers, you often know what your child needs before they ask for it. For example, instead of putting 10 goldfish on a plate, give your child 1 at a time. Wait 5 to 10 seconds before giving them another one, and before you give it to them say "you want more" or "more goldfish". Every turn, give them time to see if they will request more before you give it to them.
Later Language Learners
Read books with your child. Talk about what you see happening in the pictures. Ask questions about the story, and see if your child can predict what may happen next. Help your child describe the setting and the characters. See if they can retell the story with a beginning, middle, and end. Books have endless language opportunities!
Play speaking games, such as I Spy, HeadBanz, Guess Who, Go Fish, etc. These games provide great opportunities for describing and inferencing.
Category of the Day - Pick a category for the day, such as fruits, wild animals, toys, etc. Talk about what would be in that category, and what would not. See if your child can find objects throughout the day that would be in the category!
Don't say it - Pick a word that your child can't say that day, such as "want." They have to use synonyms, such as "need, desire, require" instead!
Family Dinner - ask your child about their day. Have them share their favorite and least favorite part.
Find online resources below (the best way to use online resources is with your child)
Find online resources below (the best way to use online resources is with your child)
For PreK and early elementary students, check out some of these themed resource videos and online games.
For additional language skill games and videos to use with your child, check out some of the tabs below:
For children who have limited-to-no verbal speech, check out these resources to help support communication:
Here is a list of useful websites/apps to use with your child over the break (all are free, though some have premium subscriptions):
Here is a list of useful websites/apps to use with your child over the break (all are free, though some have premium subscriptions):
WEBSITES
This site has lots of activities targeting various skills for students PK through 8th grade. You will have to create a free account, but they have educational games and printable follow-up activities for your child!
PBS Kids has many educational games based on some of your child favorite characters!
For younger students, this is a great site to describe what's happening. Many games are point and click, and mouse and/or trackpad use is a great helper of fine motor skills as well. They also have an app (OWLIE BOO).
TinyTap is arranged by age, and has different educational lessons/games for children up to 6th grade. They even have a dedicated speech section on their site!
Language Playroom has activities to target vocabulary, describing, and categories. It also has books dependent on your child's communication level.
https://portal.flyleafpublishing.com/learners-resources/
FlyLeaf has free, decodable readers for your student. They are organized by reading level and feel like a real book, thanks to the page turning animation!
StoryPlace has themed units that each have a story, online activity, and printable activity for PreK and early elementary students.
Epic allows you to read FREE books. Epic has a great selection of popular books for students of all ages. You are able to read 1 free book per day on epic with a parent account. They also have an app (Epic Books).
Storyline Online has popular children's books read aloud by celebrities, such as Betty White and Ryan Reynolds.
This site is primarily for K-2nd Graders, and has books and phonics activities to help young readers.
FunBrain has online activities and books for PK-8th grade students. They have language games about vocabulary and grammar, and also have math games.
APPS:
MyPlayHome
This app has free and paid versions, but is great for following directions, describing, and vocabulary! Best for younger students.
ChatterPix Kids
This app allows kids to make anything talk! They take or upload a picture of their toy, pet, drawing, etc. and can make it speak!
ToonTastic
This is a story building app that allows students to create an animated story that they narrate based on their level. After producing the story, the can play it back and show others.
World's Worst Pet - Vocabulary
This app is best for 3rd grade students and above. The student must take care of their monster pet, all the while being exposed to tier II vocabulary!
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