Communication Skills Before Your Child Can Talk

20 Pages·2007·3.59 MB·English

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DDI
ANIAGE
Whot Needst o HappenB efore My Child Will
Tolk?
Ashley Mqxwell, MA, CCC-SLP
January 2OO7
We oftent hinko f communicotioosnt olkingb, ut kidsc ommunicotine o
vorietyo f woysb efo re usingw ords.J ust becousyeo urc hildi sn'tt olking
doesn'mt eont heyd on'th oves omethingto soy!!
Thef ollowingsk illsn eedt o be in ploceb efo rey ourc hildw illb egint o use
words.R emembewr,e needt o be ablet o understonodu r environmenbl efo re
we cont olk obouti t.
ATTENTION: Yourc hild needsto be ablet o ottend to o task,
itemo r personf or o suff iciento rnounot f time. ff their
ottentioni s fleetingi n noture,h e/,shew ifl not stoy longe nough
with o tosk to leorno bouti t, thus will not hovew ordst o describe
or reguesti t.
THIN65 YOUC AND O:
Buildo structuredp loyt ime intoy ourd oilyr outine
Encourageyoucrh ildt o engsgein o specifics ctivity before
movtnogn
Playw ith toys thst ore interesting/stimulotinf go r your child
Rewordin creoseda ttentionw ith positivep roise
EYEC ONTACT:Y ourc hild needsto beqblet o initioteo nd
mointoine yec ontactw ith others. Thisi s essentioiln beinga ble
Io giveo ndr eceiveo comrnunicotiomne ssageT. f we sre moking
erNceo ntoctw ith others, wew ill try to communcia tew ith them or
listen/lookf or their"m essageJ. oint/SharedR eferencingis ofso
impor"tonti:n this skill,t he childw ill looko t ono bject,f ookt o the
"Do
porent,t hen fookb ocko f the objecto s if to soy, yous ee
whatf 'm seeing?"
-l
DDI
ANI{GE
THIN65Y OUC AND O:
Holdt oys/ objectsn ea?y ourf aceto encou?agyeo ur childt o fo ok
of you
(seeE yeC ontoctJ, oint Attentiono ndA ttending/f ntending
hondouts-yleolw )
OBJECTP ERMANENCEC:h ildrenn eedt o knowo no bjecFis still
there,e venw heni t is out of view/sightb efo re they cont olk
obouti t confi dently. Obj ect permonencies shownb y children
liftings blonkett o f indo hiddento y, lookingf o r somethintgh ot
hosj ust follent o the ground, s earchinfg o r somethintgh ot is in
onotherr oom, etc.
THIN65 YOUC AND O:
(5eeO bje ct Permonencheo ndou-fR urRle)
CAUSE& EFFECT:Y ourc hild needsto knowt hot he/shec on
useo n object to createo soundo r oction( e.g.s, queezeth e
stuffed onimoof ndi t wiflm oken oisep, usht he buttono nt he toy
ondo no bjectw illp opu p,e tc.). OnceC ausoen dE ffect is
estoblisheidn pfoy,it then needsto be p?esenitn communicotion
(e.g.p, ushingo woyo toothbrushto ovoidb rushingte eth,e tc.).
THIN65 YOUC AND O:
Ployw ith toyst hot do somethinlgik et oysw ith lightso r music
Busyb oxess ?eg oodf or this skill
IMITATION: Befo re o child beginss oyingw ords,h e/ shen eed
Io be imitotingt hernf romo thers.f mitotions killsu suollyh oppen
in o progressiong:r ossm otor( octionso) re f irst followedb y
sound,s t heno rol-motoro ctionst,h en words.
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DDI
ANIAGE
THIN65 YOUC AND O:
(5eef mitotionh ondouts-blue)
TURNT AKING: Onceo childu nderstondism itotiont,u rn-toking
wilfu suolfy.l oselyf ollow.T urn-tokingis veryi mportonot s it is
whotc ommunicotioisn o lfq bout:f soys omethingth, eny ous oy
something,thefn s oys omethinge,t c. Thiss kilfc onf olfowt he
somep rogressioons imitotion.
THIN65 YOU CAND O:
(seeT urnT qkingh ondout-pink)
UNDERSTANDSW ORDS/DIRECTIVE:S Childrenn eedt o
understondw ordsb efo re they conb eginu singt hem.
'
THINGSY OUC AND O,
Speokt o yourc hildo nt he levelt hot theyt hemselvews oudf
speok-u seo nly1 -3w ordsw heng ivingd irectionse,t c.o nd
whenevep?o ssibleo dd a gestrJre.f nsteodo f ,"Go get your shoes
"Get
so we con to the store." Try, shoes."
9o
Try hovingy ourc hifdp ointt o objectso ndt hen picturesi n books.
ff yourc hildh osd iff iculty,g entlyg uideth eir hondt o the
obje ct/ picturey ous re tolkingo bout.
Listent o simpfek id'sm usicto gether.
Whot hoppensif my child hos these skillso nd still isn't
tolking?
Therea re monyo fternotivefo rmso f communicotiothno t ccnh elp
o childe xpresst heir wontso ndn eeds.T his is by no meonsv iewed
os one ndt o trying to get themt o tolk! Exompleosf these
olternotivefo rmso f communicoticoonn i ncludes ignl onguogeB,i g
Mocb uttons,m oreo dvoncevdo iceo utputd eviceso ndP ECS.
(SeeT otolC ommunicotioonnd AugmentotivCeo mmunicotion
hondoutsg-r een)
(Therec onb e monyf octors thot influencefhed evelopmeonft expressivelanguage(e.h9e.o, ring,
environmenett,c .). Thisi s by nom eonss e?veoss o ne xhqustivleis t,o nlyo so bosicr efe rence.)
Adoptedfr om hondouwt ith unknowonu thor.
I
EyeC ontact
by LindaM awhinney&
Mary Scott McTeague
Eyec ontacits oneo f the earliesmt eanso f communicationlt. b eginsw henp arenta nd
babyl ooka t eacho ther. Eyec ontactis usedt o requestg, reet,o r directa ttention.O ften
childrenw ithl anguaged ifficultiedso notl ooka t the speaker.O neo f ourf irstg oalsi s to
helpy ourc hildd evelope yec ontact.
. To establishe yec ontacts, it facet o facew ithy ourc hild. Attemptt o placey our
childh igherth any ou. Exampleos f possiblep ositionas re:
- sity ourc hildo n yourl ap,
- sit in a chaira ndp lacey ourc hildi n a highc hairo r boosters eat,
- placey ourc hildo n thec oucho r chaira nds it on thef loori n fronto f himl her. lf
yourc hildh asp hysicalli mitationsa, P hysicaTl herapistO, ccupationTahl erapist,
or Speech-LanguaPgea thologiscta ng ivey ou morei deas.
. Tod rawy ourc hild'sa ttentionh,o ldo bjectsn eary ourf acet o helpg uidey ourc hild
withoutv erbalizingO. ftenw ordsd o not havem eaninga ndf or otherc hildren,
a verbacl uec ouldc auseh im/hetro tuney ouo ut
. Tapy ourc hild'sn osea ndt heny ouro wn nose. Aftert he childl ooks,e venf or a
'Good
briefs econd,r ewardh im/hera nd say looking!"
. Puty ourc hild'Sh ando n yourf acet o gaina ttentionb e{oreg ivingh im/hera
directiotno followo r a choice.
. Eliminatoer reducea uditorya ndv isuadl istractionlsi,k et he televisionr,a dio,e tc.
Thish elpsy ourc hildf ocuso n you.
"Look."
. As yourc hildi ncreaseesy ec ontacwt ithy ou,g iveh im/hetrh e verbalc ue,
Wheny ourc hildl ooksa t you,r espond.
'
. Play'Tunnfya ce'gf amesi n the mirror.Y ourc hildc ane stablishe yec ontacwt ith
you in the mirror.
Call 1-800-277-8737. Fax [phone]| www.supsrduperinc.com
#BK-315 Early LanguageD evelopment@ 004 Super Duper'Publications. Allrights reserved.
I
J o i n t
Attention
by LindaM awhinne&y
MaryS cottM cTeague
what is joint attention?J ointa ttentioni s the sharingo f an experienceb etweena child
anda partnerD.. uringth ei nfanst taget,h isp artneirs tnep arinvor-giu"i.'l snar"o
elperigncies. l ookinagt ord irectinagt tentiotno ano bjecot r eventJ. ointa ttentioins an
essentiasl killn eededfo r languages,p eecha, nds ocials kills.
The beginninogf jointa ftentionin an infant* n oftgTb e notedd uringn ursingo r feeding,
whent herei s facet o facec ontact.M anyt imesc httdrenw iths igRificancot mmunication
artd
ffpgt illpairmerrts-hanveo td evetufiejdo iniattenofi n.
Herca re activltiest o help developt his skill.
'Telf yourc hird'L ooka t me,'thent ap hisr/frefar cea ndt heny o-urf ace. Aftery ou
. ; -, I ::i"9 s'"9, ,.i:li,g :v.9p.e-lr-..,v9q't.?uptlh. 9ri'lruigr"n , store' sFq?-d r.
:" : . . '. Lolntt o a toyt hat.youcr hildr ikesa nd say," !ook."G enflytu rnh ivherh eadt oward
the toy.W henh e/shelo oksa t it, playw iitrt net oy or givei t to him/her.
' Holdu p a toyo r favorite.iteamn d say," r6ok.y" ourc hirds hourdro oka- -t- y) oua nd
thent heo bject.R ewardb y givingt tr-eto y to yourc hild.
' Bfowb ubbre*sd ,:"yl 'took" pointasy ourc hirdt racksth e bubbresB-. rowm ore
bubblesw henh er/shleo oksa t you,r epeatth ew ord" toolga" ndpoinf
'Blow up a bafloonb, utd on'tt ie it or reti t go. say, "rooKa ndrereasiet w heny our
childl ooks.
' {hen yourc hirdb ecomesin teresteidn booksp, ointt o a picturea nds ayi,r ook.,
Herpy ourc hirdp ointr o picturesT. heg oari s 16ry our. niri to rool "i iJi,"anoi hen
the picture Bys haringa warenesasn J interesitn tnes amep ictui"t i ooor.y o,
are achievinjgo inta ttention.
. Whena nothefra milym embecr omesi ntot he room,p ointa nds ay," took.,R, eward
yourc hildl or rookingw itha physicaarc tivitys,u cha s tickringo r j"tting.
Yourc hildm ayn eedm oret imet o understanwd hatt urningh isr/hehre adm eanss, o don,t
be discourageidf t hiss killi s slowf or him/hetro learn.
call 1€0G227€T37 . Faxl-g0o-9zg-737g. www.superdup€rinc.oom
*BK'315E arfyL anguagoD alebpment@ oo4 super Duper"p uoticationsA. [ rightsr eservsd.
I
VA
IT
[dHelpingY our ChildA ttenda nd
1.1.1
Intendt o Communicate
Janet A. Norris,P h.D., CCC-SL?
yoo aunr cyh oilfd t?he followingc haracteristicdse scribe kthneoyw b tehhaat tuheea isn fiaf ntthw ea csho inldly c reoamcmtinugnt ioc tahtee sdsoo umnedt,bh uintg
. My child doesn'tp aya ttentionw henI talk to him or meaningfual nd intentionalE. veryb urp, cry, hiccup,o r
bryt o show him things. sighi s reactedto asi f it werec ommunicatinag c omment,
a requesta protesto r a command.
. I'ty child doesn'te njoyp layingw ith toysw ith me or
showingm e what she'sp layingw ith. Three-montholidn fantsa rea blet o attendt o thingso ther
. My child doesn'tt ry to get my attentiont o notice sthtuafnfe tdha eniirm oawlsnc, boolodrifeuslt o.T yhse,ay n bdeo gthine tro in ltoeoreks atitn rgtah titnlegss,
what he's discoveredo r what he sees. their parentss howt hem.T hej oint attentionn o*]o.ur.,
. IvIyc hild won't listena nd doesn,ts eemi nterested on theseo bjects-p arentss how and talk about objects,
when I try to read a storybook. encouragintgh ec hildt o look at andt o try to touch,h old,
. My child'sa ttentions pans eemss horl and she oisr h eexaptleodra esE. ivf iet rwyse mreial e s,he anntedmn coerve eqmueesntwli niggc,g olem,om r reenaticnhg
rnovesq uickly from one toy to anothera s if she about, asking for, or rejecting ttre objeit The bond
doesn'tk now what to do with them. betweent he parenta nd the child increasesd uring these
Tlreseb ehaviorsa re all relatedt o joint attention and com- mutuallye njoyable',conversations.'
municatiue intent Joint attention is the ability to share Becauset hey are treateda s intentionalc ommunicators
interesti n the sameo bjecto r eventw ith anotherp erson.I t from the first days of life, innnts becomei ntentional
includesl ooking af pointing to, talking abouf or playing communicatorbse foret he first birthday,u suallya boutl 0
with the same objectso r events.c ommunicativei ntent is monthso f age.B ut somec hildrenh ave difficulty estab.
the ability to communicatea bout thesei nterestingo bjects lishingt heseb ondsT. heyd on'ts eemin terestedin watch-
or eventsT. hesec ommunicationisn cludea skingq uestions, ing their parentso r looking at and talking about the
making comments,r equestingh jrns, rejecting objectso r things parentss how them.T hey shorvr esistancet,h row
turns,a nd commandingo thers.J ointa ttentiona nd commu- temperh ntrums,l eaveo, r attendt o somethinge lse.Their
nicativei ntent both begn to developd uring the first dayso f attention spanss eemv ery shorl These behaviorsa re
life Poor developmenitn thesea reasm ayc ausec hildrent o confusingt o parentsw, ho may feel hurf frustrateda, nd
havem any languagea nd leamingp roblems. even angry at times.P arentsk now that the child isn,t
learningv ery much abouto bjectsu sedb y peopleo r the
How Do Joint Attentiona nd languageu sedt o talk about them,b ut their attemptst o
CommunicativIen tent De velop? teacht he child don,t seemt o work.
At birth, infants and their parentss pend many hours
establishingjo int attention.T heir attentioni s focusedo n What CanB e Done?
each other. Parentsl ook into the infant,se yes,a nd the You c.rn help.T here are strategiesy ou can use if your
infant gazesb ack Parentsf ocus attention on the one childh asn ot learnedh owt o attendjo intly to objectsw ith
thing that the child is able to attendt o at this age they you or to communicatein tentionallya bout them. play
attend to the child's body.P arentse ncouraget he infant simpleg amesth ate stablisjho int attentiona ndc ommuni-
to louch, to grasp an adulfs finger, and to respondt o cativei ntenta t the samet ime.F ollowt he sullestions and
tbeir voices by talking in a high pitch with exaggerated guidelineso utlinedh ere:
vhoeclpaslc t hhea ningfaensT.t lheea arnd huolfws atott sehnatiroena o tnte tnhteio innf.anfs body ' Selecti nterestingt oys.y our childw ill attendt o things
thata rei nterestingI.n terestingtt ringsa re usuallyc olor.
At the samet ime,p arentst reat infantsa s if theya re born ful andt exturedm, akei nterestings oundso, r do interest
communicatorsI.f the infanth earsa noisea ndw idensh er ing rctions. Childrent ypicallye njoy puppets,s tuffed
tciumment{tbut
iu'.Drd'tfrrffi?ist3a
"Yes,
you?"o r your brotherd roppedth eb lock."p arents arei nterestin€ to your child and whictra re noL
9 ieesb tb-dilffitfron"Cariuni id"'"..
This page may be reproducedf or insrrucrronuasr e.i Cariro!'r.rb.g oz:
I
Helping Your child Attend and,I ntend to communicate
o cicDkatssohhiht udstyiiaelrsol,ddirt n itnh en hmftgeo gietoti h(nr gh cn" te ahiPhh,ys t tuieto totluudusruyrerhr on.mnin t sIrh,. fy u t n eDnhyoso ibeouubt ru hurs dbeitorhinrtaa oeclogsdlonh uo ot tan ihlhrnldl td iflepto s i ta inu h s titlnogusek hcyheaw r onr a rbtrurhs,ynod adet ,duhi"ne nby tbe"d gwouTr a pt tuiuhotnnu.oraTeg lninptnso i yt ote.th oglo enotereu r m da etcryyji thsioaooogtiiluuylihn"dn)r,.tls biaccetcshhoh oxc enidiamull dogdympb .wa't,soipa mhn ll epfaeeeedalan v, ae urcdesdnrat rtt iiiynniohncs agdneg uop t tt pchhofpu ce ettapoeenc tpysob;h t esesrri .ilnt_fanod udo rgh,l ntsloa batyo ucvdr,i re ouyredbn obsrm ra,h jupu e sio rsutcc esrhtthe cs Eah.cia o la nopdwnicmsur da.oitp oy ypaupoy lfrrerte,Jaoss xrttoSmu iotn.cyey t p Fhho t.ilh ael uoaaesrrry
or about the toy (,.Thep uppefs getting your toes!"
"The
musics oundsp retty"). continue cycles-c ontinue the cycles:w ait for your
' twsoei tcehonhncodoldsuT .r ahthgeeeny htooouylrd. c tThhheiled to ttyouj ruinns dts iohcuaottu oerhf d te rh awesa cthn oitnlsdra ylsn ar oe tfahecewhr aacohncbtiojliedotch ntteossrf , sott huirger annn sa. hhla oo rlrdet tqtuhureen ts,o afyp nsrdae t tsa aelk nd attih sbteoa punutct phetpeo e o etba njnecdco otustarh anegdre
turn to play.
. wgrtfGooeahiyrqvm a uaeate?ne ta "ostna hottd h frrdo o eti"arsurW kt gafauehh nrt a anuctcw er ydnT oaco.hny r yye.ec Booesnuru o,ai an fgwm fgate?e iitgnnnhr hct aae?ot n " tfsuoe Cdaryw aoey b gnns taithecnicniocgnkuou gt tenrhosap de lygls iakoeh,cya eu hoin rnir" locdNgdtht t hohhtiloeweedr ehpcsMMiaaaunooyrip rdds,pgu" "eeLe s)ll.oel et pa pt ttrhn oremoeg trttrueeeyc a bq songurtmo (uee"wsm.uOs ohstuau ) hen ,octli uasihrc r n!hcanT gaot.hi uimpvraai"eontm g o ihtneeyarut onn "rtGtuotds(s r "i!ts,svB"h ue)eer,clm uc fthh ohseaa hma sitr bthh mbyeeaorehu vbunisirnrnthu cl dg" sahrt m hhnnil.evtdd,y
communicatei,n terpreting someb ehaviora sa request
_fol. turn or providing a turn with the toy while you
jointly attend to and talk aboutit, then holding the toy
at a distancet o set up another cycle.
dSS Oycom'urcarpn Skt| gutdon. . dhlrbnd n
Thisp agam avb c ripr&Gib idii'tsrnrrorir urericrreroe,r{o.3or3
1
lhrr" Object Permanence
by Leslie S. McColgin
\-
What is object permanence? L. Actiuitics n foan oftcntian
There ane urany cognitiueo r thinking skills that . (Jse bright tcys and objects when playing
your child mtrst de,rrelopa long with language with your child. Move the objects in front
skills. Understandittg objed Wrmcmene is one of of the child and encouraget he child to
"look."
these important skills. Objectp ernum.ene refers Move a toy in front of your child
to the child's ability to realize that an object still and then away. Make the toy disappear,
exists even though it carurot be seen. This is a then rreappearE. ncourage your child to
"L,ook!" "See!" "Ilhoh,
necessary onnpt to understand in order to or or say all gone"
communicate about objects.
r Move your child's hands in front of the
child's face. Put the hands together and
How does obJect perrnanence develop? then pull them apart. Your child will
watch this movement. lblk and babble to
The concept of object pennanence develops in
your child during this activity.
several stages:
o Put a small rattle in your child's hand
1. Your child can follorn' moring objeds until they
and make noise with it. Later, morrc it to
go outside the field of vision.
the other hand.
2. Yonr child can wrdinatz mux,le movements o Ring a small bell in different parts of the
with what is seen. The child grabs objects that "Listen!"
room. Show the child the bell. Say,
can be ssen. "Hear
or bell?" each time you ring it.
3. Your child reaches for a hidden object if the 2. Reachhg artfuilies.
'I r11.' child Baw jnu hide it. (Shon'your child a toy. r Put a toy near the child's hand. See if the
Let the child watch you hide it under a child looks at the toy, back at the hand,
blanket, cup or other cover. See if the child and then grabs the toy. If not, try it
reaches for it once it is out of sight.) again, putting the toy in the hand.
4. Yonr child neacheso r looks for a hidden object r Hang a mobile or cradle Srm over the crib
that has been mored to a new hiding place so your child can reach the objects on it
(Let pur child see you hide a toy,.M ove it to a without help.
nenr hiding plaee See if the child will search
for it after discorcring that it's not under the r Move a rattle toward your child's hand.
"Get
firgt co\rer,) Shake it and say, rattle!"
5. Your child plays "hide-and-seekl' For examplg r Play with your child's feet. Raise them up
sho$' the drild a toy. Hide it without the child and see if the child sees them and reaches
watching Ask the child to look for the toy. for them.
"fueboW'
3. gune&
Orler a period of about two yearq your child will
probably establish object perrnanence.T he child r Make toys and ob"jeRcetsk -aap-pbeoaor!" a nd
has some kind of stable mental representation of disappear, saying Correr your
object* The child can think of objects without child's ey"Rese wk-itah- btohoe!" child's own hands
their being present. This means the child has and say Then, cover your
derrclopedB ome kind of mental syrnbolst n oiln eyes and do the same.
represent objects in the environment. Using . Tly some of the activities using covers
symbole is the basis for learning language. (mentioned earlier). Hide an attractive toy
or food under some kind of correr (a cloth,
cup, book, e!e). Encourage the child to
How can panents help their chlld? "Find
it!" If the child doesrt't look for the
Do these fun activites with your child to develop object, nemovet he correra nd play "ftek-a-
object pernranenoe: boo!" again. Soon, the child will become
I 1988b y Communicallon Skill Bullden. Inc. Thlr page may be reproduced for Inrlructlonal use. 33
!
interes0ed in uncsvering the object alone. Vocabulary
If the toy, object, or food you have chosen Cognitiue s&ill*-Thinking skills.
isn't interesting to ths-child, try
Concept-A general idea or characteristic
something your child has shoqrn an
applicable to several objects or events, which
interest in.
helps organize knorvledge about the world.
"Ftnd
4. it' gam.es.
.1)T mwing the object to a new location. If Coordinntinn-Several muscles or muscle groups
working together harmoniously to perform
the child doesdt look for it, uncover it as
"Rek-a-boo!" movements.
if playing Let the child see
you hide it under the second cover. See if Objed Wrnwnence-Awareness that an object still
the child will look for it. If sq then try exists when it is out of sight.
hiding it in the new place without letting
Symbol,-A sign that stands for or represents
your child see you do it.
something else.
"find"
. Encourage your child to help you
familiar thinga around the house. These
Refer b:
can be trrJruf,o ods' or familiar household
objects. This is a good opportunity for your 3.3 Help Your Child Develop Imitation Skills
3.4 Play Skills
child to learn the names of things.
Remember that these steps may take a
long time Don't try to move from one
aetivity to the next until your child has
done each activity many times using
different objects.
34 O tg88 by Commrrnication Skitl Builders. Inc. This page may be reproduced for inslruclional use.