Activities that Promote Language Development

The early years are when toddlers learn and absorb a lot of information. This is the stage where they are curious and keen to learn. Every activity and event presents itself as an opportunity for a toddler to learn, and everyday activities encourage language development. The more a child is exposed to language the more they can pick up and learn at a younger age. There are many learning activities that can be fun for toddlers whilst promoting language development.

Activities for language development:

• Exchange words

Each and every day language can be developed with daily activities. Engage your toddler with conversation keeping it simple using clear language. The more you talk the more your toddler learns. Discuss activities that take place through the day and provide simple instructions when and where needed. Be expressive and project your voice. When your toddler attempts to say a different word, always repeat it in a sentence directly afterwards. This helps your toddler learn how to use and pronounce words clearly and appropriately.

• Reading

Story time is the perfect occasion to share books and introduce a toddler to many new words and ideas. Books are great for introducing a child to a diverse range of words, which can spark interest in the English language. Many children’s books use fun and engaging words to get children even more interested in reading, listening and enriching their vocabulary. Reading daily is a great way to keep toddlers interested, as well as promoting many educational benefits, especially speech and language.

• Singing

Children’s songs and actions are not only great fun; they are also a great way to engage a child. Songs are simple, catchy and memorable. Soon your toddler will be singing the songs independently, and not only is this joy to hear, but your toddler is learning sentence formation whilst building on his language development. Songs are a great way to encourage children to join in and sing along. There are many different nursery rhymes to appeal to children.

Always listen to your toddler attentively and engage in the conversation. Whilst some words may be mispronounced or muddled up, it is great that your toddler is trying. When words are not spoken correctly, simply repeat the word your toddler is saying to help him get the pronunciation right. The words only ever need to be repeated back once, try using the key word in a sentence back to expand on his vocabulary whilst giving him extra practice. Games, songs and reading are also excellent learning activities that are great for developing a toddler’s language development.