Summer Language Enrichment Series

Speech Pathology Associates, Mississippi Summer Language Enrichment Series Both you and the child can ‘be the teacher’ in the task of asking questions and giving hints of what the word might be.  This is similar to the old Password game but involves not only single word hints but questions as well. This is a great table game but could also be a good traveling game to prevent boredom.   You or your child will think of an item such as ‘ball’ or an activity such as ‘swimming’ and the other must ask questions to arrive at the name of the item.  This is another complex language development activity because only specific questions and hints will arrive at the final answer.   Random questions and hints that don’t point to the item specifically will be an indicator that this task is challenging for your child.  If this activity proves to be difficult for your child or if you have questions, please email me.

Speech Pathology Associates, Mississippi Summer Language Enrichment Series Following a recipe is a perfect way to work on following sequential directions.  This gives an opportunity for new vocabulary words as well as putting things in a certain order. Choose a recipe that has only a few ingredients for a younger child and more advanced recipes for the older.  You may even consider using a pre-packaged task such as blueberry muffin mix. Regardless of your snack choice, the main purpose of this activity is to increase vocabulary (i.e., cup, teaspoon, mix, etc.) and sequential language (first, next, then, last, etc.) that other activities don’t allow.   To make this a lasting activity to reinforce in a different way, take pictures of the activity at each step.  Then your younger children can take the pictures and sequence them in the order they occurred. If this activity proves to be difficult for your child or if you have questions, please email me

Speech Pathology Associates, Mississippi Summer Language Enrichment Series Our activity for this week is similar to TIP#5 category game, but requires more critical thinking.  You may remember playing this game while riding in the car with your friends. This is hard for younger children because they don’t have the higher level language that older students have acquired. You and your child will pretend that you are going on a trip, building a doghouse, packing a picnic basket, etc.  What will you need to bring? You will begin by saying, ‘I am going to the beach and will take my towel’. Then your child will chime in with, ‘I am going to the beach and will take my swimsuit’.  This interchange will continue until all items are exhausted. This exercise builds a larger and more complex language repertoire.   If this activity proves to be difficult for your child or if you have questions, please email me.

Speech Pathology Associates, Mississippi Summer Language Enrichment Series Difficulty naming 6-8 items that make up a category can often be an early indicator of later reading problems.  While this activity can be done in a number of settings, just like the TIP#4 action word game, playing it in a pool provides the most summer fun.   As on our last activity, using a beach ball, have your child or a group of kids stand in the shallow water so they can easily throw a ball to one another.  Either you or another team member will choose a category from which the items will come. The kids will throw the ball in a random order so each child must be ready with a category word at all times.  When the ball is thrown to a child, he/she is to say an item from the category chosen (animals, clothes, fruits, vegetables, etc.) when the ball is caught. If unable to give a word, you could have that child sit on the side of the pool until only one child remains; however, t

SPEECH PATHOLOGY ASSOCIATES Mississippi Using ‘ing’ action words can be difficult for many children because they aren’t words we name but do.  While this activity could be done in a number of settings, playing it in a pool provides the most summer fun.   Using a beach ball, have your child or a group of kids stand in the shallow water so they can easily throw a ball to one another.  The kids will throw the ball in a random order so each child must be ready with an action word at all times. When the ball is thrown to a child, he/she is to say an action word (running, sitting, throwing, etc.) when the ball is caught.  If unable to give a word, you could have that child sit on the side of the pool until only one child remains; however, the actual ‘game’ instructions are yours to make. Increasing verb language helps the child to formulate better sentences.  If this activity proves to be difficult for your child or if you have questions, please email me.

SPEECH PATHOLOGY ASSOCIATES SUMMER LANGUAGE ENRICHMENT TIP#3 Does your child have difficulty telling a story or relaying to you what has happened?  This tip will give you guidance on how to help your child to sequence events. This activity requires you to plan ahead a trip or event.  Depending on the age of your child, this activity can be done orally or in writing. Suppose you and your child are going to the zoo on Tuesday.  On Monday, you will develop a future tense story before the trip (Tomorrow we will go to the zoo. What do you think we will see? Where do you want to eat?, etc.).  A future tense story gives you the opportunity to use future tense language such as ‘will, could, hope/plan to, etc.’ Then on Tuesday while you are involved in your trip, you will be formulating a present tense story and using ‘ing’ words such as ‘are riding/seeing/eating, etc.’ On Wednesday, you will construct a past tense story using words that reflect what has already happened