28 Jan Activities to Get Your Toddler Talking
We know we need to support our toddlers’ speech and language development, the question is, how? It can be daunting to think of creative ways to engage our young kids and stimulate language. This is especially true during the winter time, holidays, or COVID quarantines, when we are in the house more and don’t know what to do with all that extra time. Here are 5 simple activities you can start using today to get your toddler talking!
1. Catalog Collages
When you get catalogs and coupon books in the mail, instead of recycling them, save them! You can go through them with your kiddo, cut out images that interest them, and glue them into a collage, all while discussing what you see (e.g., colors, shapes) and asking questions (e.g., I wonder what that tastes/smells/feels like?) Then, support your child in coming up with a story about their collage, using the transition words First, Then, and Last. For example, say your collage has a picture of a family in pajamas, a couple of food items from a grocery store coupon ad, and a picture of a car. Your story could be: “First, the family woke up in their pajamas. Then, they ate breakfast. Last, they drove to the park.” You can prompt your child as much as needed, from just giving them the key First, Then, Last language, to creating the story but leaving parts missing for them to fill in (e.g., The family was wearing _____.) Make sure to point at the pictures while discussing that part of the story. You can then repeat their story and add on more details like, “First, the family woke up in their blue striped pajamas.”
2. Easy Sensory Bin
Children need lots of sensory/tactile stimulation to support their development. This is a great activity, especially when it’s too cold to play outside in the sand box. Get a container, like an extra large Tupperware (or a big metal bowl), and fill it part way with a textured filling (e.g., dried beans, rice, small dried pasta, shredded paper) and add some small toys that can be buried or partially buried in the filling (e.g., small cars, crayons, pom poms). Provide some tools like a few different sizes of measuring spoons/cups, a wooden stirring spoon, a spatula, and a funnel. Have fun scooping, hiding, digging, and feeling around in the sensory bin with your child. Talk about what you feel, make guesses about what toy you feel hiding in the filling, or make up magical stories. Be sure to keep a watchful eye so that your child does not try to eat the dried goods. Want to be extra fancy? Add a few drops of food coloring with a little bit of vinegar to your dried filling, stir, and let dry for an hour before adding to the bin for a colorful version!
3. Egg Pop Surprise
Have any Easter eggs sitting in storage? Use them for this super fun game. Get 3+ eggs and put a different small toy in each (e.g., bouncy ball, wind up toy, sticker). Have your child pick an egg to open, but before they can open it, they need to say the magic word (this is great for working on specific vocabulary words, speech sounds, or basic commands like open or I want). Once they say their magic word, you can help them open the egg and play with that one toy for a few minutes, before saying goodbye to the toy, putting it back in the egg, and repeating the process over with a new egg. You can also let your child be in charge of the eggs and have them give you magic words to practice, they love being the teacher!
4. I Spy Neighborhood Walk
This is especially fun during the winter holiday season when many houses have lights and are decorated, but it can be done any time of year. Set out on your walk with a goal in mind, like, “Let’s see how many houses we can find with lights/wreaths” or, “Let’s see how many houses have roses (pick a plant) in their yard.” As you go on your walk, look for your pre-selected item and discuss the details when you find them (e.g., “That house has blue lights”), but also discuss other things you see along the way (e.g., a fountain, a pretty fence, a bright colored door). Sometimes just focusing the mind to search for something in particular helps us be aware and notice more things in our surroundings. If it’s too cold to walk, you can do this from a window looking out, or from the car while driving somewhere. You can also ask your child questions such as which lights they would decorate their house with or which flowers they would want to plant in their yard. When you get home, take some time to draw a picture and continue talking about what you saw on your walk.
5. Hungry Tissue Box Pet
This is an all time favorite of mine. Get an empty tissue box and decorate it to look like whatever animal your child wants (e.g., dog, bunny) explaining that this is their new “pet”. Then you have to find things to feed your pet! Have your child collect small items or go through a magazine/catalog and cut out images of things they want to feed their pet. One by one, choose an item, talk about it and why they want to feed it to their pet, then drop it in the tissue box opening, being sure to animate the animal, making hungry and chewing noises. It can be fun and silly to feed the pet some “yucky” things (like a small rock) and have the pet spit it out! You can talk to your new pet, asking why it was yucky and what their favorite foods are. Don’t forget to give your pet a name!
Helpful Links:
● More info on diy sensory bins
● A great speech pathologist website/Instagram account with family friendly activities/tips: @howtotellastory
● More free field trip ideas outside the house: Two Ideas for FREE Places to Take Kids
Written by: Naguine Duncan, M.A., CCC-SLP, bilingual certification