Five Simple Ways to Support Your Child’s Speech at Home
Supporting your child’s speech and language doesn’t have to mean sitting down for a “lesson.” In fact, the best learning often happens during the simple, everyday moments you’re already sharing - mealtime, bath time, playtime, and story time.
Here are five easy ways to support communication at home:
Get face to face. Sit at your child’s level and make eye contact - this helps them see how you use sounds and words.
Pause and wait. Give your child time to respond or take a turn. Sometimes a little extra silence gives them space to try!
Model, don’t quiz. Instead of asking a lot of questions like “What’s that?” try making statements “That’s a dog! He’s running fast!”
Expand their words. If your child says “truck,” you can add, “Yes, big red truck!”
Follow their lead. Join in with what they’re already interested in - whether it’s building blocks or pretending with dinosaurs - and sprinkle in language along the way.
Consistency and connection matter more than perfection. You are your child’s first and most important teacher, and we’re here to support you every step of the way.