Blogs

Getting Ready: Vocabulary

• Naming objects and functions. Toothbrush, floss, mouthwash, wash cloth, sink, etc. when brushing teeth
• Clothing items: shirt, pants, sweater, etc. when getting dressed

Play time: Following Directions

• Use one-, two-, and three-step directions when preparing meals
• Use temporal terms such as: first, then, next, after when cleaning up or learning to play a new game

Mealtime: Vocabulary, Verbal Requests, Verbal Protests, Yes/No Preferential Questions

• Vocabulary – Identify/name foods in different categories such as breakfast, lunch, dinner to expand vocabulary skills while eating meals
•  Verbal Requests – Model verbal requests by saying what you want. Short sentences and phrases such as ‘I want ___,’ ‘I need ____,’ and ‘more ___ please’ help children understand those phrases are associated with getting what they want.
• Verbal Protests – Purposefully give child foods that they do not prefer. Model how to protest by saying things such as ‘No peas please,’ ‘No thank you,’ etc.
• Yes/No Preferential Questions – Ask your child yes/no questions such as ‘Do you want more?’ Prompt them to respond using verbal language, ASL signs, and/or picture cards/AAC symbols

Story Time: Answer WH- questions, Pronouns, Articulation, Phonological Awareness

• Answer WH- questions about the story – Decrease the complexity by asking questions immediately after events occur in the story. Increase complexity by delaying questions and prompting the child to remember story elements.
• Pronouns – Discuss the pictures on each page. Ask questions such as ‘Is this a he or a she?’ or Who’s shirt is this? Is it his, hers, or theirs?
• Articulation – Practice articulation skills by strategically choosing stories that have target sounds such as /b/ for Brown Bear Brown Bear and If You Give a Moose a Muffin for /m/. Prompt child to fill in familiar phrases, identify words that include their target sound, and practice speech sound targets throughout the story.
• Phonological Awareness – Pick stories that have rhyming words throughout. Pause when it is time to say a rhyming word, and encourage the child to fill in the blank. Great books to use are: , Sheep in a Jeep, Llama Llama series books,  Pete the Cat series, and various nursery rhymes.