Put Words in Your Children's Mouths

The ability to understand words, both written and spoken, is highly valued in our culture and necessary to succeed in life. Since children learn new words by hearing them and by seeing them, parents and caregivers can do much to add to children’s vocabularies.

For very young children, this can be done by naming objects that they see and come in contact with every day. Identifying and naming objects does sound a lot like talking to oneself, but it is a worthwhile endeavor. Examples of this technique are: “This is your shoe, and I’m going to put it on your foot.” “Let’s put the blocks away in this can.”

When children begin to talk, they may not pronounce words correctly. Instead of always correcting them, you can simply repeat the word in a sentence, using the correct pronunciation.

Older children love to hear big words, even though they might not understand what the words mean. Don’t be afraid to introduce new words with fascinating sounds in your conversations. “This sandwich isn’t just big, it’s stupendous!” “This ball will roll faster as it gains momentum.”

Teaching children to be curious about words can start them on a journey of language discovery.