It is tempting to put everything your child needs within his or her reach, but if your child doesn’t have any difficulty getting what he wants, he also doesn’t have any reason to communicate with you. You must engineer situations to encourage communication.

Whenever possible, try not to anticipate your child’s needs. Children need to feel motivated to communicate. Wait for some indication that your child wants / needs something e.g., vocalising, pointing or taking your hand.

You can help your child to communicate both through words and gestures or action.

1) Place a favourite toy out of reach, then wait…. Put a toy / food up on a shelf where the child can see it, but can’t reach it. Wait for the child to communicate by pointing, leading you to it etc. Say the name of the toy as you pass it to the child.

2) Offer a little bit, then wait…… Use small bits of food, or bubbles. Give the child one piece of food, then wait to see how they ask for more.

3) Choose an activity your child can’t do without your help, then wait….

You could do this with wind up toys or a difficult puzzle. You could put a toy inside a jam jar with a screw top lid, a packet that’s hard to open. Encourage the child to say the word for the toy, e.g. ‘duck’ or “open”.

Creating Opportunities for Communication

4) Offer a choice, then wait….. At snack time, ask “Do you want milk or juice?” Point to each drink as you say the word. Encourage the child to copy the word for the drink they want. Accept any attempt to say the word. This is easier for the child than asking “What do you want?”

“Do you want milk or juice”

5) Pause a familiar activity & then wait….. Stop in the middle of a favourite song, and watch the child’s reaction – they might try to finish the song for you e.g., “twinkle twinkle little …” See if they can make a sound or try to say “star”. Play with skittles and ball runs. Say “ready steady…” see if the child can say or gesture for “go” before you release the ball.

6) Change a familiar activity, & then wait…. You could “forget” to give the child a spoon at lunch time – they will probably try to communicate with you to tell you what you’ve forgotten! Then say, “oh, silly me, your spoon!” Say the word “spoon” when you give it to the child. You could give your child an inset puzzle with one of the pieces missing. Wait for them to tell you or show you what’s missing.

7) Hide objects in surprising places, then wait…. Hide a feather between the pages of the child’s favourite book. The child will probably communicate their surprise to you, and give you eye contact. They may make a noise, or try to say a word. When they look at you, say the word clearly, “feather”.

8) When things go wrong, wait….. E.g., if the child spills their drink, do not clear it up immediately – see what the child says. They might communicate by saying “uhoh”, and point to the floor. You could join in and say “uhoh” “on the floor!”.