Menu

Literacy

Children learning better language skills in school.

Better Language Skills Lead to Better Learning in School

, 0

For kids who experience language challenges, better language skills lead to better learning in school. Nearly everything kids learn in school comes through the language. But how do we define language? We may take our speaking skills for granted but these critical skills are fundamental to learning. When we speak we use our lips, tongue and vocal tract to make sounds, but language is different. 

Think of anytime anyone speaks to you. They make sentences and you understand what they say. If a child struggles to use language (whether spoken or through other forms of communication) it almost always means they have a hard time understanding it as well. But what does this mean for learning? A lot. 

Imagine trying to take a class and knowing only parts of what the teacher says. Imagine they speak a different language. Kids with language challenges experience something similar. We expect kids to learn in class but may not appreciate that  they might only understand small parts of what gets taught.

For this reason, better language skills are critical for kids and their ability to learn – now, as well as in the future. Language learning always builds. What skills they lose now they must get later, at the cost of learning in the classroom. 

In this post, we explain how this works and how kids learn more in school with better language skills. 

What is Language? 

Language is fundamental to all humans. When we put words together to make phrases and sentences, we use language. When hear phrases and sentences, we understand those words.

When a child speaks, they may not put words together or they might put whole phrases together. Language is productive. Children put words together to make sentences in a way that is meaningful. With language we can say anything we want, to make requests, comment, get our wants and needs met and much more. 

Between the ages of 2-4, kids learn language rapidly. During this critical time, kids get the most important building blocks of language. They use these building blocks to learn in school, communicate with peers, and get their needs met. 

How Do I Know If My Child Needs Help?

If your child struggles to understand what you say or has difficulty putting their words together, they may need help. Most children at the age of 2 can put words together to form phrases and simple sentences. 

At age 4 most children will speak in complete sentences with prepositions and different verb tenses. If you notice that your child struggles to use their words at an early age, see a licensed speech therapist as soon as possible. 

Some children will understand a lot of what others say but be unable to effectively use their words in sentences. Other kids may have trouble with only certain language skills, like using pronouns, verbs or word endings (-ed, -ing, etc.). In both cases, therapy helps. Kids learn to understand more language while also practicing using their words correctly. 

Should I Wait?

It is never a good idea to wait to get kids better language skills. These skills build on each other. If a child does not learn a language skill now, they will have to learn it later before progressing to other skills. And all of these skills are critical for learning in school. 

Even at a very early age, kids hear complex sentences from their teachers and parents. We take for granted that kids know what we say but they may struggle to understand us. If there are grammatical errors when your child speaks, they likely don’t understand everything said to them. 

The longer we wait to get kids the help they need, the harder it gets for kids to learn. Because most of these skills are learned at a very early age, not getting help early can mean a lifelong impact. 

How Language Skills Impact Learning 

Impaired language skills can severely impact learning in school. Children use language as tool to learn. Without these skills, classroom instruction can be blocked or completely absent. If a child’s receptive language skills are impaired, then learning is likely also affected. 

For many kids, their ability to learn new things in school is directly impacted by their ability to understand what they hear. Almost everything taught in school comes through words and sentences. Even math problems and pictures need explanation.

Knowing whether kids have trouble in these areas can be difficult, too. Sometimes even if kids understand us and speak in mostly correct sentences, they may still need help. Many specific skills need evaluation by a certified expert. Unfortunately, many kids may go ‘under the radar’ even if they do well in the classroom. A student may not struggle enough to raise red flags for teachers, yet still need help from a specialist.

As kids get older, language demands increase dramatically. They are expected to listen to long complex sentences and classroom instruction and write essays. Many kids who don’t get help in this area continue to ‘play catch up’ in the school system. Their language skills may fall behind what they learn in the classroom, making it harder to learn.

What If My Child Doesn’t Speak?

Many parents may find that their child has trouble speaking or does not speak. For autistic children, this may be especially true. They might wait to see if their child catches up or starts talking. It is never a good idea to wait. 

Children who do not yet speak and are non-verbal need continued language support. Parents may worry about their child’s ability to speak when their language skills need to grow. Better language skills should never be ignored when waiting for a child to speak. 

If a child does not yet speak, they may need an AAC (alternative and augmentative communication) evaluation. Even if a child does not speak, they can communicate and grow their skills with a device, such as an iPAD, or through sign language. 

By giving children a means to grow their language abilities, you empower them to learn, even when they cannot speak. 

Myth: AAC Will Stop My Child from Speaking

The myth that a child will not speak or be late in talking if they get an AAC device is false. In fact, research shows that children with limited speech speak more when they use an AAC device. Never avoid a device if your child cannot speak. 
 
Non-verbal children who use an AAC device learn both speech and language. They get to continue learning and participating in the world around them. AAC use also helps improve behaviors, as children get to express themselves effectively to get their wants and needs met.
 

How Better Language Skills Improve Learning 

With better language skills, kids get to understand what is taught to them. They get to maximize their ability to learn by understanding everything said to them. The more words kids know and put together, the more they get to participate in the classroom. 

These skills build on each other. And learning depends on being able to understand language, whether spoken, written or in another form. By making sure that kids understand what they get taught in the classroom, we must first make sure they have better language skills. 

Language also greatly impacts literacy skills. A child’s language skills can easily affect their grade-level reading comprehension and ability to participate in classroom activities and testing. 

By giving kids better language skills, we maximize their learning inside and outside of the classroom. We also support their ability to read to learn. 

How Can I Help My Child Get Better Language Skills? 

By speaking to a licensed speech therapist, you get your child the support they need. No other professional is trained or qualified to teach these skills to kids who have a diagnosable language disorder. Getting kids better language skills means getting them expert help, especially if they are non-verbal. Speech and language are different and they develop separately. 

Once your child is receiving support from a speech-language pathologist, there are many ways to help them get better language skills at home! For example, by talking about what you and your child do, especially during play, you help them put more words together. 

Children also learn these skills a great deal during storybook readings. When reading stories focus on words like adjectives, verbs and prepositions. Talk about what the characters do in the story. Explain pictures and emphasize important words.

When you go out in the community, talk to your child about what you and they see, such as when driving in the car or when shopping. Kids learn language all the time, and the more they hear from you, the better. 

How Do Speech-Language Pathologist’s Help?

Speech-language pathologists are specially trained to treat language disorders in children. These experts understand how language works and develops. They also know how to best help kids who struggle in this area. SLPs help by meeting kids where they are, teaching them language skills and expanding on what they already know.

SLPs first learn in what way a child needs help to get better language skills. They then give them ways to put their words together effectively. They show them ways to request, comment, describe and ask questions more. 

While a child getting their wants and needs met is incredibly important, SLPs also make sure a child knows how to use their words to talk with peers, describe what they see and ask questions to keep learning. 

Speech-language pathologists also get kids better language skills by using visuals and other helpful means to teach the skills in new ways. Many children benefit from learning language visually or and with other supports. 

SLPs learn what works best for every child and use those supports to get them the skills they need! Also, always feel free to ask your child’s speech therapist questions. Speech therapists enjoy sharing what they know and helping parents practice skills at home.

Conclusion 

In conclusion, when kids struggle to understand and use language, they may also have trouble learning in school. Almost everything we learn comes to us through words spoken by or shown to us by others. Children with language needs often struggle to learn new concepts in school and talk with others effectively. Language skills build on each other, so any skills not gained now need to be learned later, before new skills get learned.

By getting kids the help they need now, they build a foundation to be strong communicators and learn more in school. If your child has trouble putting words together or following directions, they may need expert help from a speech therapist. 

At  Verbalyze, we provide fun and engaging therapy and use research-based methods to give kids the most effective therapy available. You are welcome to contact us anytime to learn more and ask any questions about your child’s needs. 

Get Your Free Consultation
A father reads to his daughter with Down syndrome to help language therapy.

Boost Language Therapy For Your Child With Better Storybook Readings

, 0

When a child gets language therapy from an SLP, a parent might wonder if they can help support their child’s therapy. Reading storybooks gives you, the parent, a way to do this. This activity provides children with rich literacy-experience. 

In this post we share many of the ways in which you may help your child’s language skills through literacy. These are ways that you can transform a simple storybook reading into a powerful way to support your child’s language development.

Each story will provide different literacy opportunities. Events, characters and settings change in every story, and these differences add to the richness of storybook readings over time. We give you the tools you need to make every reading a chance for your child to learn new skills.

Getting Started Helping Language Therapy with Storybook Readings

When getting started with storybook readings to support your child’s language therapy, it helps to think like a therapist. But how do you think like a speech therapist? Begin by looking for opportunities for learning. 

In every storybook, there are many chances to narrate, make comparisons, ask questions and explain details. By looking at each page with a critical eye, you find more and more ways to help your child learn. By understanding the different approaches we share in this post, you build a powerful literacy toolkit. 

Use this toolkit to make each storybook reading a rich experience for your child. Even by first looking at the cover of the book, you get new ways of building your child’s language and literacy skills. Progressing page by page, you will find plenty of ways for your child to engage with the story using language. 

Emphasize and Explain the Parts of the Book 

We may want to jump right into a book; however, we need to first explain what it is we’re looking at. A child may not have book awareness. The first step is to show the child the cover of the book, the back of the book, what the pages look like, and how to hold the book. 

This step is especially true for young preschoolers. Even though this age group is not reading yet, it is important that they get to look at and hold books. Start by reading the names of the author and illustrator, then show your child each part of the book. 

You might show your child how to hold a book and what reading looks like pointing to the words as you read. This helps your child see the direction in which you read and what reading looks like. 

Describe the Pictures with Extra Narrative

It may be easy to focus only on the words we read, but by also describing pictures in our own words, we give extra language models. Narrating events is a powerful way to support language skills. By providing your own description of the pictures after reading the page, you give your child extra language input. 

When sharing extra descriptions, try to include these important words:

  • Verbs
  • Prepositions
  • Pronouns
  • Articles (i.e., a, an, and the)
  • Adjectives

By providing extra descriptions of pictures using the words above, you give your child models critical for language use. These relate to core vocabulary, common words that can be combined to make many different kinds of new sentences. When you do describe pictures, try to focus on important words, such as prepositions and adjectives. 

WH Questions and Story Events

Something else you may do to help support your child’s understanding of narratives is to ask them questions about what’s happening in the story. When your child responds, try using a language strategy to support what they shared. You may also describe the answers to your child. For example, you may talk about the where, the who and the what in a story.

When we talk about WH questions we most often mean:

  • Who
  • What
  • Where
  • When 
  • Why

Asking these questions or answering these questions in your own descriptions can help your child understand these concepts better.

If your child struggles to answer WH questions, first ask your child’s speech therapist about practicing at home. Your child’s speech therapist may have written WH question goals for your child, and they will practice the skills in the therapy room. 

Focus on Story Elements

When reading a story, you might ask your child about story elements. Story elements describe the most important parts of a story and help children think about stories. Parts of a story are different for every story. They can help children build literacy skills and world knowledge.

It may also help to write these story parts down together if your child reads and revisit them when you read new stories. Talking about story parts with your child may also help them. For example, you might describing characters and what they are doing, as well as where they are. 

Some of the most important story elements are:

  • Characters
  • The setting
  • Events or actions
  • The ending 
You may also help support their ability to think about story elements by comparing them. For example, you might ask or talk about how one character is similar to another. You might also talk about how one setting (place) is different from another. This helps children think about different stories. 

Help Language Therapy by Including Inferences

If your child receives language therapy, they might struggle with answering inference questions. By occasionally asking your child what will happen next in a story and talking through the events, you may support their ability to make inferences. 

Inferences are educated guesses we make about what will happen based on context clues we get from a story and what we already know. Children take what they see or hear from the story and combine it with what they already know. By doing so, they make guesses about what may happen next. 

Understanding the World

Sometimes your child might read something they don’t understand and don’t have experience with. When this happens, try to explain what it means.

For example, they might read about a jungle but have never seen or visited a jungle before. Try describing a jungle to them and showing them varied pictures of jungles. This is one example of building world knowledge. 

If they see or hear a word they don’t know, describe the word and show your child different pictures of what the word represents. Varying models of images can help support a child’s vocabulary and overall understanding of the world. 

Seeing Important Details

When you read a book to a child, and they try to make guesses about what will happen, help them see the details. Point to different parts of the picture, those parts that are the most important to their guess. By thinking about the details they see and what they already know, they get closer to guessing what will happen. 

If your child struggles to make inferences and gets language therapy, ask your child’s language therapist first before practicing these skills at home. Because your child’s language therapist knows how to provide support, it is important to speak with them first to give your child the best language outcomes. 

Bring Attention to Vocabulary Words

Every story provides a child with new words. These words many vary, but each one builds understanding of the world and connects with other words. When you read your child a story, focus on those words they may not know. Sometimes the words may be bolded or stand out as harder than others. 

Talking about new words is a great way to help build world-knowledge and give your child a way of thinking about their environment. When you share new words with your child and focus on words in stories, you also build what they know about the story. 

Storybook reading provides an excellent way to introduce your child to new vocabulary words. You may try writing down new words found in a story and talking about them later in the week. You may also show your child different pictures of the words to build their word concepts. 

Vocabulary Words and Language Therapy

If a child gets language therapy, then learning new words gives them a chance to build better language skills. Language skills and vocabulary are different. Language means putting words together to make sentences. Vocabulary means the words we know and understand. 
 
By helping a child learn new words, you give them new opportunities to use language in different ways. While language and vocabulary are different, they are strongly connected. 
 
New words may mean nouns, but when reading a story, you also give your child a chance to hear other important words used. These may include verbs, articles, adjectives and more. It is important that these words also be given great attention when reading a story. 

Retell the Story with Your Child

Retelling a story is a great way to support language therapy. Children who get language therapy often struggle with understanding and telling stories. By retelling a story with your child you give them more chances to use their language skills. 

At the end of a story, try asking your child about what happened in the story.  Provide support as needed and keep the activity enjoyable for your child. 

If your child struggles to retell stories, ask their language therapist whether or not this skill should be practiced at home. When recommended by an SLP, ask for guidance on how your child may be best supported in this area. 

If your child struggles in this area, you may also retell the story yourself so they hear a strong model of what it sounds like. When you retell the story, focus on sequence words, such as first, then, next and last. Also, bring attention to the parts of the story, such as the characters and events. 

How to Get Started with Language Therapy

If your child struggles to understand stories and share what they think about the story, they may need language therapy. By speaking with a licensed language therapist, you will learn whether your child needs help in this area and how they may be best supported. 

A language therapist performs a complete assessment to tell how to best support your child’s needs. At Verbalyze Online Speech Therapy, we provide effective language therapy to support your child’s development.

We use new research-based methods to get your child the skills they need to succeed. We also provide parent support and the tools you need to help your child at home. 

Get Your Free Consultation
A parent reading to his child so that she learns more new words.

Help Your Child Learn More New Words

, , 0

You can help your child learn more new words at home by using these expert tips from our speech therapists. First, it is important to understand how children learn more new words. In this post, we talk about learning vocabulary from a speech language pathologist’s point of view. We share how to help kids who struggle to build vocabulary, get the words they need to build a foundation and make stronger sentences. 

While many suggest flashcards, this method gives less depth and only builds a basic understanding of words. Children who struggle with vocabulary often need help building their world-knowledge and experience with the words. 

What Are Words?

As adults, we know many words, thousands, but what are they? It is important to know what a word is before we help children learn new ones. In a simple way, a word is a concept. We learn new words by using the words with others and by getting exposure to the word in the world. 

Every word we have connects with many other words that help define it and give it shape. Similarly, we help children learn words by giving them more experience with words. Every time a child sees and hears a word, the context gives that word richness and helps the child learn it. A single exposure to a word may be enough to know it at times, but only through seeing the word in different ways does understanding grow. 

Children Learn More New Words Through Experience 

Now that we defined a word, let’s talk about how we grow our vocabulary knowledge. Some might think that once a child learns a single definition, they know the word. However, that practice only gives a basic understanding.

Often times when children who struggle to learn new words only get a definition, they may find using the word challenging. They might also find it difficult to relate the word to any others they already know. 

Kids overcome this challenge by seeing and hearing the word in many different ways. 

We included some of the best places to learn words below:

  • Reading books
  • Listening to stories 
  • Visiting the community 
  • Interacting with others 
  • Seeing the word used in new ways

Enrich Your Child’s Language with Storybook Readings

By reading to your child or having your child read books, they get many new contexts for vocabulary words. This means that your child gets to see or hear the word used in new ways, which helps build stronger connections to that word! 

Storybook reading also gives children many examples of new sentences and helps them learn how story narratives work. When a child reads a book, many new skills get learned and strengthened.

Some books even focus on just those important words the child needs to learn. In fact, storybook readings give a great opportunity to talk about those important words, what they mean and how people use them. 

When you pick out a new book, check to see what words it includes and how you can read it in a way that support your child’s vocabulary the most. 

Do Our Senses Help Us Learn More New Words?

Our senses help us learn vocabulary by storing new and related information. Knowing what an object looks like and feels like helps us grow our vocabulary knowledge. Making some words a sensory experience can help kids learn them better. 

You can give kids the opportunity to expand on their vocabulary through play and by showing them new places. For example, when a child visits an aquarium for the first time, they get the chance to learn new vocabulary related to the ocean. When kids go to a grocery store, they get the chance to learn new foods. 

Remember that learning words should be interactive when possible! 

Children also learn about words when they hear about the functions of words. For example, a child may hear about what an object does, where to find it, what color it is, and other facts. 

How Does Speech Therapy Help Vocabulary?

When children participate in speech therapy, they learn more new words by expanding on what they already know. They also learn by relating the words they know to other words. Speech therapists know how to introduce words and how to grow vocabulary skills in a way that is unique the child.

Speech therapists also know how to give kids tools they can use when learning words on their own. They can also give kids ways to remember words they already learned. 

If you are concerned about your child’s ability to learn and remember new words, speak to a licensed speech therapist today. 

Get Your Free Consultation