Sometimes bouts of forgetfulness or mistakes can spark language! In my best-selling book, My Toddler Talks, I refer to this language tempting strategy as “Oops!” It’s described as forgetting something essential or skipping an important step in a routine as a way to entice a child to communicate. This is because most toddlers know when a routine has been violated and want to point out the mistake. While “Oops!” may not sound scientific it is based upon a popular and evidence-based milieu training method known as sabotage or environmental sabotage. Researchers have found environmental sabotage ..read more

Many children in the United States attend daycare centers. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, “In 2019, approximately 59 percent of children age 5 and younger and not enrolled in kindergarten were in at least one weekly nonparental care arrangement, as reported by their parents” (nces.ed.gov, as cited in Larson et al., 2020). Sixty-two percent of these children were attending a daycare center, preschool, or center-based prekindergarten. With so many young children attending daycare centers, what effect do they have on language development? How does language stimulation ..read more

Does your toddler blurt out sounds like “eh” or “uh” or grunt instead of saying the word? Sometimes when young children are excited by something in their environment, they resort to crying out visceral sounds rather than retrieving the word necessary to thoughtfully convey their intention or idea. These meaningless sounds may occur more frequently with children who have language delays and disorders because it’s easier for them to make the sound “eh” or “uh” than to say the word. One time I was working with two parents and their adorable toddler. This little guy’s vocabulary was nicely expand ..read more

The air is crisp and cool. The leaves are starting to change color.  Mums, pumpkins, and scarecrows abound front steps and stoops.  I love fall!  The change in seasons provides an authentic way to introduce our young children to fresh experiences and novel vocabulary words.  Since I treat many curious young toddlers and preschoolers, I love using short board books to introduce, expose, and rehash vocabulary related to fall.  Baby Loves Fall by Karen Katz is one of my go-to-books to read in autumn.  Do you know this book? Baby Loves Fall * by Karen Katz is a darli ..read more

Fall is right around the corner! With the last few weeks of summer dwindling, I’m getting in gear for fall and back to school season. I’ve created this fall-themed sensory bin activity for children. This activity helps to get your toddler talking by introducing them to different objects and allowing them to develop their cognitive skills AND language. Why Create a Sensory Bin? Young children learn through hands-on play, using multiple senses simultaneously. Hands-on play allows children to explore using their touch, sight, smell, and taste. They are able to interact with items on their own and ..read more

Baby Love Summer : A Book Companion to Elicit Gestures, First Words, and Word Combinations As we know language learning doesn’t or shouldn’t stop during the summer. If anything summer and vacations are a wonderful time to incorporate new vocabulary words! As the days get warmer and the bees start buzzing, I love to incorporate the book, Baby Loves Summer* into my speech therapy sessions. Do you know this book? Baby Loves Summer * by Karen Katz is a delightful book to use with toddlers and young children who are learning to communicate. Lifting the flaps to reveal the answers to simple but sti ..read more

Do you celebrate Easter? My family and I do! Celebrating holidays effectively introduces new words into your child’s vocabulary. Since Easter occurs in the spring, this holiday provides a wonderful way to practice springtime vocabulary with your little one.  In my previous blog post, I mentioned how wonderful Karen Katz’s book Baby Loves Spring! is for introducing toddlers to new springtime vocabulary. I even made a book companion to go along with it, helping to stimulate sounds, first words, and word combinations!  Join me in my Youtube video here where I open some Easter eggs and ..read more

I grew up hearing my mother say, “The family that works together, stays together.” As corny as this sounds, there’s some truth in it. Giving your toddler some simple, developmentally appropriate chores is a win-win!  Having your toddler clean up his or her mess gives them a productive role in the family, provides them with a sense of accomplishment, helps keep your sanity (especially during these unprecedented times) AND can even promote language learning. One of my favorite parenting books is *How to Raise Kind Kids: And Get Respect, Gratitude, and a Happier Family in the Bargain which ..read more

There is a link between verb knowledge and language development. Verb knowledge is a better indicator of linguistic skills than noun knowledge. Children who are late talkers or have an increased risk of Developmental Language Disorder tend to acquire verbs at a slower rate than typically developing children. Even so though, for several reasons, verb acquisition appears to be more challenging for all children than noun acquisition. Verbs are more fleeting in nature than nouns, the mental representation of verbs is not well understood and children may not yet have “adultlike” representations of ..read more

Baby Loves Spring * by Karen Katz is an adorable book to use with toddlers and young children who are learning to communicate. Lifting the flaps to reveal the answers to simple but stimulating wh-questions is something my children and clients love! This is the perfect book to target many different expressive and receptive language goals. (*Amazon affiliate links have been included for your convenience. Please know that if purchase through this link I earn a small commission. This commission helps me pay for my website management. Thank you!). This book provides many opportunities to elicit so ..read more