Speech therapy is a vital service for many kids with special needs. The earlier a child with speech delays begins working with a speech therapist, the more progress can be made. Parents can aid that progress by reinforcing the therapist’s efforts at home. A recent article at Huffington Post by speech therapist Jaime Openden explains 3 simple ways parents can help.

3 Speech Therapy Tips

Openden lists the following three simple tips parents can use at home:

1. Simplify the vocabulary
2. Shorten the length of sentences
3. Show your meaning in gestures

That sounds almost too simple, doesn’t it?

Speech Therapy Tips Applied

Openden knows parents need more to go on than that. Here’s how she explains how to apply the three tips:

1. If the language being used is too complicated, simplify it. Instead of asking a child to “locate” something, ask them to “touch” it or “point” to it.
2. When the message is too long, shorten it. When telling your child about chores that need to be done, don’t use long sentences. Put the items into a short list instead.
3. When your child has no previous knowledge or context to help him understand what you mean, show what you mean. Use gestures, act it out, or model what you want your child to do first.

You can read more of Jaime’s great advice in her article, Speech Therapy Tips for Parents to Use at Home.

Speech Therapy Made Simple

Opendale’s ideas seem almost too simple, don’t they? But simple solutions are usually the best, and it’s comforting to know you can assist your child’s trained speech therapist by simplifying, shortening, and showing at home.

How about you? Has your child’s therapist shared any tips for you to use at home? Have you discovered some on your own? If so, please share what you’ve learned in the comment box. Thanks!

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Photo by Ann Danilina on Unsplash