Use these tips to increase words & turns when talking, reading, or singing with a child.
1. Talk about what you’re doing and thinking.
2. Comment on what they’re doing or looking at.
3. Name things that they’re interested in.
4. Get down to their level: face to face.
5. Touch, hug, hold.
6. Tune in and respond to what they look at, do, and say.
7. Wait for their response.
8. Imitate them, and add words.
9. Make faces, use gestures.
10. Take turns – don’t do all the talking.
11. Repeat and add to what they say and do.
12. Follow their lead, do what interests them.
13. Encourage them, be positive.
14. Be silly! Relax and have fun!
Did you know? In the first few years of life...
- • Early language exposure, in particular interactive talk, is one of the strongest predictors of brain development.
- One million new neural connections form in a child’s brain every second, according to the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University.
- The amount of conversational turns children experience correlates with their brain activity and brain structure, and has been shown by new research to be predictive of IQ and language skills in adolescence.
To learn more, visit info.lena.org/webinars.
