Helping your child learn how to communicate is one of the many joys of parenthood. From the thrill of hearing “mama” or “dada” for the first time to talking with your child after their first day of school, communication is one way we bond with our kids. But some children need a little extra help to learn how to communicate effectively. Speech therapy activities for kids offer several ways to give them the boost they need.
There are lots of reasons a child might need to utilize speech therapy. Some kids have muscular conditions that make it difficult for them to move the muscles of their mouths. Others have developmental delays that affect their communication ability. And some may have hearing impairments.
Regardless of the reason for speech therapy, at Endeavors Pediatric Therapy Services , we strive to make the experience as fun and rewarding for your child as possible. We’ll provide enjoyable, kid-friendly activities that teach your child the necessary skills without feeling like school or homework. Plus, we’ll show you speech therapy activities for kids that you can do at home!
Ready to get started? Schedule an appointment at our Statesville clinic for more information today!
Understanding the Reasons Kids Might Need Speech Therapy Activities
Most children work with a speech therapist because they are not meeting the developmental milestones for language and communication skills. Experts have provided rough guidelines that let you know when to expect certain skills to develop: for example, most kids speak their first word around their first birthday and their first sentence around their second or third.
But if a child misses one of these milestones by a significant margin (more than a few months), it could be a sign of an underlying condition that can further impact their ability to speak, listen, read, or write–all the different pieces of communication. But speech therapy can help them improve these skills or find new communication methods.
Here are a few reasons a child might have a communication delay and so would benefit from speech therapy:
- Hearing Impairment: If a child struggles to hear, they can’t learn language by immersion, as most children do.
- Autism: This neurological condition often causes delays in language and communication.
- Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS): Apraxia causes a miscommunication between the brain and the muscles of the mouth or tongue. A child with CAS knows what they want to say but can not move their muscles correctly.
- Dysarthria: This condition is similar to CAS but occurs when a child has weak mouth or tongue muscles and so struggles to physically speak. It often accompanies conditions like cerebral palsy.
- Learning Differences: Sometimes, learning differences or other intellectual disabilities (such as dyslexia) might lead to difficulties with communication.
It’s important to remember that speech therapy doesn’t just focus on speech. It can also help with listening skills and following directions (receptive language, as opposed to expressive language, which includes speaking and writing). And for children who struggle to move their mouths, we can also help with swallowing difficulties.
Fun Speech Therapy Activities for Kids
At Endeavors Pediatric Therapy Services , we develop customized programs that address your child’s specific needs while speaking to their age level and personal interests. Aside from helping your child improve their communication skills, we want to see them have fun during their sessions!
For that reason, we work to make our lessons and activities feel like games or playtime. Here are a few examples of speech therapy activities for kids we might try.
- Word Hopscotch: We’ll draw a hopscotch grid with target words written in each box. When your child lands on the box, they say the word out loud. We can also have the child call out the same word each time they jump, encouraging them to practice tough words.
- Touch and Feel: We’ll put different objects (such as a stuffed animal or Play-dough) inside a box, then ask your child to reach inside and describe what they feel, which helps broaden their vocabulary and practice new words.
- Scavenger Hunt: We’ll give your child clues to help them find particular objects: for example, “Find something pretty” might lead them to pick a flower, helping them to link objects to definitions. Or we can help them with sound production by having them find items with target sounds (i.e., a rock for a hard K sound).
- Peer Groups: For older children, we might utilize therapist-led peer groups, where kids can practice their conversation skills with other kids of their age and ability level.
This is just a small sample of our activities at Endeavors Pediatric Therapy Services . We can also provide you with similar activities to do at home!
Schedule An Initial Assessment Today!
Speech therapy offers numerous benefits in a fun, supportive, and playful environment. If you suspect your child has some sort of communication delay, call our Statesville office today to see about setting up an initial assessment.
Sources:
- https://www.asha.org/public/speech/development/activities-to-encourage-speech-and-language-development/
- https://www.asha.org/slp/clinical/childlanguage/
Tags: Speech Therapist, Speech therapy clinic, Speech therapy activities for kids, Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy
