Toys that Encourage Speech in Children
Parents are always anxiously awaiting the first words out of their children’s mouths. After that initial “mama” and “papa” have been spoken, parents often wonder, what next? They ask themselves (and their parenting friends), “What can we do to encourage more speech in our child?” The following toys make great gifts for children who are embarking on the very exciting stage of life we call communication.
1. Books are a great gift to encourage speech in children. Books help children to understand the concept that the printed word carries meaning. Even better is the modeling that occurs when parents read to their children.
2. Ring Ring! Telephones are great toys for kids. There are many toy phones and cell phones on the market. They make great noises, have real numbers and feature bright eye catching colors.
3. Finger puppets are another great way to encourage speech. You can begin using finger puppets when your child is just a newborn. Create conversations between the puppets so that your child can begin to see that dialogue occurs in a back and forth fashion.
4. Blowing bubbles isn’t just fun and games, it actually helps get the mouth ready for talking. A bottle of bubbles and a wand are an inexpensive gift that kids love and continue to get enjoyment out of as they grow.
5. Musical instruments are great for encouraging speech. When a child has to manipulate their mouth and tongue to create music, they are working on the “talking muscles.” Kids also feel very proud of themselves when they are able to make music! The Tub Tunes water flutes (amazon.com) are musical instruments that can be played in the tub by blowing into the water.
6. Any toy that encourages singing is sure to encourage speech. Probably the best toy for this is the microphone. The Tuff Stuff tape recorder and microphone (amazon.com) even has a recording device that kids can use to record their voices and play them back to hear what they sound like. Even lip synching can help develop speech in children!
7. Toys that feature animal sounds are great for beginning speech. Most animal sounds have great beginning consonants blended with vowel sounds (moo, baa, etc.). When babies begin to coo they often imitate these sounds. One great product for animal sounds is the Little People Animal Sounds Farm (amazon.com).
8. Teaching children to communicate can begin long before they learn to speak. Great gifts for babies are gifts that can help their parents teach and learn sign language. There are toys, flashcards and books that can teach simple signs such as “more”, “hungry”, “all done” etc.
9. In recent years, there have been many DVDs and videos produced that can help encourage speech. Leapfrog and Baby Einstein have entire lines of products devoted to this purpose. Visit speechville.com/helping-at-home/toys-videos.html for a list of these videos.
10. A mirror is a fantastic tool for a child when they are learning to speak. An adult can model the shape of their mouth when creating sounds and the child can mimic what they see. The website talkingchild.com features an inexpensive mirror, among other great toys to encourage speech.
This article was provided by the authors at pet super store which is an online pet supplies store featuring great deals on dog houses and patio pet doors!