Children develop their communication skills through everyday interactions — playing, talking, reading books, singing songs and spending time with the people around them.
If your child is seeing a Speech Pathologist, you may also be given particular activities or strategies to practise at home. These should be based on the communication skills your child is working on and can often be incorporated into things your family is already doing.
Pediatric speech therapy activities at home don’t need to feel like sitting down for a lesson. For many children, some of the best opportunities to practise communication happen naturally through play and everyday routines.
What Do Speech Therapy Activities Work On?
Activities can look very different depending on what a child needs support with.
A Speech Pathologist may work with a child on areas such as:
- producing speech sounds
- understanding language
- using words and sentences to communicate
- building vocabulary
- telling stories and sharing information
- social communication
- fluency.
This is why there isn’t one set of “speech therapy exercises” that will suit every child.
If your child is already seeing a Speech Pathologist, they can recommend activities that match your child’s individual goals. If you’re looking for general ways to create more opportunities for communication at home, there are also plenty of simple things you can try during everyday play.
1. Add New Words During Play
Play gives you lots of opportunities to introduce words in a meaningful context.
If your child is playing with cars, you might naturally use words such as:
- “Fast!”
- “The car is zooming.”
- “It’s going under the bridge.”
- “Uh-oh, it crashed!”
You don’t need to ask your child to repeat every word. Hearing words used during an activity they are interested in gives them opportunities to connect the word with what is happening.
You can do the same thing while playing with dolls, building blocks, cooking, drawing or playing outside.
2. Build On What Your Child Says
When your child communicates something, you can respond by adding a little more information.
For example:
Child: “Dog running.”
Adult: “Yes, the big dog is running!”
Or:
Child: “Car.”
Adult: “It’s a red car.”
You don’t need to correct your child’s sentence or ask them to repeat yours. Instead, you’re giving them an example of another way their message could be expressed.
The amount you add will depend on how your child currently communicates.
3. Offer Choices During Everyday Routines
Choices can create natural opportunities for children to communicate what they want.
At snack time, you might ask:
“Would you like apple or banana?”
While getting dressed:
“Do you want the blue shirt or the green shirt?”
During play:
“Should Teddy go in the car or the bus?”
For some children, showing the two options while saying the words can make the choice easier to understand.
The important part is that the communication has a purpose — your child is using it to make something happen.
4. Look at Books Together
Books can be a great place to talk, learn new words and share ideas.
You don’t always have to read every word on the page.
You might:
- talk about what you can see in the pictures
- name unfamiliar objects
- wonder what a character might do next
- talk about what has just happened
- connect something in the book with your child’s own experiences.
If your child wants to spend five minutes talking about the picture of a digger instead of finishing the story, that’s okay. Following their interest can create plenty of opportunities for communication too.
If you’d like more ideas for turning story time into an opportunity for conversation and language development, read our How to Read With Your Child to Support Language Development guide.
5. Use Pretend Play
Pretend play can create lots of reasons to communicate.
You might play:
- shops
- doctors
- restaurants
- cooking
- schools
- animals
- dolls or figurines
- trains, cars or buses.
Instead of turning the game into a quiz, join your child’s play and model useful words and sentences as you go.
If you’re playing shops, for example, you might say:
“Can I have two apples?”
“That’s five dollars.”
“Oh no! We’ve run out of bananas.”
The language becomes part of the game rather than something your child is being tested on.
6. Play Listening and Sound Games
Listening games can be another fun activity to try together.
You might listen for sounds around the house or outside and talk about what you hear:
“Can you hear that bird?”
“I heard a truck!”
“What made that noise?”
You could also play with rhyming words, clap along with words or notice sounds in familiar words.
Different listening and sound activities work on different skills, so if your Speech Pathologist has recommended a particular activity, follow their advice about what to practise and how.
7. Practise Speech Sounds Through Play
If your child is working on particular speech sounds with a Speech Pathologist, you may be given sounds, words or activities to practise at home.
Try to follow the targets your Speech Pathologist has provided rather than choosing sounds based only on what seems difficult. Speech sounds develop at different times, and the most appropriate way to practise them will depend on your child’s individual speech pattern.
Our Articulation Development When Do Children Learn Different Speech Sounds guide explains more about how children’s speech sounds typically develop.
Your Speech Pathologist might suggest making practice more playful by using:
- picture cards
- matching games
- treasure hunts
- I Spy
- target words hidden around the room
- silly sentences containing the target sound
- games where each turn includes a practice word.
The exact activity matters less than practising the skill in the way your Speech Pathologist has recommended.
8. Use Songs, Rhymes and Repetition
Songs and rhymes naturally include repetition, which can give children plenty of opportunities to hear and join in with familiar words and phrases.
Try pausing before a familiar part:
“Twinkle, twinkle, little…”
…and see whether your child wants to finish it.
You can also make songs silly by changing familiar words or adding your child’s name.
There’s no need to pressure your child to join in. Listening, watching, moving or requesting the song again are all ways they can participate.
9. Bring Communication Into Everyday Routines
You don’t always need to set aside separate “speech therapy time”.
Everyday routines already contain opportunities to communicate.
While preparing food, you might talk about what you’re cutting, pouring or stirring.
At bath time, you might use words such as wet, dry, splash, wash, in and out.
While getting ready to leave the house, you might talk about what you need:
“Shoes on.”
“Where’s your hat?”
“We need your drink bottle.”
Using language in the moment helps connect words with real objects, actions and experiences.
How Long Should We Practise Speech Therapy Activities at Home?
There isn’t one amount of practice that’s right for every child.
If your child is seeing a Speech Pathologist, follow their recommendations about what to practise and how often. Some therapy goals may benefit from specific home practice, while other strategies can be incorporated naturally into everyday play and routines.
It’s also okay to stop if your child is tired, frustrated or no longer interested.
Home practice should support the work happening in therapy — not turn every interaction between you and your child into a therapy session.
When Might a Speech Pathologist Help?
Children develop communication skills at different rates, and there can be many reasons a child communicates differently from their peers.
You may consider speaking with a Speech Pathologist if you have questions or concerns about your child’s:
- speech clarity
- speech sounds
- understanding of language
- use of words and sentences
- ability to communicate their ideas
- fluency
- social communication.
A Speech Pathologist can assess your child’s communication, identify their strengths and areas where they may benefit from support, and recommend strategies that are appropriate for them.
If you’re wondering what Speech Pathology involves, our Speech Therapy for Children: A Parent Guide is a good place to start.
Supporting Communication at Home
Supporting communication at home doesn’t need to involve worksheets, drills or long practice sessions.
Talk while you’re playing. Share books together. Add words to things your child is already interested in. Give them time to communicate and respond to what they are trying to tell you.
If your child has specific speech therapy goals, their Speech Pathologist can also show you how to practise those skills in ways that fit naturally into your family’s routines.
At Happy Chatter, our Speech Pathologists work with children and families to support communication skills that are meaningful in their everyday lives.