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Topic “Speaking”
indicates yes given a choice
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Indicating 'Yes' An undesirable food item A favourite toy Two helpers | 1. Sit the child at a table with one communicator adult in front and one helper behind the child. 2. Offer the child an undesirable item and wait for the child to reject this. Then offer an item you know the child likes - either food or a toy - say 'Do you want this?' The communicator adult models acceptance by smiling, nodding and saying 'Yes'. The helper adult gently takes the child's head and makes a nod to indicate 'Yes' at the same time. The helper adult does not speak. 3. Continue until the child has learnt to indicate 'Yes' in an acceptable way. 4. Vary the items offered to the child. The child is automatically rewarded for indicating 'Yes' by getting the desired item. | Saying 'Yes' is more difficult for most children than saying 'No'. Work in short sharp bursts. When the skills for rejecting and accepting look as though they are understood extend the skill to lunch hour choices or playground choices of toys etc. |
indicates no given a choice
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Indicating 'No' An undesirable food item A favourite toy Two helpers | 1. Sit the child at a table with one communicator adult in front and one helper behind the child. 2. The communicator adult offers the child a short play with the toy and then says 'finished'. 3. The communicator adult offers the child the undesirable food item - what ever you know the child dislikes - and says 'do you want this?'. The communicator adult models 'No' and shakes her/his head and holds up a hand to show 'No'. The helper adult gently shakes the child's head from behind but does not say anything. 4. The communicator adult takes away the undesirable food item and offers the child time to play with the toy again. 5. Repeat the process over and over again until the child starts to shake his/her own head or hold up a hand or say 'No' or a mix of all three to indicate rejection. 6. When the child starts to indicate 'No' acceptably reward immediately. 7. When the child reliably rejects one item move on and work on rejecting a different item - maybe not food. | The object of this activity is to give the child an acceptable way of rejecting things without having a tantrum. Only offer undesirable items you don't mind the child rejecting. Work on this activity in pairs for short sharp bursts. Children usually start to indicate 'No' before indicating 'Yes'. The sign for "no" in Signalong and Makaton is working flat hand held in front of the body facing forward, pointing up, moves sharply to the working side. |
Building story telling/narrative skills using visual aids
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Story Lines - Washing line - Pegs - Selection of pictures | 1. Peg a picture on the line and ask your child to look at it - you could ask you child to choose a picture from a selection. 2. The adult says "It's story time and we are going to make up a story with the pictures" The adult starts the story by using the word on the picture. 3. Encourage your child to take the next turn by choosing a new picture and thinking how they can add to the story that has already been started. 4. Keep going until all the pictures have been used, or the story comes to a natural end. | This activity can be carried out with a small group of children You may need to recap the story at each turn, or give options if your child is finding it challenging to know what they can add. You could use a familiar story and use pictures from the book pegged to the line - you could encourage your child to retell the story with the pictures.
|
| Story Dice | This activity can be carried out with a small group of children You may need to recap the story at each turn, or give options if your child is finding it challenging to know what they can add. |
Indicates wanting more of an activity
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Bubbles/balloon | Blow some bubbles to get the child's attention / Blow a balloon up and then let the air out to make a noise. Get ready to do the activity again, but wait for the child to indicate that they want some more. | Use a phrase to encourage anticipation (for example "ready, steady......go!") Initially encourage eye contact to communicate wanting more. You can do this by holding the bubbles up near your face. As the child becomes more consistent in using eye contact encourage them to use the "more" sign by modelling this for them. The activity must be motivating for the child for this to work: do not labour the activity if the child is not interested in it. |
| Building a tower Bricks or stacking beakers. | Work in a quiet distraction free place. Make this activity fun and snappy! The activity must be motivating for the child for this to work: do not labour the activity if the child is not interested in it. | |
| Making sand pies with a twist Small bucket Sand in a sand pit Spade Small animal to hide at the bottom of the bucket. | Have fun! The activity must be motivating for the child for this to work: do not labour the activity if the child is not interested in it. | |
| Filling transparent container with bottle tops (or other items) Several containers Large amount of bottle tops (or other similar material) | Have fun! Rattle the bag with the bottle tops, and give a lot of encouragement and praise. Make sure the child knows they are going to be rewarded with the desired object if they indicate more. |
Reach to indicate wanting more of an activity
| Activity/strategy name and materials required | How to do the activity | Key principles for doing the activity and comments |
|---|---|---|
| Water play
| 1. Try actions that the child might enjoy, for example squeezing out the sponge, pouring water over their hands, flicking a little bit of water towards the child; 2. Stop and wait; 3. Look for any sign that the child might want the action repeated, this could be looking, smiling, a slight movement. For some children the only indication they might make is not moving their hands away; 4. Repeat the activity. | The purpose of this activity is to encourage children to use a developmentally early method of showing that they want some or more of an activity. This activity may be too low level for the child if they are beginning to make some other indication that they want some or more of an activity, for example using a gesture or sign, using some kind of vocalisation. Keep each go short so that the child has plenty of opportunities to indicate that they want the activity repeated. Do not continue the activity if there is any indication that the child does not want to do the activity. A helper sitting behind the child to assist them in making the reaching response can make this activity easier. |
| Personal battery operated fans Hand held battery operated fan. | Comments - see above. | |
| Textures/messy play One or materials with different textures, for example:
| Comments - see above. | |
| Noise makers Musical instruments, for example:
| Comments - see above. | |
| Cause and effect toys Any toys which have a quick response, e.g. a jack in a box. | For comments - see above. |
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