Choose a section:

Choose something to look for:

Topic “P2”

Activities to develop early choice making between two items

Activity/strategy name and materials required	How to do the activity	Key principles for doing the activity and comments
Choosing Between Toys - Desired and undesired toys, other objects	To begin with hold out a liked toy and a neutral object like a piece of paper - encourage the child to reach for what they want. When they can do this consistently hold out two toys - encourage the child to reach to choose.	Vary which side you hold the toys out to ensure that the child doesn't always reach in one direction. Occasionally, when the child has been reaching for what they want swap the toys around and see whether they still reach for the same one. Always label what they choose for example "snake ... you want the snake...".
Choosing Between Food - Two types of food	Login or register to see the instructions for this activity.	As above Always label what the child chooses or reaches for. For example: 'Oh, rice, mmmm' Make appropriate sounds like 'mmmmmm', 'yum yum' etc.

Activity/strategy name and materials required	How to do the activity	Key principles for doing the activity and comments
Peek-a-boo - A toy that your child is motivated by. - A small blanket.	Show your child the toy and let them explore it. Cover the toy with the blanket. Pull the blanket off the toy - you could say 'peek a boo' or name the toy as you uncover it. Repeat this a few times and watch your child's reaction - do they anticipate you are going to pull the blanket off? Do they attempt to get to the hidden object? If your child is not looking towards the blanket when you hide the toy, try using a noisy toy so they can listen to the sound when it is hidden under the blanket.	Only do this activity when the child is interested in the toy and is likely to want to continue to play with it Keep other distractions to a minimum - if there are other toys for them to play with they may not look for the hidden toy If the child is not aware that the toy still exists, gain their attention and lift up the cloth. 'Here it is!' Let the child play with the toy again

Activity/strategy name and materials required	How to do the activity	Key principles for doing the activity and comments
Cloth and Peek-a-boo Place cloth over Child's face	Place cloth on Child's face, wait and see if he makes any reaction, then pull it off saying 'peek-a-boo'	Child will need time to become familiar with the routine of the activity Use simple words like 'gone' and 'hello'
Cloth and Song 'Where is Child? Where is Child? Here he is! Here he is!' To the tune of 'Frere Jaques'	Login or register to see the instructions for this activity.	Child will need time to become familiar with the routine of the activity

Activity/strategy name and materials required	How to do the activity	Key principles for doing the activity and comments
Box and Bricks Box Bricks	Empty the bricks on the floor or table Help child pick up a brick and place it in the box... Remember to use simple words like 'in', 'more'... When all the bricks are in the box say 'all in, no more!' (or something similar!) Then help child take them out again - say 'out', 'more' etc	Initially he might need to be helped (hand-over-hand) to pick up brick, place hand in/near box and prompted to drop it The aim to develop child's ability to do this more and more independently...
Post Box Commercial or home made post box, pictures or objects to post	Login or register to see the instructions for this activity.	Remember to use simple words and comment on what is happening...
Monkey Eating Monkey box and plastic food	Login or register to see the instructions for this activity.	Remember to use simple names ( 'apple') and 'in' and noises like 'mmm', 'yum yum' etc

Activity/strategy name and materials required	How to do the activity	Key principles for doing the activity and comments
Tower Building - 4-5 bricks or other items that will stack.	- Show your child the items. - Stack them on top of each other - use words while you are stacking, this could be the number, e.g. 1, 2, 3..., or the colour, e.g. red, green yellow, or brick, more bricks. - Use 'ready steady...' or 'i, 2, 3 knock down' while you knock the tower down. - Rebuild the tower and carry out the sequence again. - When your child becomes familiar with this routine see if they copy you by knocking the tower down.

Activity/strategy name and materials required	How to do the activity	Key principles for doing the activity and comments
Songs with actions No materials required.	1. Sing songs with simple actions like 'Row row the boat' (with rocking). 2. When the song is very familiar pause after (or during) the song and encourage the child to indicate that they want the song to continue by looking at you, smiling, or pulling on your hands to continue rocking.	Use simple familiar songs with simple physical actions. Pause and allow the child time to indicate they want more. Look for actions, looks or movements which suggest the child is communicating that he wants to continue. If he makes no indication that he wants to continue pull a few times on his hands (to prompt him) and then sing the song again.
Sensory Toys - A selection of vibrating toys, light and sound toys.	Login or register to see the instructions for this activity.	Allow your child time to enjoy the toy before turning it off. After you turn it off pause and look for any communication. If your child makes no communication prompt him by making a sound ( 'ah'?) and turn it back on. Continue for a few turns.

Thank you for visiting Commtap.

Commtap needs £5,000 per year to cover its basic running costs, we only have £1,000 left. Please make a donation now.

Please read this message as it is extremely important.

Visitor donations mean we can continue to host over 1,000 free activities to support speech, language, and communication development.
Visitor donations mean we can continue to provide free resources to address a wide range of communication needs, including limited speech or language, interaction challenges, and needs associated with conditions such as developmental language disorder, autism, and cerebral palsy.
Visitor donations mean we can continue to provide resources to support the work of speech and language therapists, teachers, teaching assistants, parents, and carers.

It costs £5,000 a year to cover Commtap's basic day-to-day running costs. We have £1,000 left.

Right now, less than 1% of Commtap's visitors pay anything towards the running of the site.

We know that not everyone is able to afford to pay to access these resources, however, if you can, please make a minimum donation of £10 to keep the site going.

Thank you