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How you can help

A man bathing a babyIt's never too soon to talk to your child. Babies will even respond to voices in their mum’s tummies.

Don’t worry if you think they can’t understand you. You are teaching them new words by talking to them in a fun way and by waiting for them to try and talk back!

Listen and talk to the children you know in your lives. Teach them new words and about new things and give them time to respond to you. Let’s get talking together! You will find lots of ideas here to help you.

Click on the links below for more information about our top tips to talking.

 

Talking Tuesdays

Talking Tuesdays is a monthly challenge. It is designed to give you fun ideas for practising language skills with your little one. Some are seasonal, but lots of them can be done at any time of year.

Below you can find all of the Talking Tuesdays challenges. These are printable resources.

 

Summer Challenge 2018

The Talking Tuesdays Summer Challenge was a weekly challenge designed to get you talking.

 

Challenge 1

Make a wand!

You can use ribbon, feathers, buttons and beads, glitter

 

Challenge 2

Make a den!You could use: towels, cushions, cardboard boxes, blankets, branches, duvet, chairs, tables. Get creative! Let's get talking: dark, soft, hide, hard, smooth, quietly, small, big, lift, whisper, sturdy, squeeze, strong, heavy, peek

 

Challenge 3

Teddy Bear's picnic.

Our 'Talking Tuesday' challenge this week is to have a teddy bear's picnic! find your teapot, cups and saucer and get talking. Don't forget to take a photo of your picnic for your challenge passport. Let's get talking! Pouring, stirring, yummy, teapot, apple, your turn, blanket, chopping, sipping, cup and saucer, rumbling tummy, chomping, hot, tasty, eating, nibbling

 

Challenge 4

Make up a story

Once upon a time...what happened? Where did it happen? Who is in the story? How does it end? The end! Don't forget to take a photo for your summer challenge passport!

 

Challenge 5

Let's get messy

Our Talking Tuesday Challenge this week is to play with a messy activity! Why not try cooked spaghetti, oats, playdough, shredded paper - the possibilities are endless. Painting, mid, shaving foam, cereals, cornflour and water, cooked spaghetti and food colouring. Describing words to try: rough, smooth, squelchy, squashy, tickly, lumpy, gritty, rubbery, prickly, fluffy, sticky, crunchy, slimy, bubbly, doughy, floppy

 

Challenge 6

Let's get creative

You might need: scissors, chalk, coloured paper, newspaper, shredded paper, cardboard boxes. This week we are challenging you to get creative - use old boxes, yoghurt pots, and toilet roll tubes to make a creation. What will you make?

Maintain your first language

Keep your language alive by talking to your child in your first language. It’s good to grow up bilingual. It will help your child’s learning. 

Be proud of who you are. Your first language is part of your identity. Your child needs it to talk to friends and family.

Speaking well in their own first language helps children learn other languages.

 

At home

  • Talk to your baby in your first language. Let the children learn English from English speakers and their first language from you. That way, they have the best model for each language.
  • Share books with your baby or child. You can talk about the pictures in your first language and retell the story using the pictures. Borrow dual language books from your local library.
  • Sing to your baby or child in your first language.

 

When your child starts at a nursery, school or Children’s Centre

  • Share some useful words with the staff. These would include words such as ‘toilet’, ‘hungry’ and ‘drink’. You can also offer to help staff translate other useful words.
  • Talk to staff about what your child likes to do at home.

Limit the use of dummies

A dummy Information about dummies can be confusing, but it is thought that using dummies too much can delay children’s speech development. The following is based on advice given by the Lullaby Trust:

Some research suggests that using a dummy when putting a baby down to sleep could reduce the risk of sudden infant death.

If you choose to use a dummy, wait until breastfeeding is well established (at up to about four weeks old). Try to keep it for sleep times only and make sure it is part of your baby’s regular sleep routine.

Stop giving a dummy to your baby between six and 12 months. Six months is when your baby will start to experiment more with making speech sounds.

If your chid does use a dummy when they are awake, take it out when they are talking - either when they are making early communication noises and babble, or later, real words.

Don’t force your baby to take a dummy or put it back if they spit it out, and don’t use a neck cord. You shouldn’t put anything sweet on the dummy or offer it during awake time.

Using an orthodontic dummy is best as it adapts to your baby’s mouth shape.

You can speak to your Children’s Centre team or health visitor about using dummies and about ways to use dummies less.

Signs and symbols

What are signs and symbols?

  • A sign is an action or a gesture that you make with your hands, body and face as you speak. This picture shows you how to sign listen.

Sign language for listen

  • A symbol is a picture that you use to help communicate. This is the makaton symbol for listening Makaton for listen
  • Signs and symbols do not replace talking – they are always used at the same time as you talk.

 

Why do we use signs and symbols?

  • Signs and symbols help children’s attention and listening skills
  • They help children to understand and learn new words and concepts.
  • They help children to get their message across.
  • They help children’s independence.

 

How do signs and symbols help?

  • They are visual, so help children who like to learn visually.
  • They last longer than spoken words, to give children more time to process and understand what has been said.
  • They draw attention to important key words they hear.
  • Adults slow down their talking when they use them, so children have more time to process and understand what has been said.
  • Using them with all children means all children and adults understand and use them so they can talk and communicate together.

You can find more information on signs and symbols on the Makaton website.

Dribbling

A baby putting its finger in its mouth Everybody produces saliva. We need saliva to help us chew and swallow food, and to keep our mouths clean and healthy. Most people swallow up to 1000 times each day to remove saliva from their mouth. Children who dribble do not produce more saliva than others, but may have difficulties in coordinating the movements of head, neck and mouth to swallow this saliva.

Children learn to control their saliva when they have learned how to coordinate their tongue and lips without effort.

 

You can help by:

  • encouraging your child to sit and stand well with their head up
  • encouraging your child to put their lips together (say mmm) and swallow
  • pat your child’s mouth and chin dry – do not wipe as this stimulates more saliva
  • don’t allow your child to suck/chew dummies, fingers or other items
  • brushing their teeth and regular visits to the dentist
  • encouraging to pat their own mouth dry with a tissue

 

Children need time to learn saliva control. Don’t worry! Your child will have good days and bad days. You may find that...

  • concentrating or learning a new task
  • feeling tired, excited, poorly or having a cold
  • some medicines
  • strong or spicy foods
  • leaning forwards or having their head down

…may make it more difficult for your child to control saliva.

 

 

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