I was recently asked to present on speech and language skills at my local GiGi’s Playhouse in Fort Myers, FL. I was thrilled because this is what I love to do. One of my goals as a speech-language pathologist is to make sure parents are well informed on how to help their children improve communication skills.

The goal of the presentation was to review common speech and language difficulties in the Down syndrome population and provide easy strategies that can be implemented at home. I focused on providing strategies that can be done with objects and toys that you likely already have at home. Although the presentation did reference Down syndrome, the recommendations I provide in the video will help ALL children that have a language delay.

The presentation features recommendations for improving:

• Delayed talking
• Prelinguistic skills
• Reduced comprehension
• Limited vocabulary
• Reduced phrase length
• Difficulty with grammar
• Oral motor skills

I also offer ideas for play-based practice. Play is how children learn and if it’s not fun then we are doing something wrong. When we play and teach at the same time, we are providing a learning environment that helps children retain information better. Furthermore, if you’re having fun then your child will be more motivated to communicate and respond.

I have made the presentation slides available for you to download by clicking here: Speech and Language Presentation.

Looking for more speech and language tips?

Check out some of our other posts like Reading with Toddlers: 10 Tips for Success or Toddler Speech and Language Delay: Know the Signs. If you specific questions let me know in the comments below or send me an email at info@aplusspeech.com and I will be happy to help in any way that I can.