Talking tips

Talking tips based on a child's age

 

0-3 months

  Talking tips for zero to three months

3 - 6 months

  Talking tips for three to six months

6 - 12 months

 

  Talking tips for six to twelve months

12 - 18 months

  Talking tips for twelve to eighteen months

 18 - 24 months

  Talking tips for eighteen to twenty four months

2 - 3 years

  Talking tips for two to three years
3 - 4 years  Talking tips for three to four years

 

 

Attention and listening

What do we mean by attention and listening?

We’re always asking children to listen, but they don’t always know how to do it. Many children find it difficult to wait, share and take turns. Sometimes it may appear that your child is being naughty but perhaps they are finding it difficult to listen or understand. Being able to listen is an essential skill to help children develop their sounds, words and sentences for conversation. There are many ways that we can help children develop their listening skills.

Toys to support attention and listening

  • Sound puzzles
  • Orchard Toys – search for ‘First Games’ which are ideal for developing early listening and turn taking skills.
  • Sound bingo – there are lots of commercially available games but there are also some listening games on YouTube (www.youtube.com) and search for ‘Listening Game 1 - Guess the Sound’ and ‘Phase 1 Phonics Listening Activities and Guess the Sound Games’ (6 games in total)
  • Turn taking games such as marble run, fishing, pop up pirate, building blocks
  • Picture books with repetitive refrains e.g. Room on the Broom, We’re going on a bear hunt, The Gruffalo

Online resources available to support with attention and listening

  • Twinkl Ltd www.twinkl.co.uk
    Sign up for a free account and search for attention and listening games. There are lots of free resources that you can download and print.

Understanding of language

What do we mean by understanding of language?

Understanding of language, also referred to as receptive language, is what a child is able to understand when others are talking to them. Children can have difficulties understanding a range of areas of language, including concepts and vocabulary, question words and instructions. When a child experiences difficulties understanding language, it may mean that they struggle to take part appropriately in conversation, they may find it difficult to keep listening and they can struggle to complete tasks and activities without additional support. There are many ways that we can help a child who is struggling to understand. This section includes a range of relevant resources and advice.

Activity sheets for working on different areas of language such as question words, concepts, grammar, key word instructions

Concepts

Grammar

Key word instructions

Online resources available to support with understanding of language

Spoken language

What do we mean by spoken language?

Spoken language, also referred to as expressive language, refers to the words and sentences that a child is able to use. When children first start to talk, they will use single words and as their vocabulary develops they begin to join these words together into short phrases and then sentences; these sentences develop in complexity as a child’s language skills develop. Children can have spoken language difficulties in a range of areas, including thinking of the words they want to use (word finding), developing their word joining skills and understanding how to construct sentences, developing their narrative skills and developing the ability to use different grammatical structures. There are many ways that we can help a child who is struggling with their spoken language skills. This section includes a range of relevant resources and advice.

Advice for parents of pre-school children

Activity sheets for working on different areas of spoken language such as concepts, grammar, sequencing and narrative

Concepts

Grammar

Sequencing and narrative

Online resources to support with spoken language

Speech

What do we mean by speech?

Speech can be described as the ways in which we use all the elements of our speech mechanism e.g. breath, vocal cords, tongue (front and back), roof of our mouth, nose, jaw, teeth and lips, to generate sounds. Speech is not the words we use (language), but the way in which we produce the sounds/pronounce words. This section includes relevant resources and advice to support the development of speech sound production skills.

Useful websites

Vocabulary and word finding difficulties

Online resources to support with word finding difficulties

  • http://thinkingtalking.co.uk/free-resources-schools-families/
    Free vocabulary games/resources for families and schools designed by Speech and Language Therapists Stephen Parsons and Anna Branagan
  • https://practice.liftlessons.co/shop/lift_home_paid
    This free subscription covers scientific and physics vocabulary. Biology and chemistry lessons will be added in the coming months.
    • Lift Lessons resources are ideal for students between the ages of 6-14. Younger learners may require assistance to complete the quizzes.
    • The platform allows students to independently learn vocabulary and continue to practice over time using spaced learning.
    • Our resources offer two levels of learning, an introduction to a word, or continued learning (challenge assignments).
    • Younger students may not have encountered all of the words yet. Our resources provide the vocabulary that forms the foundation for future science learning.

All of the videos and digital resources have been designed by teachers in collaboration with speech and language therapists. The resources use evidence-based strategies that are proven to work in the classroom to support vocabulary understanding and retention.

Higher level language

What do we mean by higher level language?

Higher level language refers to skills that go beyond basic language abilities. It incorporates being able to understand and use language in more detail, for example to reason, predict, deduce, infer, problem solve, explain and justify. It also includes understanding and use of non-literal language and the ability to see things from another person’s perspective. This section includes activities to support higher level language skills.

Online resources to support with higher level language

Social communication

Welcome to our social communication resources part of our speech and language therapy website. We have a range of strategy sheets, websites and videos to recommend to you. If your child has social communication or interaction difficulties or autism, these are the resources for you – pick and choose those that sound most suitable for your child. If you need support, please phone the advice line to ask for guidance from a therapist about which strategies to focus on first.

Social communication

Social interaction

Play

Accessing learning and coping with change

Online resources available to support with social communication

Online resources about autism

More than words

The speech and language therapy (SLT) service run ‘More Than Words’ courses on a termly basis and invite families known to the SLT Service. You will need to complete a referral form from our website or speak to a health professional about getting a referral for a SLT screening clinic. If the therapist decides that ‘More Than Words’ is the appropriate intervention for your child, they will be placed on a waiting list for this intervention.

More information about this course:

A ‘More Than Words’ course is a series of workshops for the parents/carers of pre-school children with autism spectrum disorder or social communication difficulties. These workshops are designed to show parents/carers how to turn everyday activities into opportunities for promoting interaction and communication skills. The course also includes individualised sessions with you and your child at home. While you wait for your course, please visit the Hanen website (www.hanen.org), watch the Hanen YouTube videos and access the strategy sheets on this webpage. You can also access advice linked to your child’s needs by phoning the SLT advice line where a therapist will phone you back to listen to your concerns and provide information about which strategies to focus on while you wait for a course.

Selective mutism

Selective mutism (SM) is used as a term to describe children and young people (CYP) who are able to talk comfortably to some people, such as family members and close friends, but are silent or unable to talk freely when other people are present.

There is no guarantee that CYP who have SM will overcome it. But with the right support from home and school, they can work through it. Without this support and a united, consistent approach, CYP with SM will experience unnecessarily high levels of anxiety on a daily basis.

The Kent Children’s speech and language therapy service offers comprehensive online training sessions that are open to everyone, this may be all you need to turn things around and a referral to the HCT SALT service may not be necessary. Persistent lack of communication, despite being able to talk freely in some situations, creates feelings of anxiety, frustration and inadequacy, both for the individuals and those supporting them. Training will give you an understanding of what causes CYP to withdraw from communication or become silent in certain situations (selective mutism) and help you provide appropriate support.

Please access online training sessions as recommended in the table below. Sessions can be accessed at your own pace and as many times as you like. We advise downloading and saving or printing off the accompanying handout packs in advance.

Free training on selective mutism

Please go to the webpages to access free online training sessions on selective mutism: 

Referral

You are welcome to seek a referral for further speech and language therapy support if:

  • You are concerned that your CYP has additional difficulties with speech, language or communication development – you’ve noticed they have some difficulty understanding what you say or expressing themselves, even within their comfortable inner circle.
  • You have accessed the above training, but cannot reach agreement about the nature of the CYP’s difficulties or appropriate strategies to help.
  • You have accessed the above training and have tried to implement a programme at school or nursery, but little or no progress is being made after two terms of input.

Intervention for CYP with SM focuses on advisory support to parents, educational staff and professionals through regular joint planning meetings. This is because parents and school staff are in the best position to help widen children and young people’s talking circles.

To refer please see our Integrated Children's Therapies referral form.

More information from Selective Mutism Information and Research Association (SMIRA) 

Useful websites

A list of useful websites

Talking Point    Talking Point - the first stop for information on children’s communication

 

I CAN   I CAN  is the Children's Communication Charity

 

The Communication Trust  The Communication Trust  - Every child understood

 

Afasic   Afasic  - Voice for life

 

Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists  Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists

 

Makaton   Makaton - Let's Talk

 

British Stammering Association  The British Stammering Association

 

National Literacy Trust  The National Literacy Trust

 

Bookstart  Bookstart

 

RALLI  Raising awareness of language learning impairments

 

National Autistic Society   The National Autistic Society

 

CLAPA   CLAPA - Cleft Lip & Palate Association

 

Tiny Happy People   Tiny Happy People - Activities and play ideas to help you develop your child’s communication skills

 

MPC  Michael Palin Centre for Stammering

 

SMiRA   SMiRA - Selective Mutism

 

Access to free online training sessions on Selective Mutism

 

Elkan   Elklan

 

HCPC   Health & Care Professions Council

 

Words for Life   Words for Life

 

Hungry Little Minds  Hungry Little Minds

 

How can we help you?

  1. Work with us
  2. Our services
  3. Children's services
  4. Adult services
  5. Make a referral