| Has your toddler or preschooler been diagnosed | | | | with a marker. Thus both rice containers will have |
| as language-delayed? If so, there are several | | | | an orange dot on the bottom, both bead |
| games that you can make at home that are both | | | | containers will have a blue, etc. |
| inexpensive and fun to play together. | | | | Play with your child: |
| One of the most basic skills that children need for | | | | 1. Put the labeled set of containers down to the |
| better speech is called auditory discrimination. This | | | | right of your child. Place the unlabeled set to the |
| means your child needs to have the ability to tell | | | | left of your child. Show your child how to pick up |
| the difference between different sounds. Children | | | | one container, shake it, and listen to it. |
| who have difficulty with this will often | | | | 2. Show them where to put it down (next to |
| mispronounce or mishear letters or entire words; | | | | them but not with the other containers). |
| for example they may hear cat instead of cap. | | | | Afterwards show them how to take a container |
| While all children do this occasionally, children who | | | | from the other set of containers, shake it, and |
| have language delays do this more frequently and | | | | compare its sound to their original container. |
| at an older age than other children. | | | | 3. When they have found a match, they should |
| In order to help your child improve his ability to | | | | put the match down together in front of them. |
| differentiate sounds, you will want to begin with | | | | Sound Walk |
| very basic auditory discrimination skills. Once your | | | | This game doesn't require any materials, and only |
| child is successful with these basic games, you | | | | requires about 15-20 minutes of your time, about |
| can work your way upward to games requiring | | | | twice a week. In this game, you go for a walk |
| more advance auditory discrimination skills. | | | | with your child, and try to guess the names of |
| Auditory Matching Game | | | | the sounds you hear together. In addition to the |
| Materials: | | | | obvious sounds, such as fire engines, car horns, |
| 8 film canisters (or similar size). You can go | | | | and store alarms, don't forget to notice the |
| to a film development store and ask for their | | | | quieter sounds as well: the sound of the wind, the |
| empties. You can also use plastic salt or pepper | | | | rain, a door slamming, children running. |
| shakers. | | | | This should be a pleasant experience for both of |
| 4 different types of materials, such as: salt, | | | | you, so try and go easy on your child, especially if |
| sand, rice, small beads, staples, beans | | | | they find it difficult. You can make it easier by |
| Glue gun | | | | taking turns, giving your child a chance to tell you |
| One sheet of stick on blank labels, large | | | | to find a sound, or you can help your child recall |
| enough to wrap around the container | | | | the name of the sound by giving them a choice |
| Markers | | | | of two possibilities. |
| Make the Game: | | | | If your child hasn't yet learned to speak, or is |
| 1. Fill 4 containers with different types of | | | | often unintelligible, you can also bring pictures of |
| materials. Hot glue the tops on the containers. | | | | the sound-making objects you might find on your |
| 2. Wrap labels around each one. Fill the other 4 | | | | walk-either print-outs or on your iPhone. |
| containers with the same (matching) materials. | | | | A nice variation of this is to record both the |
| 3. On the bottom of each of the matching | | | | sounds that you hear, and the objects that make |
| containers, put a small circle cut out from one of | | | | them, with an iphone or similar device. Then when |
| the labels. Pair together each set of matching | | | | you get home you can play auditory BINGO, by |
| containers. | | | | playing the sound and asking your child to point to |
| 4. Mark the same color on the bottom of both | | | | the correct picture. |