Lesson 105


Lesson 105
Book
Practicing Listening All Day Long


     

     

Objectives

To teach your child to

a) attend to speech throughout the day
b) respond to the speech he hears

Points To Remember

1. Children can learn to attend to speech even when they don't understand everything they hear. They need to learn that what they hear is meaningful.

2. Children need their attention to be drawn to speech just as they need attention to be drawn to sounds in their environment.

3. Spoken language is more meaningful than isolated environmental sounds.

Method

You will be using the auditory-verbal technique of exaggeration during these activities. Please read about it first, if you have not already done so, before continuing. Now, watch the first videoclip below of a mom practicing listening while dressing her child. Then follow the instructions given below.

1. Pick three activities you do with your child every day at different times of the day.

2. Think about each step of the activity and what you will say. There should be a sentence or phrase followed by an action or event. Some examples of such activities are brushing your child's teeth, getting dressed, going outside, playing with a ball, going to the store, snack time or mealtime, etc. For instance, when brushing your child's teeth everyday, you might say "Squeeeeeeeeze! Squeeze the toothpaste on your brush." Another sentence might be "brush, brush, brush brush your teeth"

3. Position yourself beside or behind the child when doing the activity. Get your items in position, then give a long pause. Then say the sentence, and you follow it with the corresponding action. In the first example above, you will squeeze the toothpaste on the toothbrush.

4. Repeat the sentence but give your child wait time (you can count to five silently) after you say your sentence to give him a chance to begin the action. If he doesn't, you go ahead and help him do it (i.e., help him hold the toothbrush and toothpaste in his hands and help him squeeze). You may need to use the listening cue "Listen!" if your child doesn't understand that he has to listen and respond.

3. If possible, have a family member take photographs of you doing this activity with your child the first time you do it. Save these to put in an album to practice listening at a later time. If you are unable to take photographs, don't worry. The primary objective is for the child to get listening practice while engaged in day-to-day activities

Watch the second video clip now; it shows a mom doing listening practice with her child while getting ready to go outside.

Video Clips

CLIP 1





CLIP 2


Modifications

For infants under 10 months, you will need shorter, more frequent activities spread out throughout the day. The principle is the same, you will say the phrase or sentence, then make sure you have a specific action. Infants will respond more to physical actions of their own body such as rocking, bouncing, rolling, etc. rather than external actions or events. So use phrases such as 'rock, rock rock the baby' sung to a tune or with exaggerated intonation.

If you are beginning with a child who is 5 years or older, use complete sentences, but use exaggeration or a repeated pattern of key words. e.g. pour,pour, pour the juice.

What Next

When you are comfortable with using your daily routine for listening, move on to Lesson 106. Continue to do the activities from Lessons 101 to 105.