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by Julie A. Daymut, M.A., CCC-SLP
Summer break is almost here! For many students who receive speech/language services,
the break from school also means a break in treatment. During summer recess, parents
can help their children maintain communication skills learned during the school
year. Providing your children with fun, engaging activities is a great way to make
practicing skills more enjoyable and less of a “chore” during their break!
Activities for Practicing Speech and Language Skills
Below are some fun suggestions for speech and language activities to do with your
child during the summer. A great way to keep track of practice days is to have a
summer calendar where you place a sticker or draw a smiley face on each day you
work on speech/language skills with your child. Before using any of the following
suggestions or doing other activities, be sure to talk with your child’s speech-language
pathologist (SLP). The SLP can provide you with goals to work on, strategies for
maintaining specific skills, and materials to practice with, such as word lists
or worksheets.
Speech
- Practice word lists in the car. Have your child practice
his/her “sound” by saying target words during car rides. Have him/her repeat a word
five times at each red light or stop sign.
- Create a sound book. Help your child make a book of
words, pictures, or words and pictures that contain his/her target sound. Put one
target word on each page and review the book every week.
- Read comics. Read comics from books or newspapers with
your child. Use a highlighter to mark words that contain his/her target sound.
Language
- Go to the library. Sign your child up for the local
summer reading program at the library. As he/she reads each book, ask questions
like “Who is the main character?” “What do you like about this story?” “How do you
think it will end?” “What was your favorite part?”
- Keep a journal. Have your child keep a journal of summer
events. If your child cannot yet write, have him/her draw pictures to tell stories.
You can have him/her tell you the story and you write it in the journal.
- Play board games. Encourage social skills like turn
taking, being a good sport, and topic maintenance when playing board games as a
family.
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