Kids Who Are Read to Vocabulary Growth

Build Your Child's Vocabulary

By Lauren Lowry,
Hanen Certified SLP and Clinical Staff Writer

Did yous know that:

• a child'southward vocabulary growth is directly linked to his or her overall schoolhouse achievement [1]
• the size of a child's vocabulary in kindergarten predicts his power to learn to read [2]
• the more words a child knows, the more data the child has admission to
• having a big vocabulary helps children think and learn about the earth

It is important to encourage children's vocabulary development so that they develop the linguistic communication and literacy skills necessary to succeed in school. The adults in a kid's life play a significant part in helping a child learn new words. Through everyday conversations and interactions, caregivers use unfamiliar words and talk about what words hateful, which helps expand a child'due south vocabulary. In fact, the number of words a child is exposed to past his parents relates directly to the size of the child'southward vocabulary [3].

A contempo report nearly vocabulary

However, it's non just nigh how much y'all say, but also about what words yous use that makes a difference to a child's vocabulary. In a 2012 study, Meredith Rowe looked at the factors that contribute virtually to a child'southward later vocabulary development. She studied the vocabulary of fifty young children when they were 18, xxx, 42, and 54 months of age, too equally the amount (quantity) and type (quality) of words the parents used with their children. She found sure factors that contributed to a child'due south vocabulary one year later, such every bit the parents' education and the child's previous vocabulary. But some of her most interesting findings were that:

• children'southward vocabulary at 30 months was influenced by the quantity (number) of words a parent used one yr before – This means that children anile 12-24 months benefit from hearing lots of talk and many examples of words.
  
• children'south vocabulary at 42 months was influenced by parents' use of a diversity of sophisticated words one year earlier – Children anile 24-36 months accept learned a lot of common vocabulary, and are fix to larn more hard words, such as "purchase" instead of "purchase", or "weary" instead of "tired".
  
• children'south vocabulary at 54 months was influenced past parents' use of narratives (talking nearly things that happened in the past or in the future) and explanations one year earlier – Children aged 36-48 months benefit from conversations about things that happened in the past (eastward.yard. an outing they went on, something funny that happened at preschool, etc.) or something that is planned for the well-nigh time to come (e.yard. a trip to see Grandma) is helpful. And providing explanations well-nigh things (e.yard. answering children's "why" questions) is also helpful at this historic period.
  

Rowe concluded that "quantity…is not the whole story" and that these other influences also have an affect on children's vocabulary [ii, p. 1771]. This is important information, as much literature that advises parents about children's speech and language evolution encourages parents to talk to young children as much as possible (quantity). But Rowe's study highlights the importance of quality, especially for children aged 24-48 months. Parents should attempt to proceed one step ahead of their kid – modelling words and concepts that are slightly beyond their child'south level to help his vocabulary grow.

How to help your kid learn new words

From Rowe's study, we know that:

• young children (12-24 month olds) do good from exposure to lots of words (quantity)
• toddlers (24-36 months) benefit from hearing a variety of sophisticated words
• preschool children (36-48 months) benefit from conversations about past and time to come events every bit well as explanations

This tells united states of america what to say, but what about how to say it?

Here are some tips to proceed in heed when modeling new vocabulary for your child:

• Follow your kid's atomic number 82 – This means emphasizing words that come up during everyday conversations and interactions with your kid. If you talk near what interests your child, it is more likely your child volition pay attending and learn a new word. If your child is interested in playing with cars, yous tin can model words like "push", "beep beep", or "fast" with a young child or more than complicated words like "mechanic", "speed", or "traffic" with a toddler. You tin provide explanations for preschoolers like "he needs to get a new tire because his tire is flat", talk about events in the past such every bit "remember when nosotros had to take our car in to exist repaired?", or events that will happen in the futurity such as "Our car is dirty. Maybe we should go to the machine wash."
  
• Children demand to hear a word several times before they start to use information technology – This means that you might use a word with your child many times before your child really says the word himself. Children'due south agreement of words precedes their use of words. So, they will understand far more than words than they can actually say. If you repeat words for your kid on unlike occasions, information technology volition give him more opportunities to hear and larn new words.
  
• Don't bombard your child with words – Just because quantity is important at some stages of evolution, this doesn't mean that you should shower your child with constant talk. You should aim for a balanced chat between you and your child – you say something, then your child says or does something, then on. It is important to look after yous say something then y'all give your child a risk to respond in his own way.
  
• Assist your child understand what a new word ways – Past giving details nearly new words or explaining what words ways, you build your kid'southward understanding of new words. For example, if you are playing with cars and introduce the word "rider", you might say something like "a passenger is someone who rides in a auto or a bus or a train. A passenger goes for the ride but doesn't drive the auto or the bus." Relating new words to your child's personal experiences also helps him connect with new words. For example, if you are talking about the word "nervous," you might say something similar "Remember when you started preschool – y'all felt nervous. Just somewhen when y'all were more than comfortable in that location, you didn't feel nervous anymore."
  
• Deportment tin can speak louder than words – If you accompany your words with actions, gestures, or facial expressions, it will help your child empathize the meaning of the words. For instance, when modeling the word "weary", y'all could exercise a sleeping activity (easily under your caput) or yawn so that your child understands what the word means. Your voice can also add meaning to a word. For example, if you lot say the give-and-take "frightened" or "terrified" with a shaky vox that sounds like you are scared, it will help your child sympathise what yous mean.
  

The bottom line… it's not just how much you say, simply too what you lot say and how you say it that makes a difference for your kid'southward vocabulary growth. Keeping one footstep ahead of your child will promote his vocabulary skills, and also gear up him on the path for success in school. For more data nigh building your kid'southward vocabulary skills, click hither.

References

1. Weitzman, Eastward. & Greenberg, J. (2010). ABC and Across: Building Emergent Literacy in Early Childhood Settings. The Hanen Centre: Toronto.
2. Rowe, M. (2012). A Longitudinal Investigation of the Role of Quantity and Quality of Kid-Directed Speech in Vocabulary Development. Child Development: 83(5), 1762-1774.
3. Hart, B. & Risley, T.R. (1995). Meaningful differences in the everyday experiences of immature American children. Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

The Hanen Centre is a Canadian not-for-profit charitable organization with a global reach. Its mission is to provide parents, caregivers, early on childhood educators and speech-language pathologists with the cognition and training they need to assistance young children develop the all-time possible language, social and literacy skills. This includes children who have or are at adventure for language delays, those with developmental challenges such as autism, and those who are developing typically.

Click on the links below to learn more most how Hanen can help you assistance children communicate:

williamsracture.blogspot.com

Source: http://www.hanen.org/helpful-info/articles/build-your-childs-vocabulary.aspx

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