There are many ways that school staff can support children's developing awareness of sounds in words without working directly on their speech production.
Some General Tips:
Try not to:
- ask the child to repeat words after you
- ask the child to repeat what s/he says too many times
Why not?
- The child may not have the necessary sounds in his/her system
- The child may not be able to produce these sounds to order
- The child may be able to produce the sounds in isolation, but not within a word or phrase
- The more times the child repeats his/her incorrect version of the word the more this representation may be reinforced
- The child probably knows s/he is failing and this will lower self-esteem
Try to think of other ways of finding out what the child wants to say.
- 'Can you show me?'
- 'Take me to it'.
- Use forced alternative questions such as 'Do you mean your coat or your shoes?'
- Use a home/school diary to give you a clue when listening to news
- Offer models of speech back to the child
- Child: 'Witti ta'.
- Teacher: 'A little car? Yes, it is little'.
Why?
- These methods should reduce anxiety levels and promote self-esteem
- Contextual clues aid communication by enabling the child to show or point to the thing they are referring to in the classroom
- Modelling back reinforces the correct representation of words
- Communication is sustained rather than a problem being highlighted
Is it ever appropriate to ask the child to repeat words and phrases?
Be sensitive to the child and the context. Such situations might include:
- 1:1 times, such as when the child is reading aloud (as long as the repetition does not interfere with the meaning of the text)
- rehearsing rhymes and songs in a group - everyone can practise speaking clearly together
- practising for class assemblies or plays, if the child is happy to take part
- as guided by the speech and language therapist, if one is involved
How can school staff actively help children to improve their speech?
- By working on the crucial listening skills that underpin speech production