Communicating Successfully

“Read to me,” my granddaughter says handing me a book.  Curling up in my lap, the three-year-old prepares to journey through a story.  She delights in pointing out things she recognizes and listens intently.  If she knows the story well enough, she’s quick to point out any mistakes or variations of the story I try to make.

Literacy is such a vital part of daily life.   It’s more than just being able to read.  It’s about listening, speaking and communicating successfully!  These skills are important to teach our young ones early, since they are carried with them, the rest of their lives.

As parents (or grand parents) when we read a story to our child we are setting foundational importance on these skills.  Stories aren’t, however, the only way a child can learn.  Singing songs, reciting rhymes, and playing with them, aids in their ability to grasp these elements and use them correctly.

I remember when one of my daughters was in first or second grade.  We were traveling and I was pointing out signs for her to read.  There was one, (I’m not certain now what it was) but asked her to try to read it. Looking at it intently, she said, “My eyes don’t see in cursive!”  I hadn’t noticed the sign was indeed in cursive, so not being able to read it, made perfect sense.

That concept carries over into a child’s ability or lack of ability when not exposed to the different ways words are written, sound, or even mean.  This is true even for a toddler, who doesn’t seem ready for such interaction, but can pick up more than we expect.

If a child is spoken to with ‘baby talk’—using only words with a single syllable or in a manner a toddler may speak, that is what they learn.  They mimic other learning from what they see, why not speaking, as well?  If a child is spoken to in complete sentences, and even asked to ‘rephrase’ when not answering correctly, they will rapidly learn the correct way to enunciate and articulate their own sentences.

Reading Is Key To Learning To Communicate

Learning to speak well, is carried over into reading.  They can hear a story, and pick up on the tone, the sentence structure and even pronunciation of words they may not even know.  Discuss the story when finished.  Ask questions relevant to the story and listen for their response.  You may need to alter your question, but when they can answer correctly, you can see them thinking!  The challenge enhances growth.

A child with dyslexia or other developmental delay may still struggle with this, but by working on the ‘correct’ way in daily conversation, you are choosing the correct path for your child.  When talking with infants and toddlers, the ground work is in place to increase vocabulary, recognize and pronounce correctly animal names, colors, objects, food, understand directions and more.

By teaching a child to use manners, (by using please and thank you) and vocalizing greetings, sing songs, and saying rhymes, they are being conditioned to strive for the best in communication.

Promote Learning Through Encouragement

Introduce your child to coloring and writing (under careful supervision, of course.)  This idea stimulates the child’s interest in further communication.  All these skills promotes literacy, even if the child struggles due to a disability.  Display their masterpieces, either on the refrigerator or other designated area where it can be seen.  Note their improvements.  This promotes further development.

Everyone wants to be able to communicate.  There are some who are exceptional, others are average.  Those with a disability must work harder.  But we can all learn and despite the struggle, it’s well worth the effort!

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