Promoting Speech, Language and Communication Skills

• Naturalistic instruction


  Informal strategies that are responsive to a child's interests, initiations, or attempts to communicate
• Naturalistic approach in language instruction

  • Anchor it on a child's interest
  • Maximize naturally occurring activities (circle time, playtime, snack time) to practice language skills
• Incidental teaching


  1. Identify communication goals and activities

  2. Arrange environment to increase probability of child-initiated communication

  3. Stay within proximity, watch and wait for child to initiate

  4. Focus on what child is requesting

  5. Ask for more collaborative language

  6. Wait for child's response

  7. Praise child's effort and response

  8. Model expected response if child doesn't respond adequately
• Prompts to provide child opportunity to share experiences

  • "Tell me about...", "Tell me more about it"
• Alternative Language Systems (ALS)


  Used by children with speech and language disabilities (e.g. motor control issues, severe disabilities)
• Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS)


  Uses tactile symbols and objects for communication
• PECS Phases

  1. Phase I: Request an item/activity by giving corresponding picture/symbol

  2. Phase II: Generalize the activity by bringing request symbol

  3. Phase III: Discriminate between two different symbols before giving

  4. Phase IV: Learn sentence structure

  5. Phase V: Answer questions

  6. Phase VI: Make comments
• Benefits of PECS


  • Helps non-verbal children or those with limited communication skills
• Sign Language


  Used in special education for learners with disabilities (hearing impairment, autism, intellectual disabilities, language disorder)
• How early childhood educators use sign language

  • Teacher speaks and shows signs, children imitate
• Sign language supports all learning styles as children can hear, see, and move (through signing) to express concepts