Where to Start?
Many parents are sent home with the medical professionals’ advice “all you need to do is love
your baby,” this is the most essential thing any parent can do, and all babies NEED love. This
gives little comfort, especially if the diagnosis is given at birth. You know you have a baby with a
little something extra, and your baby needs a little extra. I hope to bring comfort to you by
providing you with simple but life-changing activities for you and your baby. As well as give you
the information you desperately want and your baby needs you to know. If you read this after
your baby has turned six months, that is ok. It is not too late to start these activities now.
The number one thing you need to know is your baby is smart! Your child will likely have
communication delays, but your child will never struggle to communicate their love for you.
You can do some things to help your baby’s language development. In this blog, I am going to
address some things you can do at home to help develop your baby’s speech and language
development. I will break it down into direct and indirect instruction learning.
Let me explain each style and why your child needs you to use both methods to improve their
language development.
What is indirect Instruction?
Indirect Instruction is a student-guided approach; students observe, explore, and
practice to solve problems.
Learning through play is an example of indirect instruction. When a child pushes a button,
and the toy lights up, they have just learned; that when I push this, it lights up. This process
requires higher-order thinking decision-making and allows children to use their experiences to
connect to other life experiences.
Play & Talking to your child
Your child can listen to sounds in your everyday speech, talk, talk, talk. The more you talk, the
better. You can start narrating your life to your child. Now I am picking up the toys. I am putting
the laundry in the washer. Books and Songs are another fun way for your child to expand
vocabulary and listen to sounds.
Most people who have a young child have read or heard somewhere, “we know that children
learn best through play” maybe someone has said to you, “we use a child lead approach to
therapy or learning.” Children as young as one month old can benefit from educational toys.
Educational toys provide children with opportunities to develop skills like:
● Increase vocabulary
● Opportunities to practice language
● Cooperative play; sharing, conflict resolution, and compromise
● Turn-taking is a vital skill to learn to have conversations
Play games with turn-taking, like rolling a ball back and forth. Micic, your baby’s facial
expressions, and the sounds they make. Play games with repetitive language like Pee a Boo and This Little Piggy. Say the name of objects that your baby’s gaze lands on. Encourage your
child to point to objects in books and their environment.
Play is critical and standard for many therapies and teaching programs. Unfortunately, many
professionals are unaware children with Downs syndrome also need to learn through direct
instruction.
What is direct instruction?
Direct instruction is a teaching approach structured, sequenced, and led by the
adult/teacher.
To take advantage of children with Ds strong visual learning style. The approach for children
with Down syndrome should always have a visual.
● flashcards
● video model
● teacher demonstration
● objects
I believe direct instruction is so impactful for children with down syndrome because it ensures
that your child is receiving enough repetition to develop language skills.
Flashcards
Your child can start listening to sounds in isolation by six months. Isolation means the vowel or
consonant sound by itself. Black and White flashcards with the Letter printed are a fine way to
share this engaging activity with your child. But, I love these flashcards from teachers pay
teachers.
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Sound-Wall-Mouth-Pictures-Speech-Articulation7118223
Why do I love these flashcards? They have a picture of the proper mouth position and the
corresponding letter of the alphabet for each speech sound. You may have hated flashcards
growing up. Your child will likely love flashcards and learn very quickly from them.
Learning Strength
Most children with Down syndrome are highly visual learners.
Babies are drawn to faces. To see your face while you make the sound for them is a wonderful
way to engage your child. So hold the flashcards up close to your face. This will allow your child
to see your face and mouth as you make the sound. The letter on the card helps them identify
the sounds and discriminate between sounds that sound similar.
Learning Difficulties
Hearing sounds clear due to fluid in the ear and other hearing problems. Storing
information in the memory system.
The above activity helps overcome these common learning difficulties for children with Down
syndrome.
How To Start
I suggest that you choose six sounds to start with for one month. The following month add six
new sounds but continue to review the six sounds from the previous month. So on, until you have made your way through the alphabet. You can start on other speech sounds, like /oo/, in
“book” after you and your baby have made it through the alphabet.
Using flashcards at six months for a typically developing child could be considered over the top.
Sound flashcards are age and developmentally appropriate for a child with Down syndrome.
This ensures that your child sees your face and mouth as you make the sounds. They provide
an opportunity to hear the sound every day. They may not get to experience the same sounds
daily if not presented in a purposeful way such as this. The letter provides a visual for the
difference between similar sounds like /b/ and /p/. Trust me. You are going to want to do this
activity with your little one. You will be so excited when it starts to pay off. You may notice your
baby mouthing their fingers or other items, moving their mouth, or becoming vocal during these
little lessons. Be sure to praise them for any efforts they are making. I tell my students, “good
listening,” clap and smile at them for their attempts.
Routine is Key!
The hardest part about using flashcards at home is remembering to use them, so I recommend
making it part of your daily routine. I like to use flashcards with babies in the high chair, so right
before or after a snack or meal is a great time to use the flashcards.
The Pay Off.
Many parents tell me that flashcards are one of their child’s favorite activities at home. They
report that their toddlers bring the flashcards to them to do together. When we provide
meaningful learning activities for children with Down syndrome, it creates a strong bond with the
child. It lets them know that you get them and allows you to share in the sense of
accomplishment when they make gains and reach goals. I hope you will use this engaging
activity with your child and see the benefits I have seen with all my students over the years. I
appreciate your time and feel blessed to be a part of your learning journey.
