How can i encourage my 2 year old to talk whilst we await speech therapy?

Question

How can i encourage my 2 year old to talk whilst we await speech therapy?

Answer 1

Try not to make a big deal out of it, or to put any pressure on him. DON'T say thing like "Can you say that?" etc. Don't show him how important it is to you that he learns to talk. Just be casual about it, treat it like a game. Make sure you talk to him A LOT. I'm sure he understands you even if he doesn't answer back, and it's important to give him all the attention he needs. You can do things like sing songs, and make funny noises like "Ba ba ba ba ba" while you dance around with him. Make a fool out of yourself, make him laugh, and soon he will want to join in the fun. If none of your methods work, at least you know speech therapy will.

Answer 2

Talk to him, sing to him, read to him, ask him questions, and just basically give him as many opportunities as possible to hear you and other people talking naturally. The more good models he has of speech, the easier it will be for him to learn. Also songs and nursery rhymes are especially good because they're not just words, they also have a tune.

Another good thing to do is to describe things as they are happening because it will help him put verbal labels on the things he sees and hears. So for example, while you're cleaning up around the house, you could just have a running dialogue like "look, now mommy is putting your book back on the shelf. See, it's the book about the duck. Now it's on the bookshelf. And here's your teddy bear. Where does your teddy bear belong? Teddy belongs on your bed. Let's put him on your bed. Good, look at Teddy sitting on your bed..." You might feel a little bit like a lunatic having a 1-sided conversation like this, but it really helps toddlers to make sense of the world and attach verbal labels to the things they represent easier.

Finally, don't worry about pressuring him to talk right now. If you just model good speech and give him lots of low-pressure opportunities to talk then it will be a lot more effective than constantly telling him "say mommy" or "say doggy" etc. Good luck!

Answer 3

if you were to make some flash cards of every day objects and sit down and ask your child to repeat the word after you, or see if he/she can tell you what it is.

also singing nursery rhymes will encourage your child to sing back to you,

Answer 4

Encourage him or her to make animal sounds, which are easy to say.  Any board book with animals in it or plastic toys can help you remember all the different critters to do.  Go through mooing and baaing and roaring and chirping and it's fun practice in making sounds.  According to my grandson, rabbits go "Boing!".