Games to Encourage Speech & Language Skills...

Are you looking for great gift ideas for the kids in your life? Goodness knows my kids don't need anymore toys. Games are always a fun and effective way to encourage speech and language skills.

​Here are some of my favorites...

Ages 2 and Up...

Barnyard Bingo

Such a great and simple game to teach early skills...
- Turn taking skills, "my turn!"
- Simple matching, “It’s a match”, “no match”
- Naming/identifying farm animals
- Use of 2-3 word phrases (“I got ___” ),
- Use of early concepts, “in”, “open”, “shut”

Ages 3 and Up...

Candyland

Every home should have one of these. It's fun, easy, and QUICK way to teach basic concepts. Even my older kids still love playing!
- Turn taking skills "You go first, then it's my turn!"
- Basic colors "move to the green square!"
- Counting "move 1, 2, 3 spaces!"
- Basic Concepts...
• backward/forward "I had to move backwards!", "Move forward 3 spaces"
• in front/behind "I'm in front now!"
• top/bottom "The peppermint is on the bottom of the board"
​• before/after "You get to move after I do"

Hi Ho Cherry-O

This is another great one for Basic Concepts...
• numbers and counting
• colors
• some/many "I lost some of my cherries"
• all/none "All the cherries are in my basket!"
​• more/less "You have more cherries than I do!"
• in/on "I have 3 cherries on my tree and 4 in my basket"

1st Grade and Up...

Guess Who?

This is a really fun game and encourages...
- Formulating questions "Is it a girl?" "Is she wearing a hat?"
​- Processing yes/no questions
​- Deductive reasoning skills (process of elimination)
- Using complete sentences with “is”, “has”, “have”... "Is he bald?", "Yes, he has a mustache."
- Using descriptive words about body parts (eyes, mustache, cheeks, beard, etc.) and accessories (hat, glasses, earrings, etc.) 

2nd Grade and Up...

Hedbanz

My own kids love this game. I often change the rules around to make the other players describe the card to the child wearing it. This reinforces...
​- Describing Skills... "It's a large animal", "It has a sharp point"
​- Sorting and Categorizing... "It's food", "something in a house", "It's an item of clothing"
​- Inferencing Skills... the "guesser" has to process and deduce what is on the card based on the clues from the other players.
​- Question Formulation... the "true' way to play has the "guesser" ask questions about the card.

​These are just a few of my favorites... what are some games YOUR family loves?