Bored with flashcards and speech "homework"?
Us too!
Try these play-based activities to support early-developing sounds.
For /m/
- While playing in the kitchen, talk about the yummy food: “The apple is yummy. Mmmmmm!”
- Throw a ball back and forth while targeting “mmmmmy turn!”
- While playing with farm animals, emphasize the cow sounds: “mmmmmoo!”
- Play with a baby doll and pretend she wants her “mama”
For /p/
- While blowing bubbles, practice stomping on the bubbles to “pop” them.
- While cooking in the kitchen (or playing in a play kitchen), talk about all the things you will “put” in the “pot” for soup.
- Pretend all the children are “puppies” and talk about the different colors and sizes of all the “puppies”.
- Make pies with sensory materials (sand, play doh, etc.). Talk about all the flavors of “pie”.
For /b/
- While running on the playground, sneak up on each other and say “boo!”
- Play with cars and trucks, while practicing “beep beep!” Make them crash and practice “boom!”
- Pretend you are going on a long trip. Pack up all your things and practice saying “bye” to all your friends.
- Play with a baby doll while targeting words like “bath”, “baba”, “baby”, and “bib”.
For /n/
- Act out “No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed!” Emphasize “No.”
- Practice putting baby dolls or children to bed; don’t forget to say “night night!”
- Pull things out of a sensory bin and ask the child, “Is this a ____?” (The sillier the better!) And let the child answer, “Nnnnnnooooo!”
- Play freeze dance by turning the lights “onnnnn” and off. You can also use day and “night.”
For /t/
- Play “Time Too…” (like Simon Says.) “Time to… (jump, freeze, spin, etc.)”
- Throw a ball while practicing “my turn” or “turn”
- Have a tea party and take turns pouring each other tea. “More tea?”
- Do a song or rhyme about “toes” (e.g., This Little Piggy) and talk about everyone’s toes.
For /d/
- Play “duck, duck, goose.”
- Take turns jumping up and “ducking” or going “down”.
- Practice putting clothes on a doll. The “doll” needs his _____.
- Play with dot markers or dot stickers. Talk about adding “dots” to a picture.
