This is a guest post from one of our summer speech language pathology interns>
Summer is such an exciting and busy time for everyone. Children are ready to play - and parents are too. So, what happens to those social skills you and your child have been working so hardon over the school year? Don’t fret! There is no need to focus on “work” during summer vacation. Here are some fun social activities that focus on “play”.
Make a Summer Treat
● Working in the kitchen with your child is such a great place to share perspectives, talk about your days, and enjoy each other’s company.
● Following recipes helps build skills associated with understanding directions, asking questions, and requesting help
● BONUS: If it’s nice outside - pack up and head out to your favorite park (or even your backyard) and enjoy a picnic.
Long Vacation?
● Summer Postcards
○ A great way to practice a multitude of skills (social skills, language skills, handwriting, etc.) is to have your child write postcards to themselves while on vacation. Throughout the week, help your child to identify their favorite activities of the day or something they want to remember about their trip. Have them write on a postcard, “Dear Me,” and mail it home. Not only is it expanding skills, it’s something to look forward to even though your vacation is over.
● Long Drives
○ Are you dreading how many times you’ll hear the infamous “are we there yet?” from the backseat? Here are some of my all-time favorite car ride games to avoid those questions while still working on language skills:
■ I Spy: Take turns saying “I spy with my little eye something…” and fill in with a characteristic of an object that is visible. This game is a wonderful opportunity to have children use elaborative skills (shapes, colors, uses, etc) without giving away the actual term/object they are referencing.
■ ABC Game:Find words on billboards or road signs that start with each letter of the alphabet. You can’t move onto the next letter until you’ve found a word.
● PS: Good Luck with Q, X and Z!
■ License Plate Game: This game is a great chance for perspective taking. The challenge is to find the license plate from the farthest state. Talk about the different License Plates you see, and how far away that car must have traveled to be where they are now. It’s fun and easy to make guesses about where they are going, and why.
Rainy Day?
● Cuddle up with a movie or a book. Watching movies isn’t the most active way to pass time during the summer months, but it’s a great opportunity for conversations when everyone needs some down time. It’s an awesome way to incorporate their language goals into an activity that they enjoy:
○ Discuss after:
■ Social Language & Perspective Taking: Have everyone identify their favorite parts and explain why they liked them. Comparing those parts can help with perspective taking and increase social language at the same time.
■ Elements of a Story (aka Story Grammar): Have them come up with an alternative ending. Let them use their imaginations to end the movie how they would want.
■ Making Predictions: Occasionally pause the movie or stop reading, and have your child predict what might happen. At the end of the movie or book, ask your child if they think there will be a sequel. If so, what do they think it would be about?
○ Another great way to use movies to practice language skills is to find a movie based off of a book. Read the book and watch the movie together - this sets up the perfect “Compare & Contrast” activity.
Read, Read, Read
● Book Club
○ Does your child love to read? Creating a book club with your child’s friends is a great opportunity to get your child to meet up with friends over summer. You can read the book to the group, or everyone can take turns reading if they are comfortable doing so. Be prepared with some discussion questions to initiate conversations.
These are all great ways to incorporate expansion of social language skills into activities you will most likely already be doing this summer. Get creative!
Katharyn Bannar
