Hello, today I want to discuss some moments that are important in communication with a child.
So what is important when we are talking with the child:
- Pay attention if the child is looking at you.
- Use simple and clear phrases.
- Speak friendly, kindly, slowly.
- Be interested. Speak with enthusiasm.
- Watch the tone you speak to the child. Children feel respect for them and learn to speak respectfully to others.
- Use polite words. By hearing that we are constantly using these words child learns to use them too.
- We should tell a child clearly what we want from him and what we don’t want.
- Child and adult are equal. If you talk with an adult – the child should wait, if you talk with the child – an adult should wait.
- Ask monosemantic questions. Usually, when adults ask a child “What would you like to wear shorts or pants?”, the child says “Yes” and adult still don’t know the answer. It’s better to ask “Would you like to wear shorts?”, “Would you like to wear a skirt?”.
- Don’t ask stupid questions. Don’t ask questions where the child’s answer will change nothing, like “Can you please put your toys back to the shelf?”, If the child answers “No” he will still need to put them there. Here it is better to say “Please put your toys back to the shelf”. If everytime after visiting some place you will ask the child ”Oh we enjoyed this thing. Would you like to come back here again?”, the first time he will answer “Yes! Absolutely!”, second “Yes. We will”, the third time he will think ”Hmmm, maybe I shouldn’t??”.
- Wait at least a minute after asking the question again. Recently I was going to the shop and saw a mom with a child under 3 years old. There was a puddle on their way. The child was 3 meters from it and mother shouted “Bypass the puddle! Bypass the puddle! I said you to bypass the puddle!”. I give you 60 % that he could do it by himself and 90% that he would do it after her first request. Children perceive everything 8-19 times slower than we do. So it’s often we who can’t wait a couple of minutes and not the child who don’t hear or don’t do something.
- Every item in the environment should have its name. Every item should have only one name. Ideally, everyone in the house knows it and uses this name. A comb is a comb, and not a comb in the morning and a brush in the afternoon.
- With very young children talk more about concrete things happening now and not the one that was a long time ago. It is difficult for them to understand abstract things.
- Do not talk about the child in the third person in his presence. It is disrespect and child will feel himself not comfortable. It is better to ask him to tell something you wanted to say or to ask him questions about it.
- And the last but not the least – remember, the best material for language learning are we. So we need to watch how we speak!
Can you add something?
Thank you for sharing your deep knowledge! You made some great points there!
love this article. Some I would.add is
1. have meaning and clear conversations with your child.
2 truly engage and spend quality time with your child without any gadgets and technology
3 give clear instructions, short and direct.
4 telling stories is a good way to communicate.
Beautiful additions! Thank you very much. THis is very important