Top 7 Tips to Improve Your Child’s Speech: Expert-Backed Strategies for Parents
Want to help your child speak more confidently and clearly? Find the best 7 tips to enhance the speech of your child in
with expert-suggested methods that every parent can do.
Did you know that approximately 1 in 12 children aged 3–17 years has a speech or language disorder? It’s more frequent than you realize—and it’s nothing to worry about! If your toddler is slow to communicate or has difficulty pronouncing words, you’re not alone.
As a parent, you have a strong influence on your child’s communication. In this article, we’ll explore 7 evidence-based tips to enhance your child’s speech—all supported by speech therapists and early childhood specialists. These easy-to-implement, fun, and practical strategies can be applied during daily routines at home. Let’s unlock your child’s voice together!
1. Establish a language-rich home environment
Your child can speak well only when the surrounding environment is rich in language. You can facilitate your child’s speech development by performing small activities at home.
Enhance the usage of words in everyday conversations:
Use as many words as possible in your day-to-day speech. For instance, while cooking, you could say, “I am chopping tomatoes now,” or “Now I will go and purchase rice.” By narration like this, the child becomes familiar with new words and comprehends their usage.
Use descriptive words:
When you speak of something, rather than simply stating “This is a car,” use “This is a red car which is fast.” This will assist your child not only in identifying objects but also in acquiring adjectives and verbs.
Encourage pretend play:
Kids automatically pick up new words through pretend play, like doctor-patient, kitchen set, or shopkeeper roles. These games enhance their expressive language capabilities.
Repeat what the child says and extend it:
If your child utters “ball,” you may respond with “Yes, this is a bouncy red ball.” This helps make his utterances more significant and structured, which enhances his comprehension of language.
2. Limit Screen Time and Maximize Face-to-Face Interaction
These days, with the advancement of technology, phones, tablets, and televisions have become an integral part of children’s lives. But did you know that too much screen time has a direct impact on children’s speech development? When children are on screens for more time, their actual communication time in real life decreases. They don’t receive as much a chance to speak, listen, and comprehend as they do in face-to-face interactions.
That is why you should limit screen time and spend as much time as you can talking face-to-face with your child. You can sit down with them and listen to stories, sing songs, or play simple games like “name it”, or “what is it?”. These activities help them learn their language and communication skills naturally.
Eye contact, gestures, and facial expressions play an extremely crucial role in face-to-face communication. When you address your child while maintaining eye contact with him, he learns what you say, as well as your expressions and feelings. All these are fundamental components of speech and language skills.
Take small portions of the day such as eating food, going for a stroll, or sleep time to discuss important things. By following these easy steps, you can facilitate your child in learning to talk naturally. Those talks done by sitting in front of and behind the screen influence more and turn your child into a confident communicator.
3. Read a little every day – with expression and repetition
Reading out loud daily is a highly effective activity in children’s speech building. As you read engaging and suitable books for your child’s age, his vocabulary is strengthened, he grasps sentence building and his confidence in speaking also grows. Some easy and effective tips are mentioned below that you can implement in your daily routine:
1. Select suitable books
-It is extremely essential to select books based on the age of the child.
-Colorful, touch-and-feel flipbooks are ideal for 1-3-year-old toddlers.
-For children between the ages of 3-5 years, slightly longer stories or rhyming books are more interesting.
-Select books that contain simple words and clear pictures, so that the child can comprehend while listening.
2. Use different tones and voices
-While reading a story, use a different voice for every character.
-Sometimes softly, sometimes loudly – this makes the story exciting.
-The child not only hears but also learns speech and words.
3. Ask Open-Ended Questions
Ask the child questions while reading or after reading like:
-“Which picture did you like the most?”
-“If you were in this story, what would you do?”
-“Have you ever done something like this?”
-Such questions stimulate the child to think and talk.
-The child is no longer a listener, he begins to actively engage.
4. Read favorite books over and over
-Children prefer repetition. When they hear the same story over and over again, the words and sentences become known to them.
-Each repetition reinforces the language and sentence structures in their mind.
-The child gradually attempts to utter the words he has heard.
5. Make reading a daily habit
-Set aside only 10-15 minutes each day for reading, whether it is at bedtime or during the day.
-This is the bonding time as well as speech development time.
4. Enhance your child’s speech through songs, rhymes and games
The best way for children to learn is fun and repetition. When we incorporate rhymes, songs, and interactive games into their daily life, their confidence in speaking gets enhanced. Following are some simple and effective methods that you can practice at home:
1. Utilize nursery rhymes and fingerplays
– Repeatedly repeating rhymes such as “Twinkle Twinkle”, “Johnny Johnny” or “Machli Jal Ki Rani Hai” assist children in speaking.
-Rhymes enhance their rhythm and articulation, i.e., they learn to pronounce words properly.
-Fingerplays such as “Itsy Bitsy Spider” where actions are demonstrated using hands, their motor skills and listening skills also develop.
2. Play Speech-Focused Games
-In the “I Spy” game you can provide a hint about an object and tell the child to say its name, such as “I spy something red” – then the child will try to guess.
-In sound sorting games you can sort various objects into similar sounds by announcing their names. Such as “ball”, “bat”, and “banana” with a “b” sound.
-You can play a game of short story-making using story-telling dice or picture cards. They both practice speaking as well as imagination.
3. Getting the children to repeat songs and sing songs together, such as “Old MacDonald Had a Farm”.
-When the child hears the lyrics over and over again and echoes them, his speech quality and vocabulary both get better.
-There is repetition in songs, and that makes learning natural and easy for them.
4. Practice Tongue Twisters (For the seniors)
– For the seniors, “tongue twisters” such as “She sells sea shells on the sea shore” or “Red lorry, yellow lorry” is a game.
-It will improve their pronunciation and fluency.
The greatest advantage of all these activities is that the child practices speaking without tension. When learning is enjoyable, the child becomes more interested and develops naturally.
5. Seek professional assistance whenever necessary
Speech development is a normal process during childhood, but there are some children who require a little additional assistance. Parents need to realize that each child develops at his own rate, but in case you think your child is lagging behind in speaking as per his age, then seeking professional assistance is the best thing to do.
Following are some important things that parents need to realize:
1. Identify milestones
– There are milestones in speech at each age.
-By the age of 2 years, kids begin using over 50 words and giving short sentences.
-By the age of 3 years, other individuals aside from the family also begin understanding their words.
-By the age of 4 years, the child starts speaking in good sentences.
-If you sense that your child is lagging behind these milestones, then it is necessary to watch them in time.
2. How do you know that your child has a speech delay?
-The child does not develop an interest in speaking
-Vocabulary is extremely limited
-Whenever he wants to express anything, he becomes frustrated
-Cannot speak clearly
-Cannot speak sentences of 2 or 3 words
-You or others find it hard to understand what he is speaking
-All of these may be indicators of speech delay.
3. Do not wait
-Many parents wait hoping that the child will begin to speak with time.
-But if there is a delay, then waiting late to seek help can delay the child’s development even further.
-Early intervention is highly effective — the earlier help is obtained, the better the outcome.
4. Call a Speech-Language Pathologist
-SLPs (speech-language pathologists) are specially trained experts who diagnose and treat speech and language problems in children.
-They make a tailored therapy plan according to your child’s needs.
-They also advise you on what you can do at home to help with the speech.
If you feel that your child needs a bit of speech support, don’t wait. Seeking professional assistance at the appropriate time is very helpful for your child’s communication development as a whole.
6. Be patient and do not over-correct – Children’s confidence can be shattered
When our kid begins to speak, they tend to use the incorrect words or the sentence structure is not correct. This is perfectly normal. But most parents begin to correct their errors each time. Your intention is good, but constant interrupting or correcting can be discouraging for the child.
Learning is a natural process in childhood. Children learn through imitation of the language. If you mention their every error, their confidence in speaking will be reduced. They begin thinking, “I am not speaking well,” and then they begin to avoid speaking. This can further postpone their speech and communication abilities.
What should be done? Correct gently, without telling directly
If the child utters a wrong word, rather than correcting it directly, you can repeat the sentence in the right way. Suppose the child utters,
“Mumma, mi want juice,”
you can utter,
“Ohh! You want juice. Mumma will give you juice.”
In this way, the child hears the right version without being ashamed and over time picks it up.
Positive reinforcement makes children learn quickly.
Whenever a child speaks something, no matter how imperfect, value his effort. Clap, smile, or tell him, “Wow, you said it very well!” These little compliments encourage them and they attempt to speak more.
Patience is the key!
The language development in children varies from child to child. Some begin saying complete sentences at the age of 1.5 years, while some just utter simple words for 3 years. Your responsibility is to provide them with love, care, and a secure atmosphere where they can speak freely without fear.
7. Take advice from a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) if necessary
Each child is unique and his mode of speaking is also unique. Some children begin to speak early, while others take a bit more time. But if you think that your child is speaking less than normal for his age or has some issue in his speech development, then taking advice from a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) can be a wise decision.
Do not neglect speech delay.
Often parents assume that “Alright, he is talking a bit late, he will improve in time.” However, neglecting speech delay can result in issues in the long run. If you observe that your child:
-uses very few words
-has trouble understanding other children’s words
-can’t speak 2-3 word sentences
-pronounces words wrong or repeats them over and over
-then these may be indications of speech delay. At this point, it becomes necessary to approach an SLP.
What does an SLP do?
A Speech-Language Pathologist is a professional who finds out about speech and language issues and develops a plan of treatment for them. If your child is experiencing speech delay, then SLP:
-makes an assessment in which the communication style of the child is realized
-prepares an individualized therapy plan
-assists the child in communicating using enjoyable and engaging activities
-guides parents on how to assist at home
Advantages of Early Intervention
Early intervention implies receiving assistance in the early stage of the problem. Research explains that if you take the assistance of an SLP at the early stage, then your child can master the art of speech more properly and rapidly. It also builds confidence in the child and he is more confident at school as well as while meeting people.
Parents’ tip: Trust your instinct
You know your child best. If you feel something is not right, it is better to take a small consultation rather than wait. SLPs do not judge your child – they are the support system that accompanies you in your child’s language journey.