Six ways to improve your child’s vocabulary

Fostering vocabulary growth in early childhood sets the stage for nurturing iconic academic success and overall growth & skill development as a very important “Life skill: Personally, and Professionally over the years”.

Parents and Teachers : its your responsibility to  Gift this Life Skill to your Child Early-on .

Developmental milestones such as speaking are common things that most children can do at a certain age. Most vocabulary initiates at the age of 18 months.

The number of words a child uses regularly is referred to as his or her expression “expressive vocabulary”.  

You may want to check-out the table-1   below for the approximate words in Expressive Vocabulary as per the Child Development Institute; Nicolosi, Harryman, & Kresheck (2006); and Owens (1996) .

Please take note that the Table-1 is just an indicative  guideline only   for the approximate number of words your child should be able to  use according to his or her age.

These are the number of words which can be introduced to preschoolers.

The most important thing to be considered while developing the child’s vocabulary is that no two kids are the same. We should not compare them with others but nurture the child’s natural abilities with love and care in building the child’s expressive vocabulary in different languages like Mother-tongue, Samskrit, Hindi which is our Bharat’s (Indian) National Language and importantly good English as it is the International Link-Language today.

Words play an important role in continually helping the child to express thoughts and emotions. Communication acts as a foundation for skills such as cognitive, emotional, social interactions, listening, speaking, reading, and writing.

As Parents ( and ofcourse as Teachers ) you can help the child to develop a good expressive vocabulary by creating a learning nurturing environment at your home and  play-schools .

Am sharing 6 ways as 6 tips , when mixed & implemented diligently , will aid in developing the early-childhood language abilities and expand the child’s vocabulary :

Tip 1 : 

Introducing new words: Introduce one word at a time to the child.

Children try to understand the meaning of a word and try to grab the emotion in the way we speak.

• It would be helpful if everyone in the family could use the same words in daily conversation.
• It is best to aim for around 5 new words for the child to learn each week.

Remember: The mean-length of utterances:  the child has the natural abilities to speak from the age of 12 to 18 with a one- ,  two- and three-word utterances  and uses intonation to ask yes/no questions like : Amma , Naana , Taata , Atta , Anna , Mamma , Maa ,  Me-want  , Wh..th… ( what-is-this  etc.. )

Now ,  this translates tangibly :  as 5 Words * 4 weeks = 20 Words in a month and 240 Words in a year.

A Word of Caution : Out of your enthusiasm introducing too many words will confuse the child. The child if not be able to understand the meaning of the word and cannot use the word in an appropriate way ; then you must take caution and introduce the words at a pace that is encouraging for the child.

Your diligent observation of the childs in-take of words must be observed by you and introduce the words accordingly in a rhythmic patterns of  the  child’s learning capacity and regularly expand that limit steadily ….. its just like any other physical endurance exercises like you do in Yoga …. 

Know this

At one to two years,

• the child will learn to use and understand different types of words. They start with mostly nouns such as dog, bus etc.
• Eventually they will understand and speak a few verbs such as eat, run etc. Then comes to adjectives such as red, big, nice, etcetera.

By three years of age, they will learn and use connecting words like and, if etc.

Tip 2 :

Associating with pictures:  While teaching new words, try to associate the word with the picture.

A visual image associated with the word will be formed in the brain of the child. This would help the child to remember the word well. When we speak the same words, the child will be able to recall the word along with the image easily.

Example:

if you’re introducing the word airplane, it is important to show the picture and make an action of flying gestures with your hands of the airplane in variety of ways :

• in the book show a colorful picture of airplane
• a toy airplane,
• or show the image of the airplane in a mobile phone and if can ….
• take the child to the airport and show the actual airplane to the child.

It is one way of explaining vocabulary to children.

Pictures bring vocabulary words to life. Therefore, associating words with pictures will help the child to have a good connection with the words.

Tip 3 : 

Give exposure: Give exposure to the introduced words repeatedly.

Try to use the same words in conversation with the child.

• Repetition in fun and engaging ways by making the child read the words and this will improve the pronunciation of the words.
• Writing the words will also help the child to recognize the spelling and help them to remember well.
• Repeat the same through activities.

Examples:

• activities like matching words with pictures
• tracing,
• Colouring
• making the words with clay etc.

will help the child to get introduced and exposed to the same words in a different way that are fun and playful methods.

Tip 4 : 

Reading: Reading aloud

Reading aloud helps children hear how words are pronounced and used in context.

Parents should inculcate the habit of reading at different pre-scheduled timing to the child. This helps to build a strong connection with parents. Reading together with your child makes the child feel loved not just like a bedtime story but also during the day-time as well.

Reading allows for discussion about the story and the meanings of new words. It will improve the child’s creativity and imagination also.

As parents and or teachers, it is important to choose books appropriate for your child’s reading level. Being mindful of the goal as one pointed agenda :  “improve the vocabulary of  your child” …. period .

Surround your child with books, magazines, and educational materials. Use diverse and descriptive language in your interactions and provide opportunities for your child to encounter new words in different contexts.

Books such as the following examples will help the child to improve vocabulary : 

• Panchatantra, Jataka Tales Colorful picture story books
• History of Kings and Queens of India and other countries
• Flora and Fauna – Birds , Animals , Plants and Places
• Bhagavad Gita, Bible and Quran for Kids
• Indian Itihasa stories such as the Epic of  Ramayana by Valmiki  and Mahabharata by Veda Vyasa
• Illustrated Stories from Upanishads for Kids
• “Read it yourself” with Lady Bird books will be available according to the child’s level.
• “Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?” by Bill Martin Jr.
• “Goodnight Moon” by Margaret Wise Brown
• The How of the World …. Scientific Evolutionary stories
• About the Great Personalities of India and other countries
• About Inventions and Innovations …..
• About the Universe and Nakshatras as Jyothish Shastra for Kids
• Yoga and Aayurveda for Kids
• And many more ….

Repetitive text and colorful illustrations help children learn new words and phrases.

You may want to introduce some  meaningful and purposeful Shlokas that develop the moral values and  develop great characters in your child…..    

Simple, rhythmic text introduces new vocabulary in a calming bedtime story.

Tip 5 : 

Word games: Introduce a variety of playing educational Word Games. Child’s vocabulary can be improved through playing educational word games.

Introduce games for age groups from 2 to 3 years ; 3 years to 5 years etc…

• Scrabble
• Boggle, or
• word puzzles

examples as mentioned above not only challenge your child to think about words and their meanings but also make learning new words fun and engaging.

I bet , you must not miss this  ; as word-games offers an opportunity for you as parents to spend quality time with your child and develop a healthy fun-way of evolving the vocabulary of your child.  

While playing these games, children encounter a variety of words, including some they may not have seen before. This exposure helps them learn new vocabulary in an interactive way. These activities help children understand the structure of words, discover new words, and practice using them in different contexts.

Your Positive reinforcement helps keep them motivated and interested in learning new words.

Tip 6 : 

Vocabulary Development Around the Childs Environment:

Vocabulary development happens not only in the classroom or at home but also everywhere around the world in the child’s environment.

For example:

• taking a child to an exhibition, mall, or zoo provides excellent opportunities for them to be exposed to new words.
• Visiting museums and science exhibitions introduces children to technical and scientific vocabulary in an interactive and memorable way.
• Simple everyday activities like cooking, shopping, or gardening can be rich sources of new vocabulary as children learn the names of ingredients, tools, and processes.

It is parents and teachers responsibility to create a fun-edutaining environment giving umpteen opportunities for the child to build their vocabulary.

A good command of language with a good vocabulary will significantly contribute to the child success in academic endeavors. By integrating these diverse and enriching activities into your child’s daily life environment, you will set the stage for a lifetime of learning and a robust vocabulary that will support your child’s success in every endeavor.