Supporting Early Language Skills at Home - Caregiver Friendly EI Handouts

These caregiver-friendly Early Intervention handouts include simple and fun ideas for encouraging early speech, language, and communication skills during play at home using everyday items.

Feel Confident Leaving the Toy Bag in the Car!

All of the ideas in these handouts involve using everyday items in play at home.

Not all families we work with have the same access to toys and books. These handouts have been designed to help you embrace bagless therapy and leave the toy bag in the car, and instead show families how they can effectively support their child’s development with things they have at home.

Great for Routines-Based Interventions

All of the ideas are play-based, but since they use everyday items, they can be easily incorporated during daily routines.

Ideal for Caregivers

All of the handouts are all written in caregiver-friendly terms. They are suitable for sharing with caregivers after coaching sessions or using for your own reference.

There are two versions available; one set (pages 10-25) has multiple ideas on one page. These are ideal for therapists to help with session planning, and are suitable for sharing with caregivers that like to see all the ideas at once.

The other set (pages 26-65) has two ideas per page, with a space to make notes. These are ideal for sharing with caregivers that may feel overwhelmed with multiple options.

The ideas in both sets are the same, they are just laid out differently, so you can educate caregivers without overwhelming them.

Contents

This resource includes 80 caregiver-friendly ideas for using everyday items to support early speech, language, and communication skills in play at home.

Information for Therapists and Ideas for Use

Using Language Strategies in Play at Home (1)

Using Language Strategies in Play at Home (2)

Household Alternatives for Children’s Toys

Things to Play with at Home (letter-sized poster)

Ideas include:

10 Ways to Play with a Cardboard Box

10 Ways to Play with Food Storage Containers

5 Ways to Play with Pots and Pans

5 Ways to Play on the Sofa

5 Ways to Play with a Mirror

5 Ways to Play with Toilet Roll Tubes

13 Ways to Play Just You and Your Child (People Play Games)

5 Ways to Play with a Blanket

9 Ways to Play with Water

5 Ways to Play ‘What’s in the Bag?’

8 Ways to Play with Socks

Each handout includes a simple yet fun activity idea. A small number of suggested target words, and a suggested language facilitation strategy.

The language facilitation strategies included in this resource are evidence-based General Language Stimulation strategies. General language stimulation involves making changes to the physical and linguistic environments, in order to increase the opportunities for the child to hear developmentally appropriate language.

Ideas for Use

• Use the handouts for parents and caregivers during caregiver-coaching sessions to support the development/carryover of skills at home.
• Share the handouts with parents/caregivers or childcare providers during meetings.
• Send the handouts home in homework packets to support the development and carryover of skills at home.
• Put the handouts on a bulletin board as an “activity of the month”.
• Put the poster on a bulletin board as a way to show families how they can play at home without toys.
• Put these handouts in a binder and use them for your own reference.

You May Also Like...

• Early Language Skills Around the House - caregiver-friendly handouts with ideas for supporting speech, language, and communication skills at home.
• Early Language Handouts for Daily Routines - caregiver-friendly handouts with ideas for using language facilitation strategies during daily routines.