RECEPTIVE LANGUAGE AND EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE

  • Receptive language or the language students understand, affects their ability to answer questions, follow directions, and comprehend a story. Expressive Language or the language students use affects their ability to express their thoughts and feelings, as well as their ability to narrate a story, use complete sentences and appropriate grammar. Receptive and Expressive language are used together to communicate orally.

     

    Suggestions to support your child's language development:

    1. Model developmentally appropriate utterances necessary to participate in all daily activities (e.g., “May I have milk please”, “I like playing with blocks”, etc.). 
    2. Provide a consistent daily routine; prepare your child for changes in advance if possible.
    3. Correct any grammatical or sound errors that may occur by repeating or recasting with the correct production slightly emphasized.
    4. Engage your child in activities that require listening and following directions. Simplify complex directions.
    5. Read and tell stories daily. Talk about the character(s) and setting. Ask your child who, what, and where questions about the story. Ask your child what he/she thinks will happen next in the story. 
    6. Simplify higher-level "wh" questions (e.g., where, when, why, etc.) by providing forced choices (e.g. “Why was the boy in the story happy? Because he got to play with his friend or he liked his lunch?”). 
    7. Ask “what doing” questions about activities or pictures (e.g., “What are you/they doing? “What am I doing?’ “What is he/she doing?).
    8. Provide opportunities for your child to practice turn-taking (e.g., playing games, sharing information during family time, etc.).