Your child is a little sponge – he or she listens and learns constantly, soaking up new information all the time. Children are constantly developing their language skills and may even pick up on a few bad words here and there. You can help them develop their language by reading and conversing with them. Your child will take in anything that you read to them, be it fiction, non-fiction, real books or even made up stories. A bedtime story is always a great way to send the little one off to sleep. If you do not have a book handy, tell them the story of what happened in their day. The skills of sequencing, prediction, retelling and remembering events are all developed through this activity.

If you are looking for ways to develop their conversational skills, take turns asking each other a question. Remember to ask open-ended questions that require more than a yes or no answer –your child might surprise you with a ‘too cute to be true’ answer.

If you are trying to focus on rhymes, you could give your child three or four words. Among these words should be one that doesn’t rhyme For example; cat, mat and dog – ask them which one ends in a different way or sounds different. You can also do this with synonyms such as happy, glad and angry. Ask your child which one doesn’t belong? This is a good way to extend vocabulary and explain new or rarely-used words.

Whichever game you choose to play with your child, it will help them develop their language and communication skills.