Benefits of Doll Play to Speech Development!
Mar 29, 2023
Did you know that playing with dolls can help develop speech and language in children? 💡 That's right! Not only is it a great way to foster imagination and creativity, but it can also have some awesome benefits for language skills. Today, let's explore the benefits of playing with dolls to children's speech development!
Doll play exposes kids to simple pronouns
Doll play can be a great way for children to learn about pronouns and practice using them in different contexts. Here are a few examples:
⭐ Simple pronouns: I, you, me, he, she, my, your, mine, it
She is playing.
It is a small toy.
I am going to the park.
⭐ Possessive pronouns: their, yours, her, his, the baby’s, us, ours
This baby bottle is hers.
Is this his chocolate or is it yours?
Their bags are in the corner.
When you are playing with your child and baby dolls, try demonstrating a whole bunch of different pretend play skills!
It develops vocabulary
Teaching your child the names of the objects associated with her baby doll can facilitate her learning of object names in her surroundings. For example, say the names of utensils, such as spoon, bowl, and cup, as well as different types of food and drink during feeding time. While dressing the doll, you can use terms like shirt, pants, pajamas, and dress. To teach your child these words, incorporate them into your conversations during daily activities, and encourage your child to use them as well.
Enjoy the next playtime with your child by introducing new simple words!
It helps increase phrase length
If your child is still learning to talk, you can help them by modeling and expanding their language skills through doll play:
⭐ Modeling: Talk about what you and your child are doing during playtime. Use words that match their level of understanding or slightly higher. For example, if your kid typically uses one word at a time, then when you model language for your child, you should be using one-word and two-word phrases (like “ball”, “roll ball”) but not any longer. This will help your child understand what you are saying and will give her models that she can easily imitate.
⭐ Expanding: Help your child learn new words by expanding on what they say. If your child says “ball”, you can say “roll the ball!”. Over time, your child will learn new words and start to use them on their own.
(speechandlanguagekids.com)
It introduces kids to environmental sounds
Environmental sounds is a great foundation for verbalizations for speech & language goals! These sounds that infants, toddlers, and children naturally make in development help to share their sounds needed for speech production and then their language. Some children that are developmental delayed, need extra models and repetitions to practice those sounds. Sounds like: Crying, sleeping/snoring, and eating sounds. (thespeechroomnews.com)
Shop Adora Dolls for Speech and Language Doll Activities!