The holiday season is a fantastic time to keep speech therapy engaging and relevant by incorporating a little festive spirit into practice. One enjoyable way to do this is through holiday storytelling. Reading holiday-themed books together offers a wonderful chance to expand vocabulary, while questions about the story can boost comprehension. Encourage your child to guess what might happen next or to retell parts of the story, helping them work on memory and sequencing. You can also encourage creativity by inviting them to invent their own holiday tale with prompts like “snowman,” “reindeer,” or “gifts.” Writing down or illustrating the story provides even more practice for expressive language.
A holiday scavenger hunt can be a fun way to keep speech practice alive during outings. As you explore holiday decorations or read shopping lists, point out colors, words, or sounds related to your child’s target sounds, such as “gift,” “tinsel,” or “sled.” You could also make a list of holiday words related to their targets for a simple, festive activity that builds vocabulary and awareness of language all around them.
Cooking and crafting sessions provide countless language-learning opportunities during the holidays. Following simple, age-appropriate recipes and crafts allows your child to practice following instructions, expanding vocabulary, and sequencing actions. Decorating cookies or building gingerbread houses also encourages descriptive language, where you can ask questions like “What color should we use?” or “Let’s make the tree tall and thin!” These activities are not only fun, but also help children improve articulation and descriptive language.
Turning holiday games into language exercises is another excellent way to make speech practice fun. Play a holiday-themed word bingo or try “I Spy” with holiday decorations, focusing on target sounds or descriptive words. For memory and recall, a festive version of “Simon Says” with holiday-themed actions like “wrap a present” or “decorate a tree” keeps them engaged and working on memory.
Creating holiday wish lists offers a natural way to practice spelling, writing, and vocabulary. Older children can use this activity to practice written language, sentence structure, and descriptive language. Talking about what they’re thankful for can also be a simple but effective way to encourage expressive language and articulation, as they list things they appreciate during this season.
Holiday songs are a fun and easy way to work on rhythm, fluency, and pronunciation. Singing traditional songs, or even making up new ones, is a great opportunity to practice sentence structure, rhythm, and prosody. This is especially engaging for younger children who love music and provides a natural way to work on these elements of speech.
Family gatherings can also serve as a wonderful opportunity for practicing social skills. Preparing conversation starters, practicing greetings like “Merry Christmas” or “Happy New Year,” and talking about questions they can ask relatives or friends helps children with social skills like active listening and responding. With a little creativity, the holiday season becomes a festive and effective setting for meaningful speech and language practice that keeps your child engaged, learning, and enjoying every bit of their speech therapy journey.
Happy Holidays to you All
