Cheap & Simple Toys to Encourage Language Development (Part 1)

I officially finished my second semester of graduate school! It was crazy and busy and full of lots of driving... but I loved it. This was my second semester of graduate school, but my first semester of actually working with clients. After a Bachelor's and a semester in grad school, I was finally able to sit down with real clients and begin putting all of those lectures and textbook dollars to practical, clinical use.

Per the luck of the draw, I was placed with preschool kiddos (among other clients), and I couldn't have been happier. Both of the little guys I saw were completely adorable, and I honestly LOVED every session I spent with them. One of my little buddies was diagnosed with Childhood Apraxia of Speech, and the other had a series of developmental delays and used an AAC device.Both had very different needs, but I gradually collected a small arsenal (literally, my locker was stuffed) of therapy materials (basically toys) that helped me soar through therapy sessions on a grad student budget.

Initially, I spent a lot of time scouring Pinterest, but in the end I modified and completely created my own "methods to the madness". I hope that some other newbie grad student out there will find this post and feel a sense of solace as she (or he) jumps into the world of preschool clinicals.


Although I am not a licensed Speech Language Pathologist yet, I would recommend these toys as wonderful communication builders. But in all honesty, nearly any toy can be used to elicit communication now can't it ;) I just found my collection to provide the most bang for their buck, and my little fellas LOVED them. In case you were wondering, the uncanny ability to see the potential in any toy to become a therapy tool is one the hurdles aspiring SLPs must learn to jump before graduation.


So, here goes the list!

 1) Blocks, Bubbles & Balls

 

 

If I had to choose one set of therapy toys to use out of all the others, this would be the winner. A very wise professor of mine once told us that the simpler we kept our therapy, the better. And guess what? She was absolutely right. Complicated just doesn't work with little kids, they love simple.
 

Okay, so lets start with the blocks. Blocks of any kind are great, but these specific blocks are MAGNIFICENT for language development in my opinion, Can you see how each block has a different object stuck inside? This is the pure genius of this block set. Some of the blocks rattle when you shake them, others spin when you twist the top, and some just look like fun. I can't even remember all of the ways I used these blocks, but I will try to share a few of the ways that they made it into my "Top 3".

First off, stacking blocks appropriately is not only a worthwhile motor activity, but also a fundamental functional play skill. They are also great for working on spatial concepts such as up, down, on, and off. If you are working on requesting, with AAC or verbally--stacking blocks and requiring a request before knocking them down can be quite motivating in my limited experience.

 

On to the bubbles. Oh bubbles, what a miraculous invention. I can honestly say that I have never met a child who could resist bubbles. Again, I used them to work on requesting and joint attention by blowing a few bubbles and them capping them off. We also practicing productions of the words
pop, up, and down.  If you want a crowd pleaser that will bring out the smiles and laughter... go with the bubbles. I never started a therapy session without a bottle of bubbles close by.

Last but not least, lets talk about balls. This dollar tree plastic ball was quite the prize, whether we were rolling it back and forth (functional play), practicing turn taking and requests (producing my turn, go, or more), or kicking it around the room while yelling "kick!" this ball got in a lot of mileage. We also played basketball with a suction-cup hoop, and bowled with cups.

Keep it simple.

2) Books

The opportunities available with books are ENDLESS, as are the benefits associated with reading to young children. There is a book for everything, from opposites to common nursery rhymes. I would often attempt to coordinate a book with the toys or activities for the daily session. By starting with a book about opposites, and giving the child opportunities to imitate vocabulary through reading, he may end up with some spontaneous use of the targeted words later on in the session, Also, for kids with motor skill challenges, board books provide a great opportunity for interaction and practice through turning pages.

Use big books, small books, books with manipulatives, classic books, books that include a song, or any other book that will engage your kiddo. Both of my boys LOVED book time.

To summarize: books, books, books!

 

3) Instruments

 

Whether you have actual instruments or an upside down bowl with a wooden spoon, instruments are great tools for speech and language. We used instruments to build vocabulary (fast, slow, loud, soft, etc.) as well as to encourage turn taking and requesting. We even tapped out each color on the xylophone while saying the colors. Grab a couple of instruments and sit in the floor with your kiddo and let him play! Sing silly songs, tap out a beat, play really loud, play super soft. Talk about what and how you are playing as you go. Music Therapy is extremely effective for a wide variety of children with communication disorders, and although I do not claim to provide music therapy, I know that music really works for some kids. Communication is all about interaction, and music can help bridge the gap.

 

4) Temptation Toys

Hmmm.... how could these toys be used to develop speech and language skills? Are you stumped? Let me help you out.

The top toy is a "spin globe", it's about 5'' tall. You press the little blue butting and suddenly an odd looking rattle-like toy becomes a spectacular show of spinning LED lights! The little puppy toy is also pretty small, probably 3-4'' long. To activate this little guy, you pull the string beside his tail and he begins to shake and vibrate in a silly and intriguing kind of way. 

Are these toys simple? Yes. Eye catching and communication building? Oh yeah. I purchased these toys with the intention of using them as joint attention tools. Joint attention can be defined in many different ways depending on the stage that the child is in, but is essentially some form of sharing an experience between two observers. Typically, very small children exhibit joint attention naturally as a precursor to language, by looking at Mom--looking at bubbles--and looking back to Mom. Joint attention can be used to request and share in social experiences, and JA is extremely important in building communication skills.

 

In order to implement JA skills, I would turn the button away from my little guy (so that he didn't catch the trick to the light show), press the button and say "Wow! Look at the lights!". He would often smile and laugh while grabbing for the spinning lights. After 5-10 seconds, I would then release the button and wait for eye gaze to shift from me, to the toy, and back to me. The same pattern could be used with the dog.

 

"Temptation Toys" are so named because they are attention grabbing and engaging in a way that "tempts" a child to request more of the toy. Both of these cheap little toys did the trick!

 

As time went on, and JA goals were met--I found other uses for the toys as well. We worked on the concepts of on, off, stop, go, etc. while also practicing productions of those words. I also used the dog in a sensory activity of "soft and hard" items, where my little guy would pull out a toy and we would talk about whether it was hard or soft. So, for a combined total of $5...these toys hit a grand slam!

 

 

 

Cheap & Simple Toys to Encourage Language Development (Part 2)

In order to round off my list of therapy toys, below you will find three additional ideas to add to your bag of tricks!

 

5) Toy Bus & Little Toy People 

My mom had saved this toy from my little sister's toddler days, and man oh man was I grateful. Although I am not sure how much a bus and little people would cost, I am pretty sure that this toy set would be the most expensive out of all the items that I have shared. Still, if you can pick one up at a yard sale or consignment shop--I highly recommend it.

This little set became a go-to for all kinds of different activities. Regarding functional play, we put people in and out of the bus, and rolled the bus back and forth. By pushing down on the driver, lights and music were activated, which allowed for practice with JA and the concepts of on and off among others. For one of my little guys who loved all forms of imaginary play, we drove the bus round and round the therapy room to pick up the "kids" for "school." For this little guy, imaginary play brought out the greatest amount of vocabulary use, which is what we were working towards for him. Any kind of play set, such as a doll house, barn, or airplane would create similar opportunities for language growth, either at a very basic level (Joint Attention and turn taking) or at higher levels of imaginary play.

 

To play is to learn.

6) Stacking Cups

 

I will tell you that this set of stacking cups was purchased at a Mighty-General-Dollar-Store-Tree for $4. Again, I can't count the number of therapy sessions where these cups made an appearance. Labeling colors, talking about big and little, working on motor skills while stacking, and then knocking them down were among the top uses of these little gems.

A few times I even scoured the therapy closet for small objects (tiny car, little plastic lion, a little toy person, a marble) and stacked the cups while hiding one toy between each cup. My little guy squealed every time he got to reveal a new surprise, and we were able to practice vocabulary as we discovered each new object.

For my little friend with motor challenges, these cups were a great alternative to blocks because of the small rim around the top of each cup that made them a little less prone to falling over as he stacked them. They are also the perfect size for kid hands. 

 

 

7) Everything but the Kitchen Sink

(Disclaimer: The use of a sink is actually helpful with some of these objects)

 

I am trying to prove a point, which is that anything can be used as a toy with a preschooler. Whether you're building language skills or filling time as a busy parent on a rainy day, I can guarantee that you have the makings of some simple and fun activities around your house.

 

Freeze tiny objects into an ice tray and allow your kiddo to melt them by whatever means necessary. Let them try a squirt bottle, dropper, their hands, or a sink with hot/cold water. If your little preschooler is at all like my little client, he may even through them against the sides of the sink to crack the ice and free the tiny toys. This was by far one of my little guys' favorite activities. We worked on producing opposites (hot/cold, in/out, big/little and up/down), new vocabulary words (ice, rock, bug, shoe...), and had a blast while doing it all.

 

For some of the non-freezable items you may see in the photo--I used them in sorting activities. In attempting to build vocabulary, I found activities centered on opposites to be a gold mine of expressive opportunities. I went around my house and found hard/soft or big/little items (cotton ball, felt square, rock, battery, paint roller, sea shell, magnet...) and put them in a brown paper bag. My little guy would then reach his little hand inside and pull out an object. I would then ask him "hard or soft?" In the beginning, I would gently rub soft objects on his hand and say "soft", or knock on the hard objects while saying "this is hard" in order to help him grasp the concept. Sorting was a hit! Especially if I started out by saying "Can you help me put all of these things into two piles?" Preschool kids LOVE to feel like they are helping out.

So, if you bank account is sucked dry due to tuition, books, and gas like mine was--go on a search through your drawers and cabinets before shelling out any more cash.

 

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Be creative, keep it simple, and have fun :)