Page 63 - Routines-Based Early Intervention Guidebook

Routines-Based Early Intervention Guidebook

Teaching Expanded Phrases 4.4

These boards are easily transferable to different daily rou nes by maintaining the board and

swapping out the op ons.

Use Categories Instead of Object Names

Objects are naturally grouped. We have
toys, clothes, foods, and everything that natu‐

I want
rally goes within the group. For children who
are really struggling, it is o en be er to teach a play

more general word so that the child has mul ple
opportuni es to prac ce the word throughout the day. For example, the child can say, "I

want food," rather than having to choose between the mul tude of food objects.

Use Verbs Instead of Object Names

Another way to reduce the vocabulary for struggling children but s ll expand their

phrases is to use verbs. Rather than naming all the toys or all the foods, they can just learn “I

want (to) eat” or “I want (to) play.” These verbs encompass all of the objects that would be

used to carry out the ac vity. While this is not where we want the child to be eventually, it is

a great small step to get the child to make general requests and build specificity later.

Expanding Phrases in the Real World

Parents need to know that there are dozens of opportuni es to expand a child’s u erance

each day. O en, they need examples. Here are a few:
1. The Store – Children point out an infinite number of objects while shopping. It is a

great opportunity to add numbers, adjec ves, and names to anything they see and

say. For example, cookie can become want/good/yellow/one/my/big/chocolate

cookie.
2. Commu ng—Children see an infinite number of objects passing through the

window while you drive. You can help them be er describe everything that is in

their world or use the radio to sing their favorite song with them.

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