{"id":887,"date":"2016-06-03T02:37:35","date_gmt":"2016-06-03T02:37:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/saynplaycolumbus.com\/?p=887"},"modified":"2016-06-03T02:37:35","modified_gmt":"2016-06-03T02:37:35","slug":"having-the-child-take-the-lead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestsidedesign.org\/snp\/index.php\/2016\/06\/03\/having-the-child-take-the-lead\/","title":{"rendered":"Having the Child “Take the Lead”"},"content":{"rendered":"

I am honored to be a guest blogger on Say-N-Play Columbus! Like Signe, I am a Speech-Language Pathologist living in the Columbus area. I work in the clinical and school setting and love following this blog to get ideas for my kids and to pass on to my parents! In addition, I adore that this blog\u2019s main focus is about PLAY! Especially, in the best city ever… Columbus, Ohio! Being a Speech-Language Pathologist, I am constantly reading articles that discuss how play is such an important skill that helps develop language and social skills; which in turn, aids in academic success and performance. Academic success is ultimately what we want for all of our kids, but to me, the most positive benefit from play is the special interactions you gain with your child. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n

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Over the years, I have learned it can be easy for us adults to want to take the lead during play and when interacting with your child. I know sometimes in my speech therapy sessions, I have a whole lesson planned\u2026.and I think \u201cHe is going to love this activity and we are going to A, B, and C.\u201d Then, when I introduce the lesson to the child, they are more interested in the man mowing the lawn outside the window compared to the lesson I planned! That is why I have found that one of the best ways to maximize learning and relationship development with your child is to make sure you follow their lead! When the child is in the lead, you can then build off what the child is doing. Be the facilitator, not the \u201cboss\u201d of interactions and play! Here are some tips and examples to get you started. (The response examples in parentheses below may not apply to your child, and depends on your child\u2019s level of language development! TIP: Wherever your child is at with language, try to take it to the next level of complexity with your responses.)<\/p>\n