The Importance of Waiting

Having the privilege of working on early intervention with some young children (1-3 years old), I have been able to be reminded frequently of the importance of a task that can be hard to do, both as a parent and as a therapist: WAITING.  One aspect in communication that can be trickier to remember and follow is waiting! As parents and therapists, we hear and know how important it is to label what things are and what we are doing to help our children to understand the meaning of words.  While this is one important piece of the puzzle, we also need to remember that our kiddos need the opportunity to attempt words and practice them themselves!

Even as a Speech-Language Pathologist who knows the importance of this, I will sometimes try to fill the empty space when it is quiet! Anyone who knows me, knows I can talk for hours!  However, this does not allow the child I am working with the opportunity to really show me what he/she knows.  It can be hard to sit in silence and wait for your child to say what they are wanting. It can be especially hard when we are in a hurry or already know what they want and they are starting to get upset. So, here are a few tips to help know how to give them opportunities to practice words in routines that you are already doing that does not take up extra time or put more pressure on them to communicate if they are already upset!

• Reading: When reading to your child, point at pictures of items and you say the first few.When you come to a word that you think they may know, you can say “What’s this” or “This is a”.  Then, pause and wait about 3-5 seconds for them to answer.  Sometimes it is helpful to count in your head!  3-5 seconds does not sound like a long time, but in silence, it can feel longer! If they don’t answer after 3-5 seconds, you can fill it in for them! Then try it again with another picture!
• Bath:When in the bathtub, you can label the toys they are playing with and then hold them up to see if they can tell you what they are! Again, ask them what it is and then wait a few seconds!
• Snack/Mealtimes:Hold up some of his/her favorite foods and tell them what it is.  Give them a little bit (a bite or a few pieces).  When they are done, ask them what they want! Give them a little bit to answer, then fill it in if they don’t answer and give them a bite or a few pieces and then ask again!

These are just a few times during the day that are usually not rushed and we are fully engaged with our kiddos and can practice our waiting skills as well as your child’s language skills!  Please do not hesitate to reach out and ask if you have questions related to more opportunities to practice or if you have concerns about your child’s language development and use of words!

-Amber Petereck-