The game of the day – word play!

Word games are a great way to enhance your daughter’s vocabulary. They are easy to do as part of your daily life, they don’t require much planning, and – best of all – they are free and fun to do together.

Naturally, it depends on your daughter’s age what kind of games you can play – you will be the best judge on what type of game she will enjoy and learn from the most. You might not have thought about it but you have already been playing words games – repeating the names of things over and over again and pointing them out when she is learning to speak. What a joy when you hear her using the word!

When she is a bit older you can concentrate on a specific word group for a day. You can for example rehearse colours while you are out and about: colours of cars, flowers, signs, house doors – whatever you can see along the way. Learn the names of pieces of clothing when you are emptying the washing machine or the vegetables while you are out shopping. Name the pieces of furniture in the different rooms and flowers and plants while out in the park – you might need to bring a book to help you with this, as the questions will keep coming!

As her vocabulary grows you can choose a sound of the day. You should both try to use as many words as possible starting with a specific sound. If you are into star charts, she could get a point for each word she can come up with. You can introduce new words to her as part of the game.

When she is learning to read and write, stickers on items at home are a good visual aid. Yes, it will look a bit messy, but it will all be worth it, when you notice how soon you can remove the stickers as she has learnt the words. Make it more fun by moving the stickers around and letting her put them right. You can even start combining stickers to make new words!

Children love treasure trails – they do take a bit of time to plan, but you will give your little girl happy memories. Hide a treat or a present and then write a set of notes, one leading to another, taking her in and around the house. Adjust the level of the instructions according to her age and ability to read, but don’t make them too easy. She will have so much fun finding her way from one clue to another.