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Basic Concepts...More Than Just Colours and Numbers
by Monica Gustafson
September - the month when our summer comes to an end and a new school year will soon be here. As school starts our little ones will go off to for their first day with their new backpacks and stars in their eyes. Many parents, in trying to prepare their children for school, spend time teaching them some basic concepts such as colours letter recognition and counting. But what most people don't think about is that there are other concepts that are just as important to a child's success in school. Concepts, such as: space/ position, texture, social/emotional and time are essential elements of language. In teaching concepts it is important to remember that they are best learned by young children in a concrete manner. If you want to talk about the concept under" you crawl under things! So before the summer does come to an end and your little one goes off to Kindergarten, try doing a concept check-up with them to make sure they know more than just colours and numbers!
Here then are some ideas that can be used to help your child understand and use these concepts.
Size
- Play a 'Bigger than... smaller than' game...What is bigger than a car...smaller than a cat? Try having a scavenger hunt. What can you find that is smaller than a penny? This can be great fun indoors on a rainy day.
- When reading a book, point out things on the page that are different in size.
- Be sure to use variations on the size words when describing things don't just stick to big /small...huge/ large /tiny/ little/enormous
Space/Position
- When you go to the park play structure, talk about what you can climb over/under...What do you have to go around?
- At home you can discuss things like...What would fit under your bed? This type of discussion combines both size and space concepts
- Play Simon Says using a stuffed animal... 'Put your bear on the chair...Put your bear over youR head.'
Texture
- Pick a texture and look around the house for items that fit that description. What can you find that is rough?
- Put some items in a bag of different textures and have your child reach in and find the ones that are rough or smooth just by the feel
- Talk about things that you like to be hot or cold...Do you like cold soup? Do you like warm pop?
Social /Emotional
- Play a make a face game...Make a happy face/sad face/surprised face
- Look through magazines at peoples expressions and ask how you think they feel
- When discussing feelings use a variety of words for each one... happy/delighted /glad mad/angry/upset
Time
- Time concepts can be more difficult for young children. Develop a vocabulary around time by using a large calendar and counting the 'sleeps' to a special event.
- When the day before arrives talk about tomorrow
- The day after the event focus on discussing what happened yesterday.
- Keep a family calendar to mark important upcoming events and have your child help you update it
Colours
- Pick a 'colour of the day' and try to find as many things as possible in your house that are that colour
- Play 'I Spy' using colour and shape words
- Let your child choose things according to colour...What colour shirt would you like to wear today?
Numbers
- Discuss body parts identifying which ones you have one, two or ten of.
- Allow your child to help with counting things when you buy groceries such as we need six apples...three cans of juice
- Count things around the house...How many lamps can you count?...How many pillows do we have?
Monica Gustafson is a Speech Language Pathologist and Author who has written 23 programs for the remediation of speech and language disorders. In addition to her 32 years of experience in working in the school system, she also provides private practice session to Preschool and School-aged children. For more information on Private Sessions: Call: 896-3964 or email Monica. Evening appointments are available.
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