7 Easy Ways to Help Your Child Learn New Words
Do you know that according to research, a child on average learns 5,200 new words by 2nd grade and 8,400 words by 5th grade?
Kids have quick learning abilities. You should start teaching as early as possible if you want your child to learn new words fast.
Don’t assume that learning begins at school. Home is the first school, and parents are the first teachers for any child.
Therefore, this article will share seven easy ways to help your kids learn new words faster. Reading, talking, and playing are simple ways to promote vocabulary growth in your child’s daily routine.
1. Use Printable Word Searches
You can start with printable words to make your kids’ vocabulary strong. Get printable word searches puzzles and take out a print. It will help you teach basic to intermediate-level words. Ensure you start with the ‘easy’ printable.
Further, once you have finished printing words, you can also paste them onto a wall. The wall of your kid’s room, or near their playing area, is the best place to stick them. They will go through those words from day till night.
Slowly, they will start reciting those words and ask you about their meanings. And then your responsibility is to teach the meaning and use of those words.
2. Talk to Them
Another effective way to teach new words to your kid is through conversation.
Asking your youngster open-ended questions will ensure that your talk becomes a conversation. You can ask them about their day, what they did and how they spent the day.
If you talk about the surroundings and current situation, they are more likely to open up and deliver their view over it.
Children are exposed to language during their first 18 to 24 months through the conversation of their parents and family members.
And when you visit a supermarket or a park, encourage your kid to analyze written words, such as on signboards, and talk about their experience later. You must understand that in such times, you must allow your kids proper time and listen to them.
3. Encourage Your Kid To Ask
A child has a curious mind with many questions. They want to know about the things and events they experience at an early age. You must understand and encourage them to inquire more about terms they encounter during the day.
And if they ask you what a word means, take the time to explain to them until they get a satisfactory answer. Create a comfortable situation where kids don’t hesitate to ask whenever something comes to mind.
Let them understand that you are there for them when they need you. Your kid may ask for some strange and weird words sometimes. You must be patient and explain what they need to know.
4. Sing Songs and Tell Stories
When you are with your kid, play or sing a song. Your kid will pay attention to what they hear.
Sometimes they mimic their parents to make fun, but they’ll start rhyming lyrics and increase their vocabulary. You may choose basic slow-tempo music songs to start the session.
Furthermore, kids love to listen to stories. You can tell them stories about their favorite character. So, telling a story would also work in strengthening the vocabulary.
They will pay attention while listening, and after the story gets finished, you can ask questions or encourage them to ask if they have one. Moreover, you can check your kids reading levels to get an insight into their reading abilities.
Keep in mind to select stories according to your child’s age.
5. Cultivate A Reading Habit
Developing a reading habit at an early age in your kid is one of the best ways to enhance their vocabulary. You can visit any kids’ library to get some word books for your kid. Numerous books are available for kids to develop new words according to age.
Books can help your kid name things, creatures, and actions. Allow your kid with some tasks like reading 2-3 pages daily and writing some challenging words from the book.
Afterward, you can explain the meaning of those words. It’s great to know your kid and sow new words inside them. Once they develop a reading habit, you can slowly implement a writing habit in your kid.
6. Play Games with Your Kid
Playing games with your kid will also help them learn new words. For instance, word games help kids develop their minds. Moreover, games are an exciting way to learn while having fun.
Some games you can try are Sudoku, Scrabble, Word Connect, trivia, and puzzles. These games impact your kids’ ability to learn and speak new words.
Furthermore, you can play some other indoor and outdoor games with your kid. They will get to know the terminologies and rules of the games.
Assign them new tasks while playing games and treat them with their favorite dessert if they win. Don’t want to bore your kids? Try different dessert recipes to surprise them.
7. Teach by Visualization
Visual impacts the eyes and brain; kids receive maximum input while watching cartoons and their favorite TV shows. They’ll pay attention to the visuals and try to understand the characters and plot of the content they are watching.
You can take them out on events and short vacations where they see the natural world and develop a curiosity to know more about any specific place or thing.
Drawing some pictures or crafts on paper and letting your kid discover what you’ve sketched is another way to strengthen the vocabulary in your kid.
Conclusion
Kids are curious beings, so patience is essential while dealing with them. These are the seven easy ways to help your child learn new words. Try them, and your kids will have a strong vocabulary growing up.
Apart from these methods, you can also try using antonyms and synonyms to define a word, practicing rhymes, and asking them to create a grocery list or menu for the week.
Never try to implement any method forcefully. Instead, let your child learn at their own pace while encouraging them.
