Children’s best communication learning happens during enjoyable back-and-forth interactions with loved ones. Here are two tip sheets with research-based strategies to help you spark the kinds of sustained interactions that encourage communication best.
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Reading with your autistic child helps to build both their early literacy skills and communication skills. But did you know that the way you read with your child can make a big difference? Use these fun, simple tips to make the most of book reading to encourage your child to interact and learn.
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Helping your child learn new words doesn’t require special toys or flash cards. By using the Hanen Four S’s strategy during everyday conversations, you can build your child’s understanding of new words and pave the way for your child to use them when they’re ready.
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In order to learn from their peers, children with delayed language skills need to interact regularly with children with stronger language skills. But is this interaction happening in preschool classrooms? Find out what the research says, and what educators can do to promote the kind of peer interactions that benefit children most.
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We asked professionals who work in early childhood settings what common challenges they face when encouraging children to interact. Here are the top concerns they expressed, along with some thoughts from our Director of Early Childhood Education, Helen Livshits.
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Meet Tracy Stuchbery, an educator in Toronto, who participated in a recent Learning Language and Loving It™ Program. Find out how Tracy was able to connect with individual children in her room, and specific changes she made that improved the overall quality of her preschool setting.
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The next time you have a conversation with your child, think of it like a game – of tennis! Follow these pro tips to make the game successful and fun, and to give your child lots of opportunities to build communication skills.
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When 3-5 year olds engage in peer play, they practice essential skills that help prepare them for school success. But when a child is consistently left out of interactions, they miss out on these important learning opportunities. Here are some practical tips to maximize peer play opportunities for all children in your classroom, but especially for those who need the most support.
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Children learn a lot about social communication by watching and imitating the people around them. Here are five steps you can follow to help children on the autism spectrum learn to imitate others during fun interactions.
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As a parent, you help your child learn new skills every day. Communication skills are no different! Let’s take a closer look at how you can transform the routines and activities you already do with your child into the best possible opportunities for them to learn and practise communication.
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There’s no better time for your child to learn about communicating than when they’re playing. Use these tips to join in the play in the best ways to help your child learn.
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Sometimes you may not be sure how to get an interaction started with your child, especially if they often play alone or have specific or unique interests. Here’s a Hanen strategy to help you start the kinds back-and-forth interactions that encourage social communication learning.
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A new study shows that children’s screen time has gone up 52% since the pandemic. Many parents wonder what effect this might have on their child’s language development, and whether the child’s age or the type of programming makes a difference. Read on to find out.
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Have you ever read a book to your child that has no words? It might sound odd, but wordless children’s books are actually great tools to build both early language and literacy skills. Use these five tips to make the most of wordless books, and check out our book suggestions.
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Many parents of children on the autism spectrum wonder about the best way to help their child learn two languages, and whether a second language will help or hinder their child’s development. Here’s what the latest research says.
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You know fun when you see it, but are you ready to coach parents to have fun with their child in parent-implemented intervention? Learn how to support parents by fostering fun interactions with their child using these 6 practical tips.
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When you encourage your child to play with a variety of things in a variety of ways, you create new experiences that give your child new opportunities to hear language and learn new things. Here are some more ideas for encouraging language and learning while having fun together!
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Parents often wonder about the best toys to help their child learn to communicate and play. Toys from the store are great, but they’re not necessary! Discover how you can use these five everyday household items to have fun with your child while building their language skills.
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As children head back to school, many parents wonder what they can do to help their child succeed in the classroom. Well, there’s one simple activity that can make a huge difference – enjoy books together! Here are some tips for reading with your child that can lay the foundation for language and literacy success.
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There are many things to explore outdoors – and many opportunities for communication! Here are some suggestions for adding language to outdoor experiences to boost your child’s learning.
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Did you know that exploring objects early on is linked to later communication skills? You can make the most of this connection and help your child learn new words by using a few Hanen strategies while your child explores objects with their hands or their mouth.
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Learning to talk starts long before a child says their first words. In fact, there are many things your child needs to learn about before they’re ready to communicate with words. Here are some of the building blocks for using words, and some tips for how you can encourage them with your child.
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Welcome to our special page all about Following Your Child’s Lead – a key strategy in the Hanen early communication program, It Takes Two to Talk®. Here you’ll learn all about the importance of following your child’s lead to build their language skills, and you’ll find lots of tips and links to get you started.
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Did you know that the way you position yourself when interacting with your child can make a big difference in how much they understand and communicate? Here are some tips you can use to make the most of face-to-face time with your child to help build their communication skills.
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Since routines usually happen in the same way every time, their predictable steps provide a great opportunity for children on the autism spectrum to learn new things. Learn a key Hanen strategy you can use during your everyday routines to build your child’s understanding and social communication skills.
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What effect has masking had on children’s early language learning? Researchers are still working to answer this question, but here’s what we know so far, and some important things to consider both during masking times and after masks are removed.
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Joint attention is a key skill that helps children develop interaction and language skills. For children on the autism spectrum, research shows that better joint attention skills early on lead to better communication skills later in life. Learn more about joint attention and how you can encourage it during everyday interactions with your child.
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Many studies have shown how It Takes Two to Talk builds children’s language skills. But did you know that the program also helps with children’s behaviour, social-emotional and social communication skills? See what the most recent research reveals.
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Research shows that when children are curious, they not only learn more, but are more likely to remember what they learned. Here are some fun tips to encourage your child’s curiosity during everyday interactions to promote their early learning.
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There have been many studies on Hanen's More Than Words program for parents of children with autsim or social communication difficulties. Take a look at the results of the two most recent studies -- one from Malaysia and one from Turkey!
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If your child is preschool aged (3-5), there's so much you can do during your everyday conversations to boost her language learning and to prepare her for school success. Learn how you can use the Hanen “E’s and Ps” strategy on your next outdoor walk to make your conversations more interesting and more impactful for your child.
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Studies show a strong connection between vocabulary development and academic success. Here are some tips to make the most of your preschool day to ensure that children have as many opportunities as possible to learn new words.
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Learning to copy the actions of others is an important stepping stone on the road to communication. Learn more about the importance of imitation for children with autism, and what you can do to help your child imitate while having fun together.
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Over the last decade, researchers looked at a large number of studies on parent-implemented intervention and compiled their findings. Here are the trends they found that tell us how effective this type of intervention is, and which types of children benefit.
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Are parents expected to be involved in their child’s early language intervention? What does parent involvement look like these days, and how important is it to a child’s speech and language therapy?
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The more we understand about language learning difficulties, the better we can support children to get the help they need. Here are four facts you should know about early language learning challenges.
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Pretend play is one of the best contexts for building communication, thinking and social skills. Whether you're a parent or an early childhood educator, here are two simple tips you can use to encourage pretend play while keeping it both fun and appropriate for the child's stage.
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It's natural to simplify our language when speaking to children who are just learning to talk. But is it possible to simplify language too much? See what the research says about the kind of language that works best to help children learn.
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Children with language delays often need extra help to develop an understanding of a new word and to be able to use that word on their own. Here are some tips parents can use to make word learning easier for their child.
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If your child is just starting to talk, you might be wondering how you can help him learn new words. Here are some tips for identifying the best words to help your child learn and highlighting those words most effectively.
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There are many techniques you can use to help your child learn language, but which ones are the most effective? Discover the three key things you can do during any activity with your child to give his language learning the biggest boost.
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If you've ever tried to help your child learn a new word by telling him to say it, you're not alone! But does this tactic actually work? What does it really take to help your child understand a new word and use it on his own?
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With the aim of reaching as many families as possible, The Hanen Centre has come up with creative ways to use technology to help more families support their child’s communication development. In this article, we explain how this new way of providing parent-implemented intervention – known as “telepractice” – is proving to be invaluable as many in-person services are limited or prohibited due to COVID-19.
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According to a new study, very young children on the autism spectrum who hear more words and have more back-and-forth conversations with their parents tend to have better language skills at age two. In this article, we share how you can encourage conversations.
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Here at The Hanen Centre, we have spent a couple of decades building programs and creating books to help educators create the best possible interactions that build language, communication and literacy for all children in their classroom. With the novel coronavirus outbreak forcing society to adapt in unprecedented ways, we've been discussing how those same strategies can be adapted in the time of social distancing.
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Did you know that interaction is the most important foundation for your child’s language learning? Learn how to engage your child in the kinds of back-and-forth interactions that set the stage for the best language learning.
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A new study by researchers shows that a home environment that is rich with language and learning jumpstarts children’s skills and has benefits that can be seen until at least Grade 5. In this article, we explain the results of the study and how you can help your child's learning.
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By age six, the average child understands about 10,000 words! This amazing feat happens by children picking out patterns in the language they hear every day. For children with language delays, they have more difficulty picking out these patterns in language. In this article, we share some tips on how you can help your child find patterns during your everyday interactions.