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Building Verbal Imitation in Toddlers
Do you have a child who doesn’t know how to repeat what you say?
Do you get blank stares when you tell a child, “Say ____,” ?
Imitation is the core skill that many late talkers, regardless of their official diagnosis, haven’t yet mastered.
Many toddlers with developmental delays lack the fundamental skills necessary to begin to imitate single words, yet that’s just what we expect them to do when we write IFSP or IEP outcomes such as,
“Logan will use variety of words to communicate his wants and needs to his parents and caregivers.”
As SLPs who work in early intervention and preschool programs, teaching verbal imitation is where our treatment plans usually begin. We jump right into treatment by ‘following a child’s lead’ during sessions and narrating play with single words in hopes of jumpstarting expressive language. We advise parents to model functional vocabulary words during daily routines so that the child will begin to repeat those words. If it were really that easy, would that kid be on your caseload in the first place?
As a parent, you may be surprised or confused when your toddler doesn’t respond as you coax them to try to say words.
Helping very young children with developmental delays learn to talk, and specifically learn to imitate words, requires that we revisit how imitation develops. Excerpt from the book:
Imitation emerges very, very early in typical development and often occurs without direct teaching. Many times parents are teaching a baby through imitation without being consciously aware of the process. An infant’s earliest social and communicative interactions consist of looking at his mother and instinctively copying her facial expressions and vocalizations. The mother hears her sweet baby’s coos and repeats those sounds. The child responds by moving his arms and legs and vocalizing even more. During these back and forth gazes and early ‘conversations,’ an infant, only a few months old, begins a life-long process of imitating another person.
In the second six months of life, this process evolves as a baby begins to imitate her parent’s actions with objects. A parent shows a child how to stack blocks or operate the new Busy Box. Actions begin to look more like communication when a child copies a parent’s movements in early social games like Patty Cake and Peek-a-boo.
Contrary to what we may have been taught, teaching imitation first begins with teaching a child to imitate actions, not words, during play. For many of the children we see, this serves a dual benefit of helping them learn how to play.
Just beyond actions, we move on to helping a child learn to imitate other kinds of body movements and gestures that become communicative.
Even then many late talking toddlers aren’t yet ready to begin to imitate single words. The child may need to learn several ‘in-between’ steps before he’s ready to begin to imitate single words. Learning how to imitate mouth movements, early vocalizations like fake coughing and sneezing, play sounds like blowing raspberries and animal sounds, and easy exclamatory words such as “Wow!” should dominate our early sessions with late talking toddlers.
Many times parents and therapists don’t see success with late talking toddlers because we’re not working on the right things. Changing our approach to target imitation in its earliest and easiest forms is the place to begin.
Read more about the book:
In this 180 page therapy manual Laura Mize, pediatric speech-language pathologist and founder of www.teachmetotalk.com, explains the hierarchy of verbal imitation skills she teaches to therapists throughout the country.
This simple, straight-forward approach is easy for both parents and therapists to understand and implement during familiar play-based activities and daily routines.
Laura’s method delivers a framework for knowing where to begin work with a late talking child, provides ideas for what to try when a young child’s progress stalls, and can serve as your new approach when your standard methods don’t seem to be adequate for a particular child’s issues.
Each of the eight levels is broken down into its own chapter and includes:
- A detailed description for each level so you’ll know exactly what to do to teach the new skill. The rationale is presented so that you’ll understand why you’re working on each skill and how the skill relates to overall speech-language development.
- This information is critical for parents to understand as they work with a child, but often SLPs and developmental interventionists aren’t exactly sure how to explain what we do so that parents are able to carry-over those successes. Laura’s practical style will fill in that gap so that you’ll know what to say and how to teach parents to follow-through at home.
- The prerequisite skills a child should have mastered before each level is realistic are listed. You’ll know exactly when a child is ready to work on the next level. This will prevent a child from going weeks or months without seeing any measurable progress. You’ll also receive suggestions for targeting the prerequisite skills so that you help a child progress when he seems to be “stuck.”
- A chart is provided for each level with many, many examples of the skills to target with a young child to move him along to words. There’s no guessing! You’ll know exactly what to work on with a child to address each new level. Each chart is a great tool for therapists to copy for parents & caregivers to reinforce what you’re working on during visits and for “homework” between sessions.
- Each chapter includes a list of time-tested and toddler approved materials to use during play and during daily routines for each level. All activities are appropriate for use during therapy sessions in a clinic setting or during home visits with parents and siblings.
- Specific ‘how to’ instructions for eliciting each skill are included for each level. This information is especially helpful for parents, for therapists who are new to early intervention and have limited treatment experience with late talking toddlers, and for experienced therapists who want to expand their repertoire of proven treatment strategies for young children with speech-language delays.
- Troubleshooting tips for additional ideas are listed at the end of each chapter. There’s no more second-guessing why a child isn’t making progress. You’ll receive specific instructions for what to try if you’re not seeing results, and the next steps are outlined so that you can move a child forward.
- A handy, one-page quick reference chart is included at the end of the manual. This is particularly suited for therapists to use as a ‘cheat sheet’ during sessions or to provide for parents as an overall guide for treatment.
Because young children learn best during play, Laura provides specific examples for using this approach with the following five common toys toddlers love bubbles, farm animals, baby dolls, Potato Heads, and cars and trucks.
Additionally, Laura lists specific recommendations for using this approach at home for several daily routines including meals/snacks, bath time, dressing/diaper changes, reading books, and playing in the kitchen.
If you’re a speech-language pathologist or developmental therapist looking for ideas to teach parents to use to incorporate language learning, then this is the resource for you! All charts and activity pages can be copied to share with parents as ‘homework’ for between sessions.
This resource is INVALUABLE for therapists who work in programs embracing a ‘no toy bag’ or consultative approach. Not only will you receive many, many practical ideas, but you’ll have plenty of written ‘how-to’ directions to share with parents in an easy-to-understand format.
Building Verbal Imitation in Toddlers – $48.00
PayPal customers can easily order with PayPal Express through our online store. Click the link above to order.
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Reviews:
“Hi Laura – I just love your new book. Thank you, thank you for this valuable resource for parents and professionals!!” Pat, Early Intervention SLP
“Laura, love the new book!! I’ve read about a fourth of it and I am already implementing some of the great ideas you provided. Thank you!” Angi, SLP, Alabama
“Thank you so much for the new therapy manual Building Verbal Imitation in Toddlers! I love the handouts and think they will be so helpful to the families of clients in our birth to 3 programs. ” Jennifer, SLP, California
“I received your book yesterday… I have been learning SOOO much! I wish I had known this coming out of grad school???” Danielle, SLP, CA
“I like the eight levels chart for parents. They can see how one level builds to another and the progress made before there are WORDS. I also like to show that you can’t SKIP levels/ skills. Lots of ideas and suggestions but clear and concise. ” Molly, SLP, comment from teachmetotalk.com’s Facebook page
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"Laura, I am a long time follower. You have mentored me from a distance for many years. I've watched many of your courses and purchased 5-6 of your books. I just wanted to take a moment as a sister in Christ to say- --- Thank you!! I'm in my 33rd year as an SLP and still love it! I work in the public schools and have grown my skills along the way with your help. Thank you thank you thank you and, Many blessings to you and your daughter!!!"
Camille, SLP
"Laura,
Three years ago, my then 2year old (adopted) was only saying two words - momma and boat. We had been doing speech therapy for 6 months, and he loved to play, but he was entirely uninterested in talking. A dear friend who is a SLP recommended I look you up online. Since then, I've read your emails, listened to hours of your podcasts, ordered two of your therapy manuals, and watched many of your videos.
My now 5year old tells elaborate stories now, and if you didn't know his background, you would never guess. And thanks to the hours that I have spent with your guidance, when our next son, now a 2.5yr old, didn't talk (after a craniotomy), I had tools to get started with him. His speech has just taken off in the last month or so.
Thank you so much for all that you do to help parents facilitate speech therapy with their kiddos. And thank you for your gentle, confident living of your faith.
God's blessings."
Rachel (mom to 3 boys in a now very noisy house!)
"Hi Laura!
I became an SLP in 2004 and you were my first SLP crush! I was so fortunate to have a supportive school district that allowed me to purchase your videos and the Teach Me to Talk handbook. Not only was the handbook a life saver (I literally called it my Bible lol), but the videos, oh how the videos changed my life, and the lives of the families I worked with! I remember telling my families that they'd love you, not only because you spoke directly to families, jargon free, but also because of your southern dialect. You speak directly and clearly, but never rushed and never over anyone's head, something I highly value. I told families that I could listen to you read the phone book and it would capture my attention. You see, I'm from Ohio where we don't get a whole lot of diversity and cool dialects, so listening to you talk about my favorite topics was a breath of fresh air. So many of us think talking over people's heads makes us more credible or whatever, but now that I've been around over 20 years, I can say you had it right all along. Southern speech included 😊"
Heather Welling, M.A., CCC-SLP, Early Intervention in Summit County, OH
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Elizabeth, SLP
"LOVED this program! It was jam-packed with a ton of information that will take time to incorporate into therapy sessions. (Not only is the child learning new skills, so am I as a therapist!) I've known about strength-based therapy and have done it, but not to the extent and to the organization offered in this training. I am looking forward to seeing how my therapy changes and how my little ones progress by using this program."
Leah, SLP
"This program was extremely beneficial for use in my practice. All of the information, handouts and techniques that were presented were amazing. Easy to follow along. I liked that it was broken up into different videos/sections."
Michele, SLP
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Ellen, SLP
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Elizabeth, SLP
"The course was very helpful and practical. I will certainly apply this approach to children on my caseload. I kept thinking about children that already "graduated" from EI and wish I had this knowledge when I still had them on my caseload. (Although I did put a lot of other Teach Me to Talk information into practice!)"
Heidi, SLP
"I appreciated learning the 7 C's of Communication, which seemed to include, (restated/reorganized/ summarized) information from '11 Skills Toddlers Master Before Words Emerge', which I have successfully used for years now (Thank you so much!!!!). I appreciated the additional information included to better assist toddlers with ASD since that population, unfortunately, continues to rise. I also appreciated the focus on regulating children and the need to keep them regulated, since dysregulation and sensory impairment in toddlers is also rising. These are areas I did not study in grad school. I appreciate the worksheets we can provide for parents to identify strengths and how to use these strengths more effectively in treatment. Thank you again, for your essential contribution to our field. p.s. You and Macy are precious!! God bless you both!"
"I am one of those therapists who you pointed out works on the wrong things. ARH!! What a slap in the face, but in a good way, because it was a much needed wake up call. I've hated my job lately and now I know why. Thank you for the clarity."
Susan, SLP
"Dear Ms. Laura and sweet Macy, I just purchased the new course and wanted to say THANK YOU! I would have definitely expected such cutting-edge information to come from you! I am part of several message boards for parents of autistic children, and we parents are just so tired of being told by professionals what our children can't or will never do. And really, what is the point of doing that? How does that help at all? Except to make the parent miserable and feel like there is no point in trying to help their child?...The tone of the course is great (such positivity), and Macy is such a delight! She is such a wonderful addition to Teach me to Talk."
Ann, SLP
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Colleen, SLP
“The most beneficial part of the program is the strengths survey, as well as the treatment toys and activities that correspond to each strength. There was no part of the program that I did not feel was beneficial.”
Natalie, SLP
"I LOVED the energy of this course! I also appreciated the research facts I learned I can spit out to other professionals and parents. The best part was how characteristics of ASD were divided into strengths and therapy activities... so if I have a visually inspecting kid, I know I can go into my pdf and find out what activities I should target based on that characteristic... this really did improve how I think about therapy."
Kelsey, SLP
"I feel so much more at ease now having a huuuuuge packet of therapy ideas and a framework for organizing my therapy and having an actual PLAN instead of just "following the child's lead" while trying to figure out how to work in the goals. The way the content was explained was easy to follow and the handouts are excellent."
A, SLP
“I found identifying a child's strength helped me to consolidate my previous knowledge and experience. I feel I have a clear method to identify a child's strength and to build their strengths into sessions plans to help achieve their set goals.”
Christine, SLP
"Wow, this course was by far my favorite course I have taken in a long time! I have been lately feeling "stuck" with a few of my autistic toddler clients, and this course provided clear and helpful tools and strategies to best support our clients while also being affirming. I loved all of the ideas that were provided as well as the Strengths Survey – I can't wait to implement all of these wonderful things!"
Isabel, SLP
“The most beneficial part of the course was the handouts to share with parents and ALL the therapy ideas!! I've always felt that we focus on the 10% a kiddo can't do instead of the 90% Can Do. I have always tried to do this in my therapy sessions. Now I have evidenced material for support!!!!!”
Suzanne, SLP
“Liked systematic handouts to use to help with assessment and diagnostic therapy. Enjoyed hearing examples of each strength domain. Great review and great handouts to be able to share with families. The course was well organized and the content is much needed as an EI therapist.”
Terri, SLP
“This was a fresh new philosophy and a comprehensive approach with a new concept for successfully working with children with Autism. Before this ,the very structured, compliance teaching model which has been utilized by many therapists using comply-reward, noncompliance -punish or a with-hold philosophy. Children with Autism became prompt-.dependent with this method. These Children couldn't initiate language or make a plan to move on their own. They had to wait to be prompted to act or to respond and never spoke spontaneously on their own. I and many of my SLP colleagues have always believed in play therapy and giving the child choices to play works best. It is very important that Parents should hear about this strategy! Thank you Laura and Macy for doing the evidence-based research and putting this new concept into words!!”
Teresa, SLP
“This was a wonderful, easy to understand course with lots of great materials. Exactly what the fabulous Laura Mize is known for!”
F, SLP
"I am an autism mom, and I bought your books and listened to several podcast episodes over the last few years. I believe your teach me to talk and autism workbook were one of the number one tools in giving me to guidance to help my son. Thank you!"
Brittni
"I just want to thank you for the invaluable information you’ve given me in helping my grandson to talk (which I have passed on to his parents). We’ve ve learned patience, appropriate expectations, and fun and effective strategies that we had found no where else. He is exploding with conversation! Sometimes I struggle to interpret his articulation, but all I have to do is say, “Show me”, and he’s excited to do so. He and I both want so badly to communicate with each other, and your strategies have made it so much easier and non-threatening. Once again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart."
Stacey
"My little guy is taking off like a rocket!! We’ve been working through your Autism Workbook for a few months and he has had an explosion of skills develop. YOU are AMAZING! THANK YOU!" Laura Q, Mom
"Dear Laura Mize and Team,
Thank you so much for all your hard work and publishing books! Our 17-month-old toddler suddenly exploded into speaking and imitating everybody's gestures and sounds, just a week or two after we 'completed' all activities that are listed under 11 pre-linguistic skills! Your method really works!"
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"Hi Laura!
I absolutely LOVE all of your workbooks, especially your Autism Workbook. Starting with Social Games has been a game changer for many of my littles with ASD and their families. It's been the best way for them to finally connect and sustain shared attention and engagement, leading to longer social interactions, through play!"
Jodie, Dev, Therapist
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Thank you so much for the videos you have posted on your youtube channel. They are so direct, informative, and helpful. Thank you for being a resource for me to become a better therapist."
Dianne
