To avoid patterns in the location of the target word, vary the way the words are presented in consecutive games. Place three or four words in your child’s view and say, “Which word is not the same as the others? You are looking for the word that is different from the others. This game is similar to the previous game, except your child is searching for the word that is not the same as the others. To change the difficulty level, make the words very different from each other (for example, hippopotamus and no) or very similar to each other (for example, ear and ears). You may also add in more distractor words (words that don’t match). To make the game more physical, place words all around the room so your child gets to explore to look for the cards that are the same. To add variety, you may use only three words, two of which are the same. Once your child gets these correct, place four new words in your child’s view. This says clap and this says clap! Which other word says clap?” At this point, there would be one more word card that says clap and one that says wave. If your child selects the word wave, then say something such as “Look, this word looks the same as this word. You found all three words that say clap.” if your child is correct. Can you find all three?”Ĭount aloud as your child finds the three words that say clap. For active children, you may place the words a distance away from them and encourage them to move to the correct words.Īsk your child, “Which words are the same?” Say, “Three of these words say clap. For more experienced children, use words that are very similar, such as dog and dogs. Start with words that are not similar in either shape or meaning, such as elephant and hi. Use many word combinations to teach your child new words and to check your child’s progress. Now can you find the word clap?” If your child is incorrect or doesn’t respond, then say something like “This says bellybutton and this says clap.” Do this while pointing to the corresponding words. If your child is correct, then say, “Good. Young children who cannot point may answer the question by looking at the appropriate word or by doing a physical action. Say something like, “Which word says bellybutton?” If your child is able to point, then your child can answer by pointing. Place two words (e.g., clap and bellybutton) in front of your child. Initially, use some of the words your baby is most familiar with from the Your Baby Can Learn! program. With this game, your child can demonstrate whether or not she recognizes words even if she can’t talk. Ask your child to point to (or look at) the word that says waving, then ask your child to point to the word wave. For instance, you could print the word waving and show your baby the words wave and waving. Use words that are more similar to each other if your child is correct with more distinct words.

For example, you could use the words clap and hippopotamus since they do not look similar and they do not have similar meanings. For babies who are just beginning the program, use familiar words that are distinct from each other. Then ask, “Which one of these words says nose?”ĭo this with many different combinations of words. Next, show your child the words nose and mouth. Point to the erasable card and say, “This says nose,” while moving your finger under the word from left to right. Place two word cards (e.g., nose and mouth) near the erasable card that also has the word nose written on it. Print a word your child has seen from the DVDs (e.g., nose) on the blank erasable card that is included with the Sliding Word Cards. If you don’t have a particular type of card, substitute words on paper or other materials.Īs always, have fun and enjoy the experience of playing with your young child. For most of these games you may use any of the Your Baby Can Learn! word cards including Teaching Cards, Sliding Word Cards, Milestone Cards, Shape Bias Language Cards, and Lift-the-Flap Language Cards. The erasable cards from the Sliding Word Cards work well in all of these games, so please use four or five of those in addition to the other word cards. You can play these word games with your child using the products in your kit.

Word connecting card game