How To Build Vocabulary With Young Kids

Parents and caregivers all want the kids they love to succeed in school and in life. One way you can help achieve this is by helping children build and use better vocabulary. Kids will obviously work on vocabulary during their school days, but there are also lots of ways to build vocabulary outside of school. Let's look at some fun ways to help kids with this important skill.

Read Read Read

One of the best and most time tested ways to build vocabulary is through reading. Children need to be reading and they need to be read to on a regular basis. When reading to children, be sure to stop on new or interesting words and discuss their means. If a child asks what a word means, be sure to pause and answer these questions. See great books for 1 year olds here

Play Word Games

Word games are a great way to build vocabulary. Word games such as Scrabble Jr can help children stretch their vocabulary knowledge. If you are okay with adding in a little screen time for vocabulary learning, there are plenty of online apps and websites that turn learning new words into a fun game.

Word of The Day

Choosing a word of the day is a great way to involve the entire household in vocabulary building. One way you can do this is by choosing a word of the day and writing it somewhere highly visible in the morning. Encourage everyone in the house to discover the meaning of the word before dinner time. At dinner ask each member to use the new word correctly during dinner conversation. Depending on the word, this can turn into a really fun and challenging vocabulary game you can share a few times a week or every day if you really want.

Participate in Spelling Bees

Spelling bees are a fun, old fashioned competition that encourages kids to build their vocabulary and spelling skills. This is a great type of event for kids who love words or to challenge kids who don't. Spelling bees are often hosted by schools but may be hosted by other community organizations as well.

This type of event teaches not only vocabulary and spelling skills but also friendly competition and sometimes team work as well.

Play Synonym Antonym Games

Another fun way to boost vocabulary is to play games using synonyms and antonyms. This is a fun game to play around the dinner table. Present a word to the table and then ask for synonyms or antonyms. The person who can come up with the most wins the round.

Encourage Storytelling

Encouraging your children to tell stories or create stories will also help build vocabulary. For pre-writers ask your child to tell you a story and then write it down for them. You can make this even more fun by asking them to illustrate the story as well. For kids who really love telling stories, you can bind their stories into books.

Final Thoughts

Worksheets and homework are not the only way to build vocabulary. Try out some of these fun ideas to help your kids build these important skills.

Jenn writes at her blog healthyhappyimpactful.com. She’s a mom of three looking to learn and grow. Check it out if you love helpful tips on health, family, and personal growth.