Dogs and Language

 

Sunshine loves dogs!  We have several plastic Schleich dogs and recently I collected a few more at a consignment sale.  When she brings them to me chirping "Daw-Daw!" I try to give her a language lesson by naming the different breeds of dogs that she's holding. 

 We have a Jack Russell Terrier, a Husky, a Dalmatian and its puppy, a German Shepherd, a Saint Bernard and a Black Lab.    It's simple and easy to expose a child to the richness of language this way, if I just remember to take advantage of the opportunities!

From The Joyful Child :

A child wants to learn the name of every object in his environment, and the meanings of the words he hears others using. He wants so much to be able to communicate about daily life with his family! Give him the names of kitchen objects, toys, food, vehicles, dogs, etc.—anything found in the home and the community.

"There is a 'sensitive period' for naming things . . . and if adults respond to the hunger for words in an appropriate way, they can give their children a richness and precision of language that will last a lifetime."
—Dr. Silvana Montanaro, MD, Montessori Teacher Trainer

(Quote shared with permission of The Joyful Child Montessori Company: www.thejoyfulchild.us)