The ability to converse, express oneself, and socialize is invaluable to students of any age, but particularly important during the primary grades, when a child's self-confidence and attitude toward school are still being shaped. And, of course. Listener skills are also needed for reading, music, and certain aspects of math. Whether your first grader is a Looker, a Listener, or a Mover, he stands to benefit from the development of keen auditory and language skills.
As always. Listeners themselves will be most receptive to any Listener experience a parent provides. But even a Looker or Mover can improve his verbal and auditory skills by using toys and techniques that employ both his inborn learning skill and the skill you are hoping to spark. Here are some suggestions to get you started.
ENHANCING A FIRST GRADER'S EXISTING LISTENER SKILLS
■ Play Password , a game in which one player tries to get the second player to guess a certain word by offering synonyms and other one-word clues.
■ Permit your child to place phone calls to relatives and friends.
■ When you read together, read two books: one that your child will enjoy listening to, and a simpler one that he can read to you. If time permits only a single book, choose one that your child can manage, and take turns reading alternate pages.
■ Get in the habit of reading the "About the Author" information contained in most books. This may help your child view the story in a different light and stimulate his interest in the process of writing.
■ Suggest that your child start a diary or journal in which he can make notes about special events in his life. Encourage the use of inventive spelling so that your child can experiment with more sophisticated words.
■ Choose a "word of the day" from the dictionary, and spell it out on the refrigerator with magnetic letters. Read the definition to your child, and try to use the word several times in conversation.
■ Choose a time of day to talk about any news stories that you feel are appropriate for a first grader. Show your child the headlines and newspaper photos that relate to each story.
■ Suggest that your child write his own storybook. Spend time with him talking about the story, encourage him to add illustrations, and, when the work is complete, bind the finished product with ribbon or yarn.
■ Read poetry to your child, and encourage him to write simple poems of his own. Help him out by suggesting possible themes.
■ Teach your child phrases in a foreign language, borrowing from books, when necessary. Books like Arroz Con Leche, distributed by The Heritage Key (through catalogue only) and containing text in two languages, will prove helpful.
M You and your child can take turns adding parts to a story. Record your efforts, listen to your voices, and then tell the story again, adding more detail and different voices.
■ Get your child a library card of his own. Familiarize him with the layout of your local library so that he'll feel comfortable selecting books from different sections, and encourage relatives to give him books as gifts.
■ Try to schedule one meal per day that the family can eat together, and use this time to take turns telling about the day's events.
■ Indulge your child's social side by having him invite a friend to stay for lunch or sleep overnight.
■ Browse through the week's TV listings and find a narrative show on a topic that you think would interest your child. (Dinosaurs, hurricanes, and people from other lands are a few possible topics.) Watch the program with your child, and use the commercial breaks to explain and discuss what you've seen.
ENCOURAGING THE DEVELOPMENT OF LISTENER SKILLS IN LOOKER AND MOVER FIRST GRADERS
■ Build your child's vocabulary by using a picture dictionary. The Photo Dictionary , distributed by Lakeshore (through catalogue only), contains photographs and definitions of more than 2,000 animals, people, places, and things.
■ To improve your child's auditory memory, play Milton Bradley's Simon. This game, which comes in both pocket- and full-sized versions, requires players to remember sound and light patterns of varying lengths and speeds.
■ Provide a child-sized stage microphone with a battery-powered amplifier. Encourage your child to use it to tell a joke, sing, or make announcements.
■ Keep a box of cassette tapes in the car, and play and sing the words to favorite songs on trips around town.
■ Subscribe to a children's magazine. Read the stories aloud to your child, and encourage him to talk about the stories by asking him questions about the pictures.
■ Ask your child to draw a picture of something he likes—Grandma's house, a baseball diamond, or an animal, for instance—and help him make up a story about whatever he draws.
■ Help your child pronounce and spell long words by teaching him to clap once for each syllable. For example, "a-quar-i-um" has four syllables, so your child would clap four times.
■ Teach your child a new word every day with the help of Workman Publishing's Shoelace Calendar. This calendar provides pictures that will help your child recall the various words.
■ Post a magnetic "letter of the week" on the refrigerator. Surround the letter with original or magazine pictures of things that begin with that letter sound.
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■ Make a story board using mounted pictures cut from a magazine. You and your child can take turns telling a story about the pictures he has chosen.
■ Read aloud to your child daily. Concentrate on stories that involve action, or focus on his favorite subjects.
■ Make a game of naming synonyms. Say, "What's another word for large? . . . upset? . . . automobile?" and so on.
■ Encourage your child to use the pictures in a familiar book as clues to the action as he retells the story in his own words.
■ Texas Instruments' Words . . . To Go! is a hand-held computer that teaches a child to follow directions, recognize letters and sounds, define words, and create rhymes. Encourage your child to talk about what he sees on the screen.
■ Go for a walk with your child, and use the time to practice rhyming words and naming words with opposite meanings.