Starting Out
- Sit on the floor or Resonance
Board near the child with a treasure chest of some toys or objects.
- Rummage among the toys
to produce sounds.
- Tap some of the
objects against the floor or table.
- Drop some of the toys
just next to you or at a distance from you
Adult/child
play
- Roll objects made from
different materials over the floor.
- Turn objects around in
an audible way.
- Place the box
with toys in front of or near to the child.
- Do not talk directly
to the child but talk aloud to yourself.
- Now and then stop
playing, and observe the expression on the child’s face.
Communication
- If the child’s
expression denotes “more please”, then say “do you want me to do that
again? Okay. I will do that”
- Talk by giving
information rather than by training or requesting.
- If the child throws,
say “thank you. That was a good sound you gave me. Now I will give you a
sound”.
Imitation
- Start by imitating the
child.
- Look at the child’s
grasp and imitate it
- Gradually play
‘putting into’ and ’putting together games’
- Say what you’re doing
eg. I am putting stones into a cup. I am putting straws into a bottle. Now
I am going to play the mouth organ.
- Maybe say
“now you can get it”
“may I place it in your hand”
I am placing it in front of you”
- Use 2 objects – one
for you and one for the child
- Respond to the child’s
actions
- Remember to
communicate
Talking not
Training
- “Oh does it sound like
that when I throw a ball too.”
- “The ping pong balls
rolled over the floor”.
- “The straws won’t
always fall out of the bottle when you throw it away. I will pick it up
and you can feel and hear that the straws are still there.”
- “Rubber bands do not
fall off the cardboard cylinder when you throw it, but it is possible to
take them off now. I will take them off so that you cn hear the sounds.”
- Imitate babbling into
jugs and containers
- Build towers
Interaction
or ’being together’
- Sit opposite the
child, holding the edge of a bowl with toys or Ping-Pong balls in it. Play
push/pull games while singing “me to you and you to me”. (Prelude to
rolling a ball.
- Play Row, row, row
your boat
- “You gave me a sound.
Now I want to give you a sound. I will try to make the sound just as you
made it.”
- “That was a weak sound
you made for me. Now I shall make another weak sound for you. Now it is
your turn. Now mine”
- Blowing games – into
buckets, jugs, tins, cardboard cylinders etc.
The PLAYING
child is a WORKING child
- Remember that it is
important to wait for the child to initiate his part of the game and for
you to wait without saying persuasive words.
- Allow the child every
opportunity to familiarise himself with the activity.
- Allow the child
to participate the moment that he wants to do so.
- Perform the activity
slowly so that the child can experience what the adult is doing with the
material and can follow what is going on.
- “you can help me if
you like”
- NO hand over hand
Bring
together – being informative
- “You empty your box of
toys and I empty mine.”
- “I am eating fish and
you are eating fish”.
- “You have
cheese today and I had cheese yesterday”
- “I sleep in my bed in
my bedroom just as you sleep in your bedroom.”
- Pour marbles close to
the child’s hands
- Communicate to the
child, through the activities an atmosphere of “you can help me” and “ let
me help you” suggestions
Self identity
– giving the child presents
- “I have poured milk
into your cup” not “there is milk in the cup”
- “I have put food on
your spoon” not “There is food on the spoon”
- “You can have your
things on your shelf. I have things on my shelf” not “we place things here
on the shelf”
- “I will put on your
shoes” not “let’s put on your shoes”.
- Before leaving the
child, tell the child what you are going to do next and when you are going
to play with the child again. Tell the child that he is welcome to play on
his own if he wants to.
Sharing the
work
- Choose tasks that can
be done in a few seconds or minutes.
- Accept the way the
child has done the task, no matter how perfectly or imperfectly it is
done.
- Tell the child the
part of the activity you have assigned for yourself e.g. “You take off
your shoes and then I will take off your socks”.
- “I have placed food on
your spoon. You eat that and I will put more food on your spoon”>
- “I have built a tower.
You knock it down and I will build it up again. This allows the child to
know the extent of the task he is supposed to perform as well as learning
about what is going on around him.
- “You kick off your
trousers and I will take off your shirt”
- “You wash your stomach
and I will wash your back”
- “ I will carry the
plates to the sink and you can wipe the tray while I wash the plates”
- “You can open the door
for us and I will close the door behind us”.
- If the child does not
perform the task, suggest doing it together. (Interaction). If the child
still refuses, the task is either too difficult or has been set up
incorrectly. Say “I see today you do not want to do it, then I will do it
and you can do it tomorrow or any day you want”.
- When the task has been
set, allow plenty of time for the child to initiate it.
Consequence
- Emotional development
– 2 years of age
- “I have to do this or
that otherwise you cannot have this or that.”
- “We cannot play
anymore today. You have to get ready to go home.”
- “Before I go home I
must pick up all of my toys”
- “You must wait a few
minutes while I find some new trousers for you”.
- Allow the child to
experience consequences through activities that she is able to perform
e.g.
- “If I am to give you
more milk then you have to put your cup on the table”.
- “If you want to take a
bath then you must undress first”,
- “If you want the egg
timer to tick then you must wind it once more etc.
- Object permanence
teaches about ‘having’ and ‘not having’
Based on the material in
Are you Blind? Dr Lilli Nielsen