Promoting Language Development While Drawing

Drawing is a simple, cost friendly way to engage in meaningful play with your child. You can use paper and crayons/markers/pencils, a dry erase board, sidewalk chalk, or magnetic drawing boards. The following video shows a brief play interaction with my daughter while we drew on a magnetic drawing board. In the video, you will note the following that I did:

• Labeled the objects that I was drawing- By naming the pictures that I drew, I am helping her to begin to make connections between images, drawings, photographs, and real-life objects to build her vocabulary.

• Chose objects that we often talk about- I made sure to pick objects that we often play with or see pictures of in our books so that she could easily make an association, being that these are very simple drawings without color or context.

• Asked her to show me where the object was- By asking her to show me where the object was, we were practicing the skill of pointing to identify in a very basic setting. This gives her an error-proof way to practice identifying objects (only one object to choose from) and learning to use her fingers to point.

• Allowed her time to draw too- Children love to copy us and want to do what we do. By allowing her the chance to also draw, I kept her engaged in the activity and gave her a chance to practice drawing.

• Encouraged her with positive praise- This is so important to help build your child's confidence and self-esteem. It also can help to reinforce positive behavior and participation by showing them you are proud of their choices.

• Practiced basic turn-taking with the pen- Turn-taking is an important skill that is a foundation of communication. It also helps to teach patience, cooperative play skills, and self-control. By giving us each quick turns, she will learn to trust that she will get the desired object back after mom's turn, helping to decrease outbursts and encourage patience.

Check out these skills in action below, and be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more content!

You can buy our drawing board using the button below! (This is an affiliate link)

Magnetic Drawing Board