‘Chat with Me’ Parent Guide
Making the most of sharing books with your child
Your child will get most joy and learning from sharing a book with you when you….
Wait
Wait to give your child time to look at the pictures and take it all in |
Notice
Notice what your child |
Respond
Respond by saying |
Now we’re going to look at all the different ways you could
respond
Research tells us that when parents respond to their
child’s interests in particular ways, it can really help them
learn to talk, to listen and to think
YOUR WORDS WORK WONDERS
Respond by saying something about what your child is interested in
Your child will learn new words when s/he hears you using them
1.Use words to name objects or people in the picture eg helicopter, soup, Superman
2. Use action words to chat about what is happening or what people are doing eg stirring, walking, flying
3. Use words to describe the objects, people and their feelings eg big, stingy, shiny, red, excited
Respond by saying something new about your child’s interest . This will keep the conversation going. You could try to…..
4. Give information and explain reasons‘this is a It has a special shape so it can hold lots of soup’
5. Compare talk about how things are the same or different eg this is the same as granny’s ladle/different from….
6. Chat about feelings eg he’s excited. Chat about opinions eg I think soup is healthy because it has lots of vegetables
You are providing words, sentences and ideas that your child can learn from
7. Take time to wonder ––‘I wonder where the helicopter is now’. Wondering allows your child to come up with ideas or solve problems
8. Chat about your child’s similar experiences in the past ..‘Remember 
when we saw..’ You can also talk about the future
9.Pretend ––‘we could be in the Air Ambulance..’ Be a bit silly sometimes. You could even create a fantasy ––‘let’s go on a magic
1.Naming Words – Cape, mirror, cereal, breakfast, brush. Remember to use new words like ‘reflection’ or ‘ hair gel’
2.Action words – Chat about what they are doing choosing clothes, pouring cereal, washing face
3.Describing words – Use words that describe his hair is spikey, his face is clean . Remember you can describe feelings too – he’s feeling hungry
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘When he runs, his cape will fly out behind him’
5.Compare – Thats nearly the same as your stripy top
6.Chat about feelings – He loves his cape because he can pretend to be Superman
7.Take time to wonder – ‘I wonder what mummy will say about him flicking his cereal
8.Talk about past and future – ‘Remember when you dressed up as…
9.Pretend and imagine – ‘Let’s make capes and pretend we can fly.’
1.Naming Words – Park, birds, library, helicopter Remember to use new words like ‘ rotor blades ’,‘pigeons ’ or shadows
2.Action words – Walking, deciding, watching. Chat about what other things are happening flying, landing, spinning
3.Describing words – Those birds are smaller than the pigeons; the helicopter is flying low down . Remember you can describe feelings too he’s excited to see the helicopter
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘‘That‘s a special helicopter for taking sick people to hospital it’s called the Air Ambulance’
5.Compare – ‘The Gruffalo book is the same as the one you have’
6.Chat about feelings – ‘He’s feeling excited/ happy because he’s getting to choose a new book’
7.Take time to wonder – ‘I wonder if the little boy can hear the helicopter’
8.Talk about past and future – ‘Remember we saw the Air Ambulance when we were in Belfast one day’
9.Pretend and imagine – ‘I’m the Gruffalo do you see the purple prickles all over my back?‘
1.Naming Words – Leeks, onions, cabbage, tongs, apron, goggles Remember to use new words like ‘ vegetables ’ or ladle
2.Action words – Smelling, tasting, chopping, peeling, stirring, cooking, smiling
3.Describing words – Those onions make my eyes stingy ; the soup is hot. Remember to describe feelings too he’s feeling hungry; mummy loves having a
Helper
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘A ladle is a special shape so it can hold lots of soup’
5.Compare – ‘There are more carrots than leeks for the soup’
6.Chat about feelings and opinions– ‘Lentil soup is my favourite it only has lentils, carrots and onions’
7.Take time to wonder – ‘I wonder what else they could put in the soup.’ ‘I wonder how they’ll cool it down’
8.Talk about past and future – ‘When we go to the shop what vegetables should buy ?’ ‘What type of soup could we make together?’
9.Pretend and imagine – ‘Here you go sir one bowl of magic soup. It’s made of a magic potion that gives you superpowers.’
1.Naming Words – Brush, mop, dust pan. Remember to use new words like ‘footprints’ or ‘paint smudges’
2.Action words – Wipe, brush, lift, fly
3.Describing words – Muddy footprints on the floor; big and small wellies. Remember you can describe feelings too – he’s feeling proud of his paintings
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘He needs to sweep up all the bricks because it is very sore if you stand on them’
5.Compare – ‘Your helicopter is a different colour. The Air Ambulance is red and yours is blue.’
6.Chat about feelings– ‘I think he feels proud about being such a great Helper’
7.Take time to wonder – ‘I wonder where they went with their boots on?’ ‘I wonder how they got the paint off the door?’
8.Talk about past and future – ‘Remember your muddy wellies the day we went to the farm’
9.Pretend and imagine – When you’re playing with your child later, pretend to be flying the Air Ambulance and taking someone to hospital
1.Naming Words – Fruit, pineapple, trolley Remember to use new words to name the less familiar fruit
2.Action words – Choosing, paying, tasting , helping, waiting
3.Describing words – Spikey bits on the pineapple; juicy; bitter, crunchy, soft, sweet. Remember you can describe feelings too – excited, tired
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘‘Pineapples come from hot countries because they need lots of sun to grow’
5.Compare – ‘The boy’s trolley is like the one you get at Lidl’
6.Chat about feelings– ‘Mummy looks happy because the boy is helping her with the shopping’
7.Take time to wonder – ‘I wonder what else is on mummy’s shopping list?’
8.Talk about past and future – ‘You can help me do the shopping when we go to Asda tomorrow’
9.Pretend and imagine – Pretending to play shops is a great game for you to play with your child.
1.Naming Words – Towels, socks, T shirt, wash basket . Remember to use new words like fabric softener ’; stains
2.Action words – Loading, hanging, pegging
3.Describing words – Pasta is very messy because of all the sauce; clean and dirty ; he’s being funny putting the towel on his head like a hat; smelly sock; the wash basket is full
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘It’s a sunny day so I think the warm sun will make the clothes dry quickly’
5.Compare – ‘Look , his top was dirty in this picture and now it’s clean’
6.Chat about feelings– ‘He loved eating the pasta with Granda they were laughing about the mess’
7.Take time to wonder – ‘I wonder why his sock is so smelly.’
8.Talk about past and future – ‘He had pasta for tea what will we make for tea tonight?’
9.Pretend and imagine – You could pretend to smell an imaginary sock or you could pretend to be slurping pasta
1.Naming Words – Towels, dressing gown. Remember to use new words like ‘goggles’
2.Action words – Snuggling, reading, blowing, brushing
3.Describing words – The bed/bath is warm; the bubbles are shiny; the bath is full of bubbles; they are blowing gently to make the bubbles go higher
To keep the conversation going you could try…….
4.Give Information and Explain – ‘The boy is sleeping in a big bed now. He must have grown too big for his cot. I wonder how old he is.’
5.Compare – ‘Look, he is reading the same book as us’
6.Chat about feelings– ‘He’s had such a busy day so I’m sure that has made him feel very tired’
7.Take time to wonder – ‘He’s had such a busy day so I’m sure that has made him feel very tired’
8.Talk about past and future – ‘We could try blowing bubbles in the bath tomorrow’
9.Pretend and imagine – You could imagine together if fairies lived inside the bubbles
Happy chatting
Your words work wonders