Teaching your child to be an active listener doesn't have to be a harrowing experience. By incorporating fun and games, your bundle of joy may be on his/her way to becoming a great communicator. You can jumpstart the process by following the expert advice of our teachers from Lehigh Valley Children's Centers (LVCC) on keeping your child engaged and eager to listen.

Your child is never too young to learn effective listening skills. Bertha Ocasio, Center Director at LVCC at William Allen High School, understands that infants love one on one interaction! "I love to sing and read to my infants. Even if you're not the best singer in the world, they seem to appreciate it anyway," says Bertha. Simple repetitive songs may include Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star or Baa, Baa, Black Sheep.

"While reading to your infant," Bertha suggests, "try ringing a small bell or shaking a rattle when you turn the page." This way you can instantly assess your child's hearing. Infants with average hearing will usually turn towards the source of the sound. Using hand puppets with the story also encourages active listening.

Younger toddlers are building their receptive language (understanding what is said) and figuring out how everything works. A fun game to reinforce listening is naming parts of the body. Saadia Szorentini, Center Director at LVCC's Fowler Center explains, "asking your toddler to point to her nose or knees demonstrates both receptive language and listening skills." Repeating the word for "nose" or "knees" will help her build your emerging expressive language (use of words). "Simple games are best for one year-olds, who generally follow one direction at a time," says Saadia. "Between the ages of two and three, most children can follow two-step directions."

Games like Freeze Dance and Simon Says are fun ways for older toddlers to practice listening. In Freeze Dance, your child can dance or move to music and freezes when the music stops; your child unfreezes when the music starts again.

Amanda Brandmeir, Toddler Teacher at LVCC's Fowler Center finds that, when playing Simon Says, her class listens best to active commands such as touching toes, jogging in place, and jumping up and down; pretending to be a monkey or snake is also a favorite. "Not only do the children listen during the activity, but they've also gotten enough wiggles out that they can more easily focus and listen to stories and directions afterward," says Amanda.