Teach Speech and Language Skills with Mr. Potato Head
Mr. Potato Head has many assets that can be utilized to enhance your child’s speech and language developmental skills. He is one of the best interactive learning toys in our home. Personally, I would consider him a learning tool due to his teaching potential. Teaching your child with Mr. Potato’s head is fun and offers your child a play-based learning experience. Speech and language development will increase upon repetitional play.
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What is Speech and Language Development?
Speech development is sounds presented by your child’s voice that encourage your child to express words. Language is words and gestures used by your child to communicate.
Teach With Mr. Potato Head
Mr. Potato Head offers a variety of teaching methods for early learners. All of his features can be learning tools to encourage speech and language development. Let the learning adventure begin and discover multiple ways you can utilize Mr. Potato Head as your personal assistant.
Mr. Potato Head is my favorite toy. I think my daughter loves him too lol, but hands down he is my favorite toy. He has been around for many years. He is my number one assistant when it comes to teaching body parts, object recognition, choice-making, and turn-taking skills. Baby Potato Head is also my new favorite family addition. He is a fun learning activity and potty training motivator.
What Can You Teach Your Child With Mr. Potato Head?
Before you start, I highly recommend eliminating all if possible any distractions in your environment. This will encourage your child to focus on you and Mr. Potato Head. But wait one more thing. Mr. Potato Head also has many pieces. It is best practice to start by using 2 pieces at a time. You can hide the other pieces in a box, basket, or under a blanket. Many pieces at once can be a distraction to your child and also overstimulating. Always center yourself in front of your child at eye level. This position is the best way to establish their attention and receive eye contact.
Teach Body Parts to your child!
Starting with body parts. Toddlers are exploring their little bodies. They are getting a feel of how to use their hands and senses. This is why Mr. Potato Head is so great. He has everything you need to get started.
Body Parts Teaching Strategies
Utilizing Mr. Potato Head’s body parts including his five senses will encourage your child to identify their body parts. He comes with a variety of learning parts and you can reference them to all the identical parts your child has. For example, point to Mr. Potato Head’s eyes and say eyes. Encourage your child to practice return demonstration.
You can achieve better results by placing your hand over your child’s hand and guiding their hand to one part at a time. While you’re guiding your child’s hand, voice what the object is. Utilize the natural sounds like for a nose, you will sniff, say nose, and point to your nose, your child’s nose and Mr. Potato Head’s nose. This strategy is what I like to call Power Packet Repetition!!!
Another great strategy you can implement for your early learner is:
Hold the object in your hand and while you say it, you will also bring it forward as if you’re giving it to your child. Using two parts one in each hand, bring your left hand holding the eyes forward leaving your right hand behind, voice the object, bring your hand back then bring your right hand holding the lips forward. Also, every time you bring one object forward verbally repeat it. This activity works great for encouraging object recognition, choice-making and building interactive communication skills. Repetition is the key and here are more ways you can include learning body parts in your environment:
- Sing songs that include body parts
- Read books related to body parts
- Mr. Potato Head Activity Sheet
Teaching Object Recognition to Toddlers
Mr. Potato heads come with a lot of pieces you can show and tell your child. Your child can learn body parts, their senses, colors and more! This is also a great time to encourage pointing. Show and tell two objects and then encourage pointing. Developing object recognition skills will help your child memorize, understand the object’s purpose and identify the objects of Mr. Potatoe Head.
Object Recognition Step by Step
- Show the object
- Say it’s name
- Point to the object
- Assist your child with pointing as needed
- Encourage participation
- Encourage Choice making
- Praise participation
- Repetition
Teach Toddlers Choice Making Skills
Offer your child the opportunity to make a choice. Choice-making can encourage independence. When your little one realizes they have an option, they become more attentive and motivated to participate.
Choice Making Strategies
Start by holding two objects in your hand. For example, hold Mr. Potato head’s eyes in your right hand and his nose in your left hand. Bring forth the object and vocalize its description one at a time. This strategy encouraged memorization, understanding and identification of the object. It also encourages pointing and that will be an indicator that your child is grasping the concept. Pointing is a hand gesture, which is a form of communication development.
Teach your child Turn Taking
Encouraging turn-taking during playtime helps build communication skills. Their participation indicates understanding and social skills. Turn-taking is a weakness for young learning. “Everything is mine and I want all of it” lol. However, encouraging this strategy will improve your child’s turn-taking skills.
Turn Taking Teaching Strategies
Start with just a few parts at a time. Eliminating distractions helps your child focus on a few parts at a time. Teach turn-taking skills by passing your child an object and stating, “your turn”. Once he/she puts the piece in, praise your child by saying “Good Job”. Now, it’s your turn. You will state “My Turn” and insert the piece in. Praise yourself too for your participation. Your child may even praise you too after repeating the game a few times.
After practicing with one piece at a time you can include more pieces visible in their reach. Redirect your child if he/or she reaches for the pieces beforehand.
Teach Communication Development
Mr. Potato Head has many objects that you can use to build your child’s communication skills. Your child is learning how to use their oral mechanic to produce sounds and words. He or she may also use pointing to communicate. Speech and language development can take children more time and practice than other children. That is ok! Mr. Potato Head and you can work as a team to set and accomplish communication goals for your child. Here are three communication strategies you can practice with your child.
Teach your child how to Pointing
Pointing is a gesture and a way your child expresses their needs, wants, thoughts, and feelings. You can encourage your child to point by:
- Showing the object
- Pointing to the object
- Vocalizing the object
Use all three at the same time. Your child can see it, view a gesture that they’re familiar with and also hear you say the object. This is a bundle of learning and a great way to encourage communication development!
Sound Repetition
What is sound repetition?
Sound repetition is the repeated use of the beginning letter or letters of a word.
For example, if you want your child to say the word ball, you will repeat the ‘b’ sound before you say the word ball. That will look like this, ‘b’ ‘b’ ‘b-ball! This verbal action will likely encourage your child to grasp either the ‘b’ sound or the word ‘ball’.
You can use sound repetition with a variety of words throughout the day. Sound repetition is a great vocal encouragement for your child to see the positioning of your mouth and lips. This can help them with memorization and imitating sounds.
Word Repetition
Word repetition is very similar to sound repetition. Let’s jump right into it.
What is word repetition?
Word repetition is the repeated use of one word.
For example, if you want to teach your child the word book, you will show the book and repeat the word book. That will look like this, Mommy will read you a ‘book’…. ‘book’…. ‘book’. Leaving a small pause between each repeated word can give your child the opportunity to memorize, understand and identify the word. Your child will be encouraged to imitate or say the word.
Teaching Strategies for Success!!!
Position yourself at eye level with your child
Eliminate distractions in your environment/ the materials you’re using to learn
Bring forth objects when voiced
Praise frequently with social and emotional motivators
- Hug
- High Five
- Verbal Praise
Additional Benefits of Mr. Potato Head
Fine Motor Development
Mr. Potato Head is a hands-on learning toy. Inserting his objects encourages your little one’s hand and wrist muscles to develop and strengthen. Your child will practice building their fine motor skills with Mr. Potato Head.
Cognitive Development
Your child’s cognitive developmental skills will begin to enhance with repetition. For example, you have been playing with Mr. Potato Head for 15 minutes a day for 3 days. Your child is now inserting his parts and also inserting them in the correct spot. Your child is now pointing to his/her own nose once they hear the word nose. Wow! That’s amazing. They are memorizing, using their thinking skills and also understanding. The use of their cognitive skills will continue to progress. Repetition is the key! Practice… Practice… Practice…
Mr. Potato Head Printable Activities for Kids
Mr. Potato Head and Family Play Set for kids. Mr. Potato Head has many assets that can be utilized to enhance your child’s speech and language developmental skills. He is one of the best interactive learning toys all children love. Teaching your child with Mr. Potato’s head is fun and offers your child a play-based learning experience.
Watch Mr. Pototo Head and Family Short Video
Speech Activity Printable with Baby Potato Head
Speech activity with Baby Potato Head. Develop words for toddlers with a fun hand-on speech development activity printable with Mr. Potato Head. Baby Potato Head includes objects you can encourage your child to point to, practice sounds and words. Baby Potato Head also includes a potty to make your little one’s potty training experience even funner!!!
In conclusion
Mr. Potato Head is hands down my favorite speech and language developmental toy. He has the potential to teach a variety of developmental skills and the basics of early learning. Always remember to have fun and enjoy learning. By the way, you’re not limited to one assistant anymore, You can have two. Better yet, make that three!!!