Words & communication

Routine narrator

Add a few predictable words to dressing, washing or packing away.

5 minutes

What you'll need

An everyday care routine

Before you start

Can attend to a shared object briefly

Best fit: either · calm energy · low caregiver effort · low mess

How to play

  1. Choose three useful words for the routine.
  2. Repeat them at the matching moment.
  3. Pause before the most predictable one.
Make it easier

Use the same word and gesture each time.

Standard

Add a few predictable words to dressing, washing or packing away.

Extend it

Offer a simple choice or invite the next-step word.

What you might notice

Which routine words your child anticipates or attempts.

Keep it safe

Narrate only an ordinary routine that is already safe and directly supervised. Keep medicines, cosmetics, cleaning products, hot water, cords and small objects out of reach; stop if attention to the words interferes with hands-on care.

Why it may be useful

This activity creates an easy moment for back-and-forth communication, shared attention and hearing useful words in context.

strong

Applies to caregiver-led language opportunities; it does not predict an individual child's language trajectory.

Jeong et al. (2021) — Parenting interventions to promote early child development in the first three years of life: A global systematic review and meta-analysis

Dowdall et al. (2025) — Home-based shared book reading and developmental outcomes in young children: a systematic review with meta-analyses

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