Image source: Rossieronline.usc.edu
Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) have long known that early intervention with speech therapy techniques is critical for encouraging the best possible outcome for children with speech disorders. This is particularly true for youngsters with autism; they typically progress more with speech and language when they receive early and intense therapies. And parents everywhere have also long known that encouraging kids – even those without speech delays or disorders – to read early and often is ideal for language development. But teaching kids to read has progressed just a tad since the popular Dick and Jane series with its ubiquitous catchphrase, “See Spot run!” (Did you know that Spot was originally a cat when the series was first published in the 1930s?) Now, researchers are adding further proof to the idea of using kids’ games to encourage early literacy and language development.