I spy over breakfast

The more interactive conversation and play children are engaged in, the more they will learn. Singing, reading books, playing word games, telling stories, or simply talking to children will increase their vocabulary and offer opportunities to develop their listening skills. Additionally, research has shown that it is important to keep language learning and practice fun and engaging (Pearson, 2008). So incorporating playful interaction into daily routines can go a long way to not only help develop your child’s language skills, but it can also motivate your child to use a given language regularly.

Here is one activity that I have used with my children (5 years & 15 months) lately. We have been playing the I spy game over breakfast (German: Ich sehe was, was du nicht siehst…). We have been using so called “Wimmelbücher” (hidden picture books), that is, books that do not feature any text, but large pages with busy pictures. We simply place the book on the table and take turns guessing what the other player spotted. While we mainly use colors as identifiers (e.g., I spy with my little eye something that is green.), I have switched it up at times to focus on other concepts. For example, my daughter had shapes as a topic in Math class. So we played it with a focus on shapes (e.g., I spy with my little eye something that is round.).

The good thing: you can choose different Wimmelbücher that are of interest to your children, you can adapt the focus of the game to your children’s needs (colors, shapes, objects etc.), and, as a side effect, playing the game keeps your children in their seats while you prepare breakfast and while everyone is eating.

Here are some of the Wimmelbücher that we have used so far.

References:
Pearson, B. Z. (2008). Raising a bilingual child: A step-by-step guide for parents. New York: Random House.