Rationale: When you imitate your child’s actions with objects, he is more likely to pay attention to your actions, and to develop a sense of playing together. This also creates an opportunity to label those objects and actions to build vocabulary. As your child learns to imitate your actions, he is developing powerful means for learning new skills in the future, and is learning new and flexible ways to play.
To encourage imitation of actions on objects you can:
- Use matching sets of objects so that both you and your child have the same object. Get face-to-face, and imitate whatever your child does. For example, if he is shaking a maraca, you shake one too. Stop shaking when he stops, and then begin shaking again when he does. Your child will likely enjoy this imitation game!
- Once your child enjoys you imitating him, try a different action and wait to see if he imitates. For example, try banging the maraca on the table. If he doesn’t imitate, gently help him to imitate the action.
- Praise your child for imitating you, even if you helped. Then go back to imitating his actions for a while before trying again with your own action. This will help to keep it fun!
Read more:
Follow the Leader: The Power of Imitating Children with Autism
Watch This Video:
When you imitate your child’s actions, he is more likely to pay attention to your actions and to develop a sense of playing together. This also creates an opportunity to label those objects and actions to build vocabulary. As your child learns to imitate your actions, he is developing powerful means for learning new skills in the future, and is learning new and flexible ways to play.
In this clip we see the provider teaching this skill using several strategies. She uses cues to get the child’s attention, is face to face with the child and provides positive reinforcers to continue the imitation on the object. What other strategies do you see? Click to view video: Imitating Action on Objects