Toys In Speech Therapy: The Right Toy DOES Matter
I’ve heard on social media among SLPs that “you are your child’s best toy,” meaning it doesn’t matter what toy you use with your child, because it’s not the toy that determines the success of the session, but you.
But I’m here to tell you that it does matter. Especially for our little ones with higher support needs. It definitely matters what toys we are using in speech therapy—and for parents at home, it’s incredibly helpful to have the right toys for your child.
So what makes a “right” toy?
A good toy for language development is one that:
Holds your child’s attention long enough for language modeling to actually happen.
Allows interaction, so you and your child can play together instead of separately.
Creates opportunities for meaningful words, like action words (go, stop, build, fall), describing words (big, little, red, tall), and social words (help, more, my turn).
Real-life example
In one session, I used magnet tiles with a little girl. It was the perfect fit for her. We built houses, put animals in them, and I was able to model language that went along with what we were doing pretty easily and she was listening and engaged.
The session before that was a different story. The toy of choice was a ball toy that works like a gumball machine. The child just dropped the balls in and pulled them out over and over again without letting me join in. He didn’t want me to touch or help, and the play moved too fast for me to add in meaningful words. It wasn’t a bad toy in general—it just wasn’t the right fit for modeling language.
Some of the students I work with aren’t ready for open-ended toys like magnet tiles or a dollhouse. That’s because open-ended play requires functional and symbolic play skills, plus a longer attention span. If a child isn’t at that level yet, I need to choose a different type of toy that better matches their stage of development.
For kids like this, I often use simpler cause-and-effect toys. These are toys where you do something, and something happens right away—press a button, something pops up. Turn a crank, something spins. The predictability keeps the child engaged and creates natural chances for modeling short, functional words. Some of my favorites are bubbles, spinning ring stacker, shape sorter with sound, and toys that light up or have movement (like my favorite chicken).
You are an important part of your child’s play
Don’t get me wrong—the right toy that matches your child’s developmental play level does matter. But that’s not the only piece of the puzzle. If we want to create an environment that gives the best opportunities for modeling speech and language, you play a very important role in that process.
As a speech therapist, there are certain skills and techniques I use while playing with children that create the richest opportunities for them to hear, learn, and eventually imitate speech and language. Right now, I see a wide variety of kids in speech therapy, and each group requires a different approach.
Some of my kids are gestalt language processors (Stage 1). Their speech consists of mostly memorized phrases or “chunks” of language—we call them gestalts. Sometimes they change them slightly, showing a little flexibility, but they’re not yet using them independently or consistently without models. With these kids, I focus on modeling short gestalts during play like “let’s play,” “let’s do it again,” or “let’s open it” to give them building blocks they can begin to use more flexibly. A lot of my gestalt language processors have moved past the exploratory play stage. They may not use toys the ‘intended’ way, but they find their own creative, fun ways to play—and that’s okay. For example, I had a student the other day who wanted to play with the dollhouse, but she wanted to take the little play cup and play plate and throw them into the air repeatedly. And I started modeling, “ready, set, go” every time she would throw them and that was a great way for me to model language and she started even imitating me. That’s because I got on her level and didn’t make her play with it the way I wanted her to but let her lead the play.
Other children I see are nonverbal or not using verbal speech and words to communicate. Their play varies a lot. Some are still at the exploratory play stage—looking at toys, reaching, mouthing, or banging them, but not really “playing” with them the way they’re meant to be used. With these students, my strategies center around modeling core words in multiple ways: verbally, on AAC, and with sign language. At the same time, we’re working on joint attention and expanding their play skills. Finding toys that actually hold their attention is key, because longer, more motivating play routines give us the best opportunities for rich language modeling.
Then there are my kids with emerging words. They aren’t completely nonverbal, but their speech is limited. They might say “yes” or “no” or imitate a few words here and there, though not consistently. Some of these children have higher play skills, like functional play (using toys as intended—stacking blocks, rolling cars) and symbolic play (pretend play—feeding a doll, making animals talk, pretending a block is a phone). With this group, I model early words and phrases that are easier from a motor perspective, since many autistic children and others with developmental delays struggle with the oral movements needed for speech. Phrases like “uh oh” or “oh no,” and words with easier consonants like y and w (e.g., “yummy”), are great starting points.
Across all groups, repetitive play routines are some of the most powerful tools I use—especially with my autistic kids. These routines are fun, predictable, and naturally full of language opportunities. For example, one of my favorites right now is the “goodnight game” with Bluey figurines. We tuck them into bed, say “shhh, goodnight,” pretend to snore, then count “1-2-3, wake up!” and make them jump awake. Inevitably, the kids want to do it again (and again), which gives me repeated chances to model phrases like “again!” in a way that feels fun, not forced.
Takeaway for parents
Engaging in play to maximize speech and language modeling is a process, and even though it’s what I specialize in as a Speech-Language Pathologist, I’m not perfect at it either! In my example I shared earlier about the gumball machine, there was probably a better way for me to set up that activity that would have lended a better language modeling experience. I could have taken all 10 balls that go with the toy and put them in a separate container. That way we could have worked on having him request one ball at a time out of the box and also worked on colors and requesting “another one”. Sometimes, it just takes a little extra thought to turn a toy or activity into a real language-learning opportunity.
It’s a process. Don’t expect every toy to “work.” Experiment and see which toys hold your child’s interest the longest and allow you to be part of the play. This is key for language opportunities.
Remember: you don’t need to have a million toys cluttering your house. You need to be able to use the toys you already have and use them to create opportunities for rich language learning .
My name is Kayla Birch and I’m a Speech-Language Pathologist. I have a passion for working with children and their families to help them communicate! If you have any questions about your child’s speech and language development, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me!
