Building Language Skills in Teens

Kids need to hear language to hear language. Parents can help by simply talking with them as much as possible. 

When you talk with your teen, show interest in them and whatever they want to talk about. Make comments and ask questions that encourage them to think, and to express their thoughts in words.

This can mean:

• Talk about what you notice

• Talk about what you are thinking about

• Ask lots of “why” and “how” questions

• Ask teens what they notice

• Ask teens what they wonder

• Elaborate and expand on what teens say

• Ask teens follow-up questions

• Ask them what they think about big ideas, and why

By adolescence, most kids do not often encounter unfamiliar words or grammar in their everyday conversations. However, they do encounter new words and grammar in books.

Exposing kids to books is an important way to help them expand their language use and understanding.

This can mean:

• encourage kids to read whatever they they enjoy as much as they want (novels, magazines, graphic novels, picture books, science books, comics--all are good!)

• read aloud to them

• listen to audiobooks and podcasts

• go to the library regularly

• join a library or school book club

Nonliteral language is language that does not mean exactly what it says.

Examples of nonliteral language are:

• sarcasm (example: "Monday morning. Awesome.")

• exaggeration (example: "I'm starving to death.")

• idioms (example: "raining cats and dogs")

• metaphor (example: "love is a bright light")

• similes (example: "homework is like a heavy weight on my back")

You can help teens to learn nonliteral language by using it in your own speech, and explaining what it means. Encourage teens to use nonliteral language themselves, and to be playful making up new examples of nonliteral language. Draw their attention to playful and creative uses of language in song lyrics and other writing.

Word games can help people to become interested in language, and to learn new language skills. Families can play word games together to help build a culture of words in the home.

This can mean:

• board games, card games, online games, games in the newspaper, game apps

• games where you make words, put words together into sentences, make up definitions of words, use words creatively, make connections among words, guess words

• rhymes, word puzzles, tongue twisters, jokes

• spoken word games

Have a family game night, play games in the car, challenge your teen to beat you in an online game every morning. When you play these games regularly, you can get everyone in the house more invested in language learning.

When kids become aware of language itself, and can talk about language, this is called "metalinguistic awareness." You can help to build metalinguistic awareness in your teenager by explicitly talking about language.

This can mean:

• Talk about words!: Which are interesting, funny, confusing? What are their multiple meanings?

• Tell your child when you've learned a new word, or heard a funny, touching, or interesting piece of language. Ask them to share what they have learned and noticed.

• What connections and differences do you notice between different languages? Between different dialects?

• Do you and your family code-switch? (switch or mix the language and/or dialect you use depending on the situation) Talk about when and how! Be creative mixing your language(s) and dialect(s), and celebrate all ways of talking.

• Talk about languages you hear in your community.

• Talk about what language sounds like, and what rhythms, words, and word combinations you like the sound of.

• Try playing around with how you form a sentence: could you say it a different way? Could you put words in a different order?

• Talk about the choices writers or storytellers make in choosing words, and writing sentences.

Kids learn language most easily when they live in a "language-rich household." In a language-rich household, words fill the environment.

People talk to each other (in any language or multiple languages!), and enjoy sharing ideas and thoughts. They use language playfully, inventing words, telling jokes, and sharing stories. People read, listen to the radio, and write.

When you take steps to fill your home with language (any language, or multiple languages!), you give your teen the opportunity to build language skills. You can also help build a deep love and appreciation for language's potential.

This content was reviewed by a Speech and Language Pathologist at Boston Children's Hospital.

Families local to Boston can get help from the Cardiac Neurodevelopmental Program and/or the Speech and Language Pathology Program.