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words they pick up as they go along, whether from you or from others, and you can tell them to remember new words so the next time you play they can add more.

Joining words together.

This is a fun part of language. Here, a child will understand how silly it sounds if you say something backwards. This teaches them that there is a wrong way and a right way to say things. "Mrs Mopple morning good" sounds silly. Get them to put the words in the right order, and each time you say a sentence the wrong way around, get them to guess how it should be said.

If a child sees something as pleasurable and enjoyable they will excel, because they expect fun and that's exactly what you are offering them, rather than harsh disciplinary teaching where a child is punished for getting it wrong. They see this as positive interaction rather than negative and that is always a good place to start and to continue to draw their enthusiasm.

Encouraging full sentences.

Here, when they ask something which is not clear, make a game of it, and answer them saying that you don't understand what they want. "Tell me the whole sentence", you can explain and they will try to string spoken words together. You don't have to be mean but try to see how good they are at expressing what they want. Try explaining that in a school or a shop, the teacher or shopkeeper won't understand unless they really make things clear. Play shop and let them be the customer, asking for things in a polite manner.

Reading out loud.

At bedtime, when you read a story, show them how silly a story sounds if you don't use periods and commas. Read right past them as if they are not there, and they will giggle with delight and begin to understand why you have commas and periods. Get them to try reading a few lines, and even if they cannot manage it, showing them what the periods and commas do helps them later when they start to write things down. "Stop", says the period. "Pause" says the comma. They may show little reaction although when they start to use these in their own handwriting, you will realize that the lesson was worth teaching. "What's this squiggly thing at the end of a sentence?", ask them. Teach them how to write that question mark and say the sentence so they know that it means you are asking a question.

Being amazed at what a child learns.

During the childhood of any child, they do astound parents. Whether they learned a huge word from a television program or a best friend, or even learned from listening to you converse

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