6 Ways to Use Picture Dictionaries to Build Your Toddler's Vocabulary

In any children's book section, I'm sure you have seen loads of First Words or Picture Dictionary style children's books. Have you ever purchased one and then felt that your child quickly became disinterested in being asked to label different items on the page over and over again? It is so exciting when you your child has a new word in their repertoire, so naturally we want to hear them say it!

In this post, I'm going to share several alternatives to get your child using new words in a fun and engaging way.

Picture Dictionaries are generally full of nouns. Lots of people, objects, animals, and things.

When children are learning new words and concepts, the more ways you can help connect and associate the words together, the more likely your child will be to retain and use new words.

So how do you know if your child has learned a new word? When you hear them use the word in a meaningful and consistent way.

Here are 6 ways to help your child learn new words and reinforce vocabulary they already have by using Picture Dictionaries.

1. Create connections on the pages - Usually picture dictionaries are grouped by theme. Can your child tell what the pictures have in common on each set of pages? Example: 'Wow, I see a Sandcastle, a crab and a beachball! These are all things we might find on the________(beach!)"

2. Categorize - This is really a continuation of number 1, but the more ways you can link words together, the more likely they are to internalize the words.

3. Talk about what an object does or it's function ex a Fox sneaks. A mole digs. It can be easy with Picture Dictionaries to have a tendency to only label. There are so many pictures to label! I will tell you your child will get bored of being asked "What's that?" or "What does a cow say?" over and over. Instead, talk about what the object does!

4. Refer back to Items even when you don't have the book. Make it fun by mimicking or acting out the actions that go with the pictures you looked at earlier. "I wonder if you can sneak like a fox over to the table for your snack!" or "Let's pretend we're digging like a mole while we sort through this giant laundry pile!

5. Describe an item on the page for them to guess e.g I see a cold, yummy treat that will melt if you don't eat it! (Popsicle/ice cream) or This is something you build at the beach with a lot of sand (sandcastle).

6. Make silly animal sounds. Don't underestimate the power of animal sounds. Before you point to an animal on the page and ask your child "what does a duck say?" Make it fun and make the sounds yourself! If there are several animals on the page they know already make a sound and see if they point to the one you are making! Chances are they will join in!

The more connections you can help your child create among words the more meaningful they will become.

Here are three picture dictionaries all from the same author that have really nice variety and great images on the pages. They each include flaps on every page to help make the experience more interactive.

100 First Words: Nature by Edward Underwood

100 First Words by Edward Underwood

100 First Words: City by Edward Underwood

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