Speech Outdoors – Simon Says

Put on your jacket and let’s get moving! Time to get outside and work on some verbs and essential listening skills. Simon Says challenges your child to listen for multiple pieces of information within a single instruction. Let’s break it down into levels to help your child successfully play this childhood classic!

Level 0:
Before we play, let’s make sure your child can follow simple commands. Start by giving your child a single action word (i.e. jump). Try to stick to a single word command when starting. If your child is not able to follow the command independently, model it for them. For example, tell your child “jump” and you begin to jump until your child is jumping with you. Praise your child for following the instruction! You did it! Continue to practice single word commands until your child is able to fairly consistently follow the instruction without a model.

Level 1:
During this level, we will add more words to our instruction, but keep it relatively simple. During this level begin including the “Simon Says” phrase before your command. Continue to use single word commands, but you may begin to trial 2-3 word commands such as “touch your nose”. Continue to model, or have a sibling model, if your child becomes confused.

Level 2:
Time for a challenge! Explain to your child that during this game, they are only allowed to follow your instruction when you say “Simon Says”. Encourage siblings and others in the home to play with you! Continue to use simple commands. As your child begins to master simple commands, incorporate challenging instructions that include more information such as “stand on one foot” or “touch the bottom of your ear”.

Level 3:
Mix it up! Time for your child to play “Simon”. This will encourage your child to use preposition/placement words, verbs/action words, longer phrases and sentences, and much more! If your child is having difficulties creating a correct sentence, write it out for them. They may not be able to read, but it is a great visual to help them create longer sentences.

Simon Says Action:
Jump
Touch
Sit
Stand How/Where:
On one foot
Toes
On the grass
On the chair