TV shows to help with talking
There’s always that kid in every baby group that’s talking before their first birthday. By their second, they’re singing ‘Happy Birthday’ to themselves and by their third, they’re practically leading Ted Talks. It means every time your toddler gets cranky – but doesn’t tell you what’s wrong – you’re praying they get those words out.
Before I begin, yes we all know that TV shows aren’t going to magically teach your child to talk – that the best way to do that is to read to your child, play games, make eye contact as you describe what you’re doing. But sometimes mums need twenty minutes and if we are going to use TV, the supposed ‘cardinal sin of parenting’, we like to reduce the Mum Guilt somehow by trying to give our kids something helpful. These are the TV shows to help with talking…
Ms Rachel – Youtube
A Youtuber who specialises in early years learning through songs, games and nursery rhymes, Ms Rachel has two masters – one in early childhood development and one in music education – so she’s well equipped to get your toddler talking. We’ve watched all her videos – from Baby Learning for early words to First Sentences for 3-4 word sentences. There’s some repetition (if I have to hear her sing ‘Icky Sticky Bubblegum’ one more time I might cry) but lots of her videos show close ups of her lips making the sounds for your little one to copy.
Ms Rachel was inspired to launch her Youtube channel after her own son experienced a speech delay. ‘His first word was at 2 years and 8 months – and it was mama,’ she told Today.
Foolishly, I used to feel sorry for Ms Rachel singing all these songs. Then Google told me that she’s probably worth $10 million and I was tempted to buy myself a headband and dungarees to give it a go myself.
Yakka Dee – BBC iPlayer
An idea so simple, it’s amazing no one came up with it sooner. Yakka Dee takes a word each episode (think ‘banana’ or ‘cat’) and practically hammers it over the head of its young audience through a montage of kids saying the word over again in different scenarios. Basically, imagine very entertaining brainwashing for kids. The first half of the episode is exactly the same very similar to the second as Yakka Dee, the cartoon assistant, announces, ‘Let’s go, again!’ But it’s a great way to educate little ones (my two year old has repeated so many words from it) and it’s one of the best TV shows to help with talking.
Blue’s Clues – Amazon Prime
This is one of those very clever TV shows that manages to teach kids maths, art, language and life skills – all in 22 minutes. Josh lives with his dog Blue, who leaves three clues around per episode for him to work the answer to each episode’s questions. The show is very formulaic, which is a good thing for pre-schoolers, but Josh veers off onto different subjects like colours, space and food – all with lots of singing and sign language. In fact, Josh is very Broadway: be prepared for lots of showstoppers – with talking salt and pepper shakers, soap and a sidetable drawer for company.
Bounce Patrol – Youtube
If your toddlers learn through songs, then they will love Bounce Patrol. An Australian troop of five, these guys mix classics like ‘Old Macdonald’ and ‘The Ants Go Marching’ with new songs about superheroes and baking in the kitchen – all with the energy of Tigger in Disneyland. Even The Wiggles (Australian pre-schooler royalty) have featured in their videos. A word of warning: these songs will stay in your head all day. In fact, I’ve got their song about fruit and veg in my head right now while I’m writing this.
Something Special – BBC iPlayer
I avoided this show for the longest time possible because Mr Tumble gives me the creeps but I can’t deny that it is very clever. Mr Tumble ‘hands over’ to Justin who, along with two new child assistants each episode, explores places such as fire stations and wildlife parks. Justin stops the episode at least once to teach the audience a new Makaton sign, linked to what he’s up to – but it also means kids see the word being mouthed several times on screen. In fact, the whole episode uses Makaton sign and is very inclusive – with children with a range of different needs and backgrounds represented.
Sesame Street – Various
A mainstay on kids TV since 1971, Sesame Street is for older kids who have already got to grips with everyday language and now need to expand their vocabulary. If, like me, you’re in the UK, you can only get episodes on Youtube but thankfully there’s a good range on their channel to keep your toddler entertained. Classics such as Elmo, the Cookie Monster and Bert and Ernie remain – although I swear Sesame Street has become more classy since I was a kid (maybe because there’s fewer scenes of Oscar the Grouch). Because of the puppets, it’s harder to teach kids about pronunciation but they cover a wide range of subjects – my pre-schooler learned what choreography is!
Tab Time – Youtube
Hosted by actress and social media personality Tabitha Brown, Tab Time follows Ms Tabs (with her pet avocado Avi) as she uses her storytelling skills to help motivate kids to learn – with the occasional visit to ‘Tab’s Lab’ to help get the explanations behind them. The show’s aimed at 3-5 year olds, so it’s for kids who have a good range of words in their repertoire but it’s a very gentle programme, great for after dinner when you just want a quick sit down and has some great life lessons and guests. And it’s a great new addition to TV shows to help with talking.
Blippi
Blippi is a big deal online – and America. In fact, there’s even an outline to a Blippi musical ready for the US. While my toddler isn’t a big fan of his, I know others who rave about Blippi and how he keeps their little ones entertained episode after episode. The general structure is Blippi visiting different venues and outlets and basically wandering around and having a chat to the camera. There isn’t a great amount of depth to these but Blippi is very conversational, which allows young ones to absorb new words. Of course, there’s that controversy about what Blippi did before he became Blippi but I’ll let you google that…
