Speech Sounds/Articulation: The language used with this toy lends itself well to practicing early developmental sounds to include /m, p, b, w, h, n, t, d/. Use words such as: “more”, “ball”, “up”, “boom”, “wow”, “hit”, “down”, “open”, “door”, and “out”. The toy is very engaging and will offer plenty of practice as your child does it over and over!
Language: Focus on receptive language while matching colors and practicing one step directions such as “put up”, “put in”, “hit ball”, “open door”, and “give me”.
Work on expressive language to include environmental sounds and words. Say sounds such as “boom”, “wow”, and “uh-oh”. Use single words to include nouns (“ball”, “hammer”), function words (“more”, “help”, “open”, “again”, “go”), descriptors (naming colors), and prepositions (“up”, “down”, “out”).
Expand on single words with the addition of a verb, such as “hit ball” and “open door”. Have fun with verbal routines to include “ready, set, go!” or counting “one, two, three, four”. Practice pronouns by taking turns and saying “my turn”, “your turn”, or ‘stealing’ a ball while saying “I got it!”.
Social Pragmatics: This toy is highly motivating and supports communicative intent when you use the language strategies of gentle sabotage (don’t show them how to open the door, wait for them to make a request of “help” or “open”), withholding (grab the hammer and wait for them to request), and offering choices (gather the balls and offer a choice of two). Take turns to encourage social interaction and shared enjoyment.
Fine Motor/Visual Motor: This toy offers opportunities to practice visual perceptual (matching of colors) and visual motor (eye/hand coordination) skills.
Gross Motor: Hammering the balls into the toy supports grading (controlled movement) and proper force regulation (how much force to apply) of the upper extremities.