Having effective oral communication strategies in their teaching toolbox enables educators to readily take advantage of the many spontaneous activities and conversations that occur naturally in preschool environments.
Here are some strategies that work!
Parallel Talk
Parallel talk–or running commentary–is helpful for all children, including multilingual learners. Getting to the child’s level and carefully observing and describing out loud their actions is a powerful way to build oral language skills. Parallel talk does not expect responses from children, but allows them to enjoy their activity while absorbing words and sounds that relate to the objects with which they are interacting. For multilingual learners, the effect can be magnified by choosing to identify the object in the child’s home language as well as in English.
Example of parallel talk:
(The educator sits on the floor next to a child who is playing with blocks.)
Educator:
“Wow, look at all those colorful blocks in front of you!”
“I see blue, red, and green blocks in all different shapes and sizes.”
“You’re choosing a square green block.”
“I’m going to watch and see what you do with that.”
(The educator waits.)
“Oh, I see, you’re putting the green square block down on the floor, and now you’re placing a red triangle block on top of the green square block.”
“I wonder if the red triangle block will balance on top of the green square block. I’ll watch and wait to see what happens.”
Parallel talk is a play-by-play narration of the child’s actions and activities. The word repetition helps to reinforce vocabulary.
Self-Talk
Self-talk is akin to parallel talk, but instead of narrating the child’s actions, the educator speaks aloud their own actions and thought-processes.
Example of self-talk:
Educator:
“I’m setting the table for lunch now.”
“I have 10 pretty yellow plates, just enough for everyone.”
“One goes here in front of [student’s name]”
Educator sets it down and moves to the next place.
“One goes here in front of [student’s name]”.
(The educator repeats with glasses, silverware, etc.)
“Now, I wonder what’s for lunch?”
Self-talk links your actions to words, helping children assign vocabulary to meaning.
Transition Time
As any preschool teacher will attest, transition time can be a very difficult part of the day. Children, too, find transition time a challenge. Studies have shown children associate transitions with less positive engagement with teachers and tasks. (Vitiello et al., 2012)
Preschool students spend significant time moving from one place to another. Educators can use this time as an opportunity to increase oral language skills through engaging activities. Incorporating large muscle movements help little learners absorb information and work through pent-up energy! Songs, chants, finger plays, hopping, skipping, and jumping are a few examples.
Educators can make up songs to sing during transitions. Using a well-known tune, they can incorporate vocabulary words from a unit theme. They can be nonsensical or narrative—sometimes the sillier, the better! Incorporating clapping or finger play helps keep little hands busy (and off of each other). Children’s active imaginations are engaged as they move down the hall jumping over or skipping around alligators, or tiptoeing like mice to wash their hands.
Mealtime
Educators can incorporate self-talk and parallel talk during meal and snack time. Describe meal preparation, taking advantage of the time to introduce new words related to food. Open-ended questions encourage conversation.
Discuss manners. Practice and encourage polite words and phrases like, “please,” “thank you,” and “excuse me.” Talk about why manners are important and how polite language makes people feel.
Other ideas to enhance oral language during meal times include playing games such as “I Spy,” using items on the table (even placing some there during meal preparation), or “20 Questions,” in which an object is described and the children take turns guessing what it is.
Talk about the day’s read-aloud, or another lesson that took place that day. Ask children what they can remember and have them take turns telling their version of it.
Strive for 5
Strive for 5 is a strategy that focuses on achieving five back-and-forth conversational turns between a child and an adult, focusing on a single topic and building upon the child’s responses.
Why five turns? Research shows that these short, interactive exchanges are powerful. Just five turns can help develop a child’s oral language, speaking and listening skills, comprehension, and literacy outcomes (Cabell & Zucker 2024).
Strive for 5 has benefits that extend beyond language. These conversations also strengthen children’s social and emotional development. When children engage in turn-taking dialogue, they develop important oral language skills, practice and expand their vocabulary, and learn to listen carefully and respond thoughtfully. These conversations also provide opportunities for children to receive affirmations and acknowledgment, helping them feel heard and valued. In addition to supporting language development, turn-taking builds essential social skills—like making connections and waiting patiently—that are foundational for success in school and life.
A Real-Life Example
Imagine this moment during outdoor play:
Child: “Look! A bug!”
Educator: “Yes, it’s on the rock!”
Child: “It’s crawling!”
Educator: “What do you think it’s doing?”
Child: “Maybe looking for food.”
Educator: “Let’s watch and see what it does next.”
In just a few short exchanges, the adult has engaged the child’s curiosity, expanded their vocabulary and observation skills, and helped build connections.
Why It Matters
When educators use Strive for 5, they’re doing more than talking—they’re creating opportunities for children to:
- Practice communication in real time
- Build confidence in expressing ideas
- Expand vocabulary and comprehension
- Strengthen social and emotional skills like patience and empathy
- Feel seen, heard, and valued in their learning environment
These everyday conversations help children feel a sense of belonging and safety—critical conditions for learning.
Where Can Strive for 5 Happen?
Strive for 5 isn’t limited to one part of the day—it can happen anywhere! Here are just a few natural moments for meaningful, back-and-forth conversations:
- Arrival time – Greet children with a warm, engaging exchange as they enter.
- During free play – Follow their lead and build on their interests.
- While reading aloud – Pause to ask questions, make predictions, invite responses, and practice vocab.
- In small-group instruction – Use focused time to deepen understanding and language.
- On the playground or during outdoor exploration – Spark curiosity about the world around them.
- During transitions and routines – Turn everyday moments into learning opportunities.
Final Thoughts
As always, educators will do well to keep in mind that establishing quality relationships with students is key to creating safe and nurturing learning environments. And with these strategies in their teaching toolkit, impromptu, unrehearsed conversations throughout the day will make a big impact on a child’s language and vocabulary development.
References
Cabell, S. Q., & Zucker, T. A. (2024). Using strive-for-five conversations to strengthen language comprehension in preschool through grade one. The Reading Teacher, 77(4), 522–532. https://doi.org/10.1002/trtr.2266
Vitiello, V. E., Booren, L. M., Downer, J. T., & Williford, A. P. (2012). Variation in children’s classroom engagement throughout a day in preschool: Relations to classroom and child factors. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 27(2), 210–220. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecresq.2011.08.005
Related Reading:
Early Literacy Predictors – Oral Language
Audio Download–SEEDS: A Professional Learning Framework
Quality Interactions in Early Childhood: 5 Essential Building Blocks