Teaching Language Sequencing Skills

This is an excerpt from my book, Language Lessons: From Listening Skills to Conversation (available in PDF or Kindle format).

The ability to sequence requires auditory memory, comprehension, and the ability to organize thoughts and to convey ideas in a logical manner. Sequencing skills are crucial for reading, writing, and oral language. All of these abilities can be strengthened by the following exercises.

Exercises

Put a set of objects or scraps of paper in front of your child. Have him put them in order from smallest to largest.

Cut apart comic strips. Lay them out on the table in sequence and have your child tell you the story. Then mix them up and ask your child to put them back in the correct order.

Have your child put these words in a logical sequence from small to large, old to young, first to last, etc.

· child, adult, baby

· ant, elephant, dog

· spoon, cup, bucket

· house, castle, tent

· afternoon, morning, evening

· sun, flashlight, light bulb

· whisper, shout, talk

· Tuesday, Thursday, Monday

· Saturday, Friday, Thursday

· minute, hour, second

 

Ask your child to make fix these scrambled sentences:

· door, the, open (Open the door.)

· the, howls, dog (The dog howls.)

· hand, raise, your (Raise your hand.)

· you, love, I (I love you.)

· milk your drink (Drink your milk.)

· hands, wash, your (Wash your hands.)

· quiet, be, please (Please be quiet.)

· shoes, tie, your (Tie your shoes.)

· horns, have, rhinos (Rhinos have horns)

· fierce, lions, are (Lions are fierce.)

· can, jump, Macy (Macy can jump.)

· my, soccer, brother, plays (My brother plays soccer.)

· teacher, nice, my, is (My teacher is nice.)

· the, scratch, will, cat (The cat will scratch.)

· crab, bit, me, that (That crab bit me.)

· brush, go, teeth, your (Go brush your teeth.)

 

Ask your child to describe these events. Encourage him to use the words, "first," "then," and "next," or ask him to give 3 (or 4 or 5) steps in each process.

· Making a sandwich

· Making scrambled eggs

· Getting dressed in the morning

· Playing a favorite board game or sport

· Putting on a pair of shoes

· Making a bed

 

More activities for sequencing, as well as vocabulary enrichment and other language skills are included in Language Lessons: From Listening Skills to Conversation .