[birds chirping] [doorbell ringing] (children) ♪Hello!

Hello!♪ ♪Won't you be my friend?♪ ♪Hello!

Hello!♪ ♪Let's say it again.♪ ♪Hello!

Hello!♪ ♪Won't you be my friend?♪ ♪Hello!

Hello!♪ ♪Now you are my friend.♪ ♪♪♪ ♪H-E-L-L-O♪ ♪That's a word we all should know.♪ ♪H-E-L-L-O♪ ♪You can say it.♪ ♪Just say hello.♪ ♪♪♪ Hey!

There's Mr. Chuck!

Well, hello, friend!

Hello, Mr. Chuck!

Hello, friends.

Do you like to listen to music?

♪♪♪ Listen to this.

♪♪♪ Is this music loud... Or soft?

♪♪♪ Sounds pretty loud to me.

How about this?

♪♪♪ Is this loud... Or soft?

♪♪♪ Yeah, that's soft, isn't it?

I'll tell you what.

Let's do something with loud and soft.

We'll hear some music and when you hear loud music, put your thumb up like this.

And when you hear soft music, put your thumb down like this.

Ready?

Oh, let's add something else to this.

I know.

Let's move a little.

While you're listening, let's march around.

I'll march around my yard and you march around the room where you are.

Okay?

Remember, loud music - thumbs up.

Soft music - your thumb should point down.

Now let's try it as we march along.

Here we go.

Thumbs up now.

[loud music] ♪♪♪ Come on.

♪♪♪ [soft music] ♪♪♪ Soft music, thumbs down.

♪♪♪ Oh this gives you a chance to relax a little bit when you've been marching around.

♪♪♪ [loud music] ♪♪♪ Thumbs up.

Loud music.

♪♪♪ [soft music] ♪♪♪ [loud music] ♪♪♪ Wow, that was fun!

(man) What animal makes this sound?

[dog barking] That's a doggy!

[cat meowing] A kitty cat!

[duck quacking] A duck!

[cow mooing] Cow!

[frog croaking] That's a...froggy.

[rooster crowing] Rooster!

Rooster!

(man) Now that's using your ears.

Okay, let's play a game.

Have you ever played Simon Says?

Oh, it's fun.

Here's what happens.

I'll say something like, "Simon Says touch your nose."

And you touch your nose.

Now, if I don't say, "Simon Says" and just say, "touch your nose" don't do it.

Remember, you do what I say only if I say, "Simon Says" first.

Okay?

Let's go.

Simon Says, touch your knee.

Yes.

Simon Says, raise your hands over your head.

Very good.

Simon Says pull your ear.

Stomp your feet.

[laughing] You've got to pay attention.

I've got to say, "Simon Says" first.

Oh, I didn't say, "Simon Says" so you didn't stomp your feet I hope.

Simon Says stomp your feet.

That's right.

Simon Says put your hands on your hips.

Blink your eyes.

Did you blink your eyes?

No?

Good!

Okay, Simon Says blink your eyes.

Hold your nose.

A-ha, you're paying attention.

Simon Says hold your nose.

[nasally] You're getting good at this.

Excuse me.

I mean, you're getting good at this.

And you know, you can have fun with your friends playing this game.

And we'll have fun playing it again sometime, too.

(man) Try these tongue twisters.

[applause] (man) That's good.

Friends, let's play a game.

Do you know what this is?

It's a stoplight.

And each of the colors on the stoplight is a signal that lets drivers know what they should do.

There's red... Yellow... And green... Do you know what each of the colors means?

Well, red means stop.

Yellow means slow down.

And green means go.

So, what kind of game will we play?

Let me show you.

Are you ready?

Yes!

Green means go!

♪♪♪ You can try this at home you know.

♪♪♪ Yellow means slow down.

♪♪♪ Isn't this fun?

Red light means stop.

[laughing] Green light!

♪♪♪ Yellow light.

♪♪♪ Red light.

[laughing] Green light!

♪♪♪ Yellow light.

♪♪♪ Red light.

[laughing] Let's give yourselves a hand.

You did real good.

[clapping] I hope you enjoyed that, too.

[pig oinking] Pig!

[dog barking] A dog.

[horse neighing] A horse.

Pony... Colt...

Foal Stallion [cow mooing] Cow!

[baby crying] A baby crying.

[cat meowing] Cat.

[splat] Ew.

Maybe it's somebody stepping on a bug.

A big bug, though.

Today we hear the last part of our story.

I hope you're enjoying it.

Here's Mrs. Isha to finish the story of Awongalima.

Now Nia who lived up to the meaning of her name, purpose, did not stop to eat, did not stop to drink, and did not stop to play.

And Monkey, he tried to tempt her.

Nia, come on let's play!

When she wouldn't do it he called her names.

Hey!

Greenback!

Hey!

Swamphead!

You been inside yourself lately?

She paid no attention.

She told him, "Monkey, my father told me that I must do this work "without stopping to play or eat or drink, and I'm going to do it "to go back home and save my community.

"And you're part of that, Monkey.

I really like you, but you're getting hard to get along with."

She paused only one other time and that was to pick flowers right at the edge of Miss Queenie's gate.

She had them for Miss Queenie, she knocked at the door, and when Miss Queenie opened, she said, "Miss Queenie, hello.

"These are for you.

I'm Nia from on the other side of the mountain.

Please."

Miss Queenie loved the flowers.

She took them, she put them in a vase, and she took the vase and put it on this tall shelf and the sun shone over them like rainbow colors and it was really nice and when Miss Queenie was looking around behind Nia she said, "Child, where are the grown people?

Where are the adults?

Where are your friends?"

No one came but me.

They either couldn't or they wouldn't.

But I'm here, please, I would be so thankful if you would give us the name of the tree.

Cause there's trouble at home just like you said there might be.

And Miss Queenie was so overwhelmed that this little bitty turtle, this small little green turtle, being the one to actually come and be sincere.

So she held her close and she said the name in her ear.

Oh sweet child, sweet Nia, the name of the tree is Awongalima.

Awongalima.

Nia had heard the name never before, so when she heard it it was like music to her ears.

Awongalima!

Awongalima!

She started to snap.

[snapping] She started to clap.

[clapping] She started to sing.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ You might have to sing with me, boys and girls.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ She started home, she didn't stop to play, she didn't stop to rest, she didn't stop to even drink water.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ She was at the foot of that tree that had grown to maturity, but bore no flowers, no leaves, and no fruit.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ And the towns people they loved that catchy tune she was singing.

They started signing right along with her just like you are, boys and girls.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ And the tree, that one that Miss Queenie had planted started to sway and move around as if it had ears.

As if it had flesh and blood.

It started to snap.

[snapping] It started to clap.

[clapping] It started to sing.

♪Awongalima!♪ Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ And do you know at that moment, people were just amazed because fruit and flower and leaves burst out all over.

And people who didn't believe said, "My goodness!

This is a magic tree!"

And sick people started to eat and they were made well.

And people who had no shelter leaned against it and were given a home.

And a little girl, she was such a small one, about two years younger than you.

And she had never had shoes.

She went to the tree, and picked a leaf, and placed the leaf underneath her bare foot and like magic she started to snap.

[snapping] She started to clap.

[clapping] She started to spin around and jump up and down.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ That tree had given her shoes like she had always dreamed of with curly toes and magic in the heels and bells that rang when she moved.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ Now, boys and girls, this story is one about community and sharing and caring.

Now I'm not going to tell that sometimes the way gets dark and it gets really hard to do it.

You might have to clap.

[clapping] You might have to snap.

[snapping] You might have to sing.

♪Awongalima!

Awongalima!♪ ♪Awongalima!♪ Time to check our mailbox to see what's new.

Maybe something from you.

Oh, yes.

Ahh, there is something here from April and Jacob Robins.

Very colorful envelope, too.

They've decorated it up there.

And sent us some drawings.

I believe there are three.

Here's one from Jacob.

This, guess what it is?

Guess.

It's an eagle.

Very fine job, Jacob.

You call that a big bird I bet, hu h?

Some eagle.

And let's see what else we've got here.

Here's one, ah, this is from April Robins.

April Robins says a bird on this picture here, take a close look, says a bird is finding a worm for its baby to eat.

That's nice.

Oh, she sends another one.

Take a look at this one.

It's a mouse, a mouse thinking about eating some cheese.

Take a look at that mouse thinking about eating some cheese .

You know, all mice think a lot so I suppose that makes a lot of sense April, it does.

Very nice.

Alright and here's another one.

This one is from Bobby Dunn.

Ah, yes.

Bobby Dunn is five years old and he's sent us a drawing.

Take a look at his drawing.

On the back of it it says, "My sister and I enjoy watching "your show.

I'm sending you this pa inting of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, a photo of me skating at Shelby Farms."

Take a look at this.

He's really, hey - it looks like he 's rollerblading there.

Very good.

Thank you very much, Bobby.

And thanks to your family and thanks very much, also, to the Robbins family and to April and her brother, who sent us an eagle, Jacob.

Thank you.

You know I like getting drawings and photos from my friends.

So if you'd like to send me a drawing or a photo of yourself, just send it to... Then I'll share them with our friends right here on TV.

Just remember I can't return them so only send us the things you don't want to get back, okay?

By age two many children are good talkers and good listeners.

Others are just beginning to verbally express their thoughts and ideas and may have difficulty listening.

So what can parents do to help extend and expand a child's vocabulary and encourage enjoyment of listening?

Well, that's what we're going to talk about today here on Parent's Corner.

Our guest is Marion Hammond, speech language pathologist.

Welcome.

Thank you.

I'm glad to be here.

Well, Marion, what should parents look for in the development of language skills as their child grows?

The time between birth to three years is critical.

Parents, at the very, very young ages, and I'm talking about the first three months of life, should be looking to see is their child responding to sound.

If they hear a loud sound does that child respond?

Is the child starting to look at the parent?

When you start to get beyond that first three months of life, you're going to get cooing and babbling.

And the parent should be responding to that cooing and babbling.

And then when you get to age one you're starting to get those one word utterances.

And every once in a while you're going to get some two word utterances.

And so it develops up until age three.

But by age three, most children have the foundations for normal speech and language development.

That first birth to three time is critical.

Well, please tell us, how can parents help this development?

One of the great things a parent can do with their child is sing songs to them.

Do nursery rhymes.

Simple rhyming words are so critical and what I think is important is start reading at a very early age to the child.

Just talk about the pictures.

They don't necessarily have to read the words in the book, but start talking about the pictures.

Do very, very simple books that have rhyming words in them and eventually you can say part of the sentence and the child will start filling in that rhyming word.

That is very, very normal development for a child and every child likes to sing.

Tell us, when should reading begin?

It's never too soon to start.

I believe a parent can start in that first couple of months of life start talking about books, showing pictures to their child.

There are so many wonderful books on the market now that even have things such as mirrors on the page so the child can look at themselves and the parent can talk about the child's features.

It's never too early to start reading.

And then a child starts hearing the way words are supposed to be produced.

And maybe they'll start imitating at a much earlier age if the parent is talking about those words at an earlier age.

Being able to express thoughts and feelings is obviously an important part of communication, but it's often frustrating.

How should parents respond when their children have difficulty expressing themselves?

That can be very, very difficult and a very simple thing that a parent can do is just say to the child, "Show me."

Show me what you want, show me what you're talking about.

The next step then would be, for example, say the child is wanting something out of the refrigerator.

When the parent gets that item, say to the child, "Oh, you wanted an apple.

You were trying to tell me apple."

Sometimes that's a hard word.

Or just give it to the child and not even say it's a hard word.

And then if the child approximates or attempts to say the word apple, say, "Yes, it's an apple.

It's a red apple."

So expand upon that child's utterance.

Or if the child is wanting to go outside and is wanting to go on the swing and can't say that word, it's fine for the parents to use the words even if the child can not say them yet, because eventually that child will pair either the object or the action with the appropriate words and start to say them themselves.

It's called saying what they're seeing or saying what they're doing.

Preparing them to talk.

Exactly.

Well as you've said, reading to your child is very important in developing language skills.

Are there other things parents can do to develop awareness of the printed word?

Absolutely.

When you take your child out in a car everyday you see things such as stop signs and when you stop you can say, "See the red sign?

It says 'stop.'

S-T-O-P." Take your child to the grocery store, point out familiar objects.

There are so many places that a pa rent can take their child.

To the zoo is a wonderful thing because they have the names of the animals printed.

Anyplace that they have printed words that the child can associate that printed word with the object.

What are some things that parents can look for if they feel their child is slow in developing these skills?

Parents usually have what I call a gut level feeling that something is not quite right.

For instance, their child will sit and listen to stories or pay a lot of attention to TV but maybe they're not talking yet.

Or if they are talking they're not sounding correctly.

They're not pronouncing their words correctly.

And this can be of concern.

And as I previously mentioned there are some things that the parent can work on with the child, but if a child is for instance not using one word at 12 months of age, not maybe putting words together by 18 months, 3 or 4 words by age two, not able to label some objects, then maybe they should be concerned and should have those skills evaluated.

Check with their pediatrician first.

If the child is not responding to their name when they call them, it could possibly be a hearing problem.

So those are the kinds of things they should be looking for.

What kind of professional help is out there?

There's a lot.

The profession of speech language pathology has expanded so much in the last few years and in every community there are certified qualified people to evaluate the child and provide the services.

Today on Parent's Corner we've been talking about listening and language skills.

Our guest has been Marion Hammond, the speech language pathologist.

Thank you very much for being with us today.

Thank you.

Remember moms and dads, one of the best ways to develop listening and language skills is to read to your child at least ten minutes every day.

It's a wonderful way to spend time together and the benefits are tremendous.

You know, there's much more to listening than just hearing what someone says.

Listening is a part of learning to communicate.

Right.

When we really listen, I mean really listen, to one another we can work together and play together and get along much better.

We'll have lots more fun next time, but now we've got to go.

Until then, thanks for watching and listening, too.

So long.

♪♪♪