Part of my "How to Teach English at Home" series.
The Importance of Speaking and Listening
Although developing your child’s speaking and listening skills might not be at the top of your list of priorities for teaching English, these skills are the foundation for all learning that happens!
Children learn to speak and listen years before they learn to read and write, and these skills are not only essential for learning and home education, but for communicating and building relationships with family, friends and the wider community.
By developing speaking and listening skills, this can help your child in so many areas such as:
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Vocabulary development
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Reading comprehension
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Writing skills
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Organising and expressing ideas and thoughts
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Developing reasoning and critical thinking skills
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Developing empathy and understanding other points of view
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…the list goes on!
By consciously developing these skills, you are setting your children up for success, not only in education and future employment, but in everyday life.
One of the major benefits that home education brings to the development of speaking and listening skills is that your children naturally have more one-to-one or small group opportunities to speak, compared to being part of a big classroom of children in public education.
A Simple Progression of Skills
So by now, you might be wondering what this looks like. If your home education set-up is to use textbooks for English, you almost certainly won’t have bought a separate ‘Speaking and Listening’ book!
Below is a simple progression of key speaking and listening skills per age range. Please remember, this is a rough guide; all children develop and progress at different rates and behave differently in different situations.
Speaking skills progression
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Ages 4-5 |
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Ages 5-7 |
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Ages 7-9 |
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Ages 9-11 |
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Listening skills progression
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Ages 4-5 |
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Ages 5-7 |
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Ages 7-9 |
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Ages 9-11 |
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Practical activities for developing speaking and listening skills at home
Here are some practical tips for developing these skills at home. The chances are that you are already doing many of these things. When reading this list, mentally check off the things you are already doing and then choose 2-3 that you could easily incorporate into your daily life. The goal is to do this regularly and consistently.
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Read aloud together every day
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Have regular family conversations around the dinner table
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Encourage storytelling about daily experiences
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Retell books, films and family outings together
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Encourage imaginative role play
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Practise presentations to family members
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Listen to podcasts or audiobooks together
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Play board games that involve discussion and turn-taking
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Hold family debates on fun topics
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Visit museums, parks and attractions, discussing observations together
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Give children genuine responsibilities that require communication
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Encourage siblings to solve disagreements through discussion
Specific skills and how to develop them
1. Giving Opinions
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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"Would You Rather?" questions with explanations Choose a favourite from two books, foods or places Family vote on simple decisions |
"What do you think?" "Why do you think that?" "Can you give me another reason?" "What makes you say that?" |
2. Explaining Ideas Clearly
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Explain the rules of a game Teach someone how to make a sandwich or build with Lego Describe how to complete a familiar task |
"Can you explain that step by step?" "Imagine I've never done this before." "What happens first?" "Can you tell me more?" |
3. Listening Carefully
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Follow multi-step instructions Listen for specific words during stories Repeat back what someone has said before responding |
"Can you tell me what you heard?" "What was the most important part?" "Can you repeat my instructions?" "What did your brother/sister just say?" |
4. Asking Good Questions
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Interview a family member Think of five questions after reading a story Play "Question Detective" using interesting objects or pictures |
"What would you like to know?" "What question could you ask next?" "Can you think of a 'why' question?" "What are you curious about?" |
5. Building Vocabulary
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Replace simple words with more interesting ones Word of the Day challenge Describe objects without naming them |
"Can you think of a better word?" "Can you describe it another way?" "What's another word for...?" "Can you be more specific?" |
6. Giving Reasons and Justifying Opinions
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Debate everyday decisions Rank favourite books, toys or holidays Explain choices while shopping or cooking |
"Why do you think that?" "Can you convince me?" "What's your best reason?" "Can you give me some evidence?" |
7. Taking Turns in Conversation
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Family discussions using a talking object Story-building games Partner problem-solving activities |
"Let's hear someone else's idea." "Can you build on what they said?" "Whose turn is next?" "What do you think about their idea?" |
8. Summarising and Retelling
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Activities
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Useful prompts
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Summarise a chapter in three sentences Retell a film using only the important events Explain what happened during the day |
"Can you tell me the main points?" "What happened first, next and finally?" "Can you tell the story in three sentences?" "What was the most important part?" |
Games for when you are travelling
Often, speaking and listening activities can happen informally as part of your daily life. Times when you are in the car or on the train are perfect opportunities! Check out some of these games below:
Story Builder
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One person starts with one sentence
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Take turns adding one sentence
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Include random objects suggested by passengers
Fortunately / Unfortunately
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Alternate "Fortunately..."
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"Unfortunately..."
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Build increasingly silly stories
Mystery Object
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Describe an object without naming it
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Others guess
Twenty Questions
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Yes/no questions only
Alphabet Categories
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Animals A-Z
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Food A-Z
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Countries A-Z
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Jobs A-Z
Would You Rather?
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Funny choices
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Explain reasons
Word Chain
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Last letter becomes first letter
Fortunately News Report
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Pretend to report ridiculous news stories
Debate ideas
Debates often spark the best types of speaking and listening. You can debate spontaneously, or you could even prepare little debate speeches to present to each other.
How to debate:
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Choose a topic
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Split up who will be for/against
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Prepare your speeches, noting down 3-5 key points
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Each present your speech
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Listen and note down questions to ask at the end
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Listen and note down counter-arguments
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Present your closing argument
Debates are great because they are open and can apply to any age, and skills can be developed over time.
Gradual Progression
| Age | Preparation | Speaking | Debate Style | Adult Support |
| 4-6 | None | 2-4 sentences | Guided conversation | High |
| 7-9 | Simple notes | Short speeches + responses | Structured discussion | Moderate |
| 10+ | Independent research | Full paragraphs | Formal debate | Mostly facilitator |
Some debating topics
Here is a list of topics you could try out, ranging from everyday topics, scientific debates and even some ‘silly’ ideas to increase the fun value!
Everyday
- Should children choose their own bedtime?
- Should screen time be earned?
- Is reading better than watching TV?
- Should families eat dinner together every day?
Scientific
- Should humans live on Mars?
- Should extinct animals be brought back if scientists could?
- Is space more interesting than the deep ocean?
- Would life be better if everyone could fly?
Social
- Should everyone get the same turn?
- Is sharing always the best choice?
- Should children help with jobs around the house?
- Is it better to work together or by yourself?
Silly
- Would the world be better if everyone could read minds?
- Would it be better to live in a giant treehouse or an underwater city?
- Would it be better to have four arms or four legs?
- Should dogs be allowed to drive cars?
Final thoughts
Speaking and Listening are skills that naturally occur and progress in your daily home education lifestyle. However, it is important to keep in mind that they are skills that we do need to explicitly plan for and work on. The beauty of home education is that you know exactly what you have covered during learning time, so that you can reinforce and reuse the skills during more spontaneous moments of the day such as at the dinner table or on car journeys!
Some useful links
BBC Bitesize - Talking and Listening Activities https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/topics/zrd9bdm
Language and Literacy videos, quizzes and activities that will help your child to practise their talking and listening knowledge and skills.
Words for Life - National Literacy Trust https://wordsforlife.org.uk/activities/
Use the ‘Chat’ and ‘Listen’ filters to find a range of different activities, ideas and resources to support speaking and listening at home.
Related reading
Learning how to develop speaking and listening skills at home is an important part of homeschooling, but it is only one piece of providing a well-rounded education. Understanding how speaking and listening fit into the wider homeschooling journey can help you support your child's learning with more confidence.
For a complete overview, you can explore the full guide here: The Complete Guide to Homeschooling
