What Did You Do Yesterday?
Here's What To Do
To help your child practice using the past tense, encourage each family member to share something they did yesterday.
Use different types of words like plurals and possessive words to help your child develop their communication skills.
You can also make up a silly story and make up things you did yesterday. Someone can start the story, while the other family members continue it.
Put PEER Into Action
Pause:
- Smile at each other and pause together while you think of something you did yesterday. You can even close your eyes to help you picture it.
Engage:
- “What did you do yesterday?” or “Tell us something that happened yesterday.”
- Ask follow-up questions, “How did you feel when you ___?” or “Why did you want to ___ yesterday?”
Encourage:
- Remember that your child is just practicing how to use the past tense, it’s OK if what they share didn’t really happen.
- Make sure your child knows you’re listening and interested in what they’re saying. After, thank each person for sharing after.
Reflect:
- “What was your favorite part about yesterday?”
Not quite ready?
Your child can use gestures or simple words or phrases. Use the past tense as you elaborate on their words or describe what they did.
Ready for more?
Your child can tell a story that took place in the past (use past tense) or that will happen in the future.
As your child masters this skill...
They will use past tense and other forms like possessive, plural, present tense and present progressive verbs when communicating.