Nothing brings families and friends together like the holidays. Filled with traditions and memories that spark conversations, the holidays are also an ideal time to encourage open communication for children (and adults) at home or in therapy. Storytelling can be a powerful tool to naturally help speech and language development by strengthening vocabulary, sequencing, and articulation.
Sharing holiday stories is an excellent way to foster joyful communication among people of all ages and abilities. In this article, we’ll explore why storytelling is so effective for language development, how the holidays create the perfect narrative, and practical activities to encourage communication at home or in therapy environments.
Why Storytelling Boosts Communication Skills
Telling a story doesn’t feel like work because it cleverly disguises communication as something fun and natural. When a child or adult is invited to recall a memory, describe an event, or share a family tradition, parts of the brain involved in language, attention, and emotional processing are activated by the storytelling. They must actively choose words, organize ideas, and connect one moment to the next. This process helps build vocabulary and strengthen communication without seeming like work. Also, describing characters, settings, and feelings encourages imagination and articulation for more confident self-expression. Together, these elements make storytelling a powerful tool for developing communication skills in a personal and meaningful way.
Why Holidays Create the Perfect Storytelling Opportunity
The holidays create the perfect backdrop for storytelling activities to encourage communication. The season is filled with traditions, routines, and sensory experiences that fuel interaction and sharing. The sights, sounds, smells, and textures of the season become vivid sensory memories that children can describe and revisit through storytelling. As families come together, there are plenty of opportunities for building communication in a safe space while catching up and sharing with loved ones.
Holiday Storytelling Activities for Children
There are plenty of ways to encourage storytelling participation through creative activities during the holiday season.
Visual Prompts
The winter holidays are filled with bright lights, festive decorations, and holiday characters, which can ignite the imagination. Children can describe what they see, make predictions about what might happen next, or create an imaginative story based on the image. Using visuals to prompt holiday storytelling activities sparks imagination and encourages expressive language.
Sequencing Games
Sequencing activities to encourage communication during the holidays can include picture cards, story-building, or recipe following. For example, create a set of cards showing every step of building a snowman. Instruct the child to place the cards in the correct order and then retell the sequence in their own words. Sequencing games help children organize their thoughts while strengthening foundational communication skills, such as comprehension, memory, and the ability to follow multi-step directions.
AAC-friendly Ideas
Holiday storytelling can be adapted for children who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). For those using AAC tools, pre-programmed holiday vocabulary, simple sentence starters (e.g., “I see” or “I remember”), and visual scene displays can make storytelling activities to encourage communication more engaging and easier.
Storytelling Activities for Adults
Storytelling isn’t just for kids. Adults can also benefit from holiday narrative therapy to support cognitive function and communication skills and to improve memory recall. For adults with speech or language challenges, structured storytelling provides a meaningful and motivating way to practice language, express emotions, and connect with others.
Reminiscence Therapy
This type of holiday narrative therapy encourages adults to share stories from their past, such as holiday traditions, events, or other memories. Recalling and retelling these personal experiences supports vocabulary practice, sentence construction, and sequencing while stimulating memory. It can also help foster social connection, emotional expression, and confidence in speaking.
Memory Books
Personal books or photo albums are visual tools that combine photos and written prompts to encourage storytelling. Adults can describe the images, recount experiences, or write short narratives to accompany each page. Using memory books supports language development, attention, and organization, while giving participants a tangible keepsake that stimulates memory recall over time.
Guided Narrative Prompts
These are structured prompts that encourage adults to use expressive language while storytelling. Some examples of guided narrative prompts to encourage communication include “Tell me about your favorite holiday meal” or “Describe your favorite holiday memory.” The prompts can be visual, written, or verbal. Using prompts to encourage storytelling makes communication easier, helping guide adults with varying speech or cognitive abilities.
Making Storytelling Inclusive for All Abilities
Storytelling for speech and language development is easily adaptable to meet a wide range of
sensory, cognitive, and communication needs. Families and therapists can tailor the environment and materials to ensure that everyone, regardless of ability, can comfortably and meaningfully participate.
Sensory-friendly
Individuals with sensory sensitivities are most comfortable in calm and predictable environments. Therefore, reducing background noise, dimming lights, or offering comforting sensory tools, such as fidget items, can enhance the storytelling process and encourage open communication. Also, using simple visuals, clear language, and short, structured stories helps prevent overstimulation. Gently introducing multisensory options, like textures and smells, can also support engagement without being overwhelming.
Neurodivergent-friendly
Neurodivergent individuals typically have unique strengths, such as creativity or pattern recognition, along with challenges that can affect communication, attention, or sensory processing. Therefore, storytelling formats should align with their unique communication and processing styles. This can include using visual storyboards, allowing extra time for responses, or offering alternative ways to participate, such as writing, drawing, or acting out scenes.
Low-verbal / AAC Supports
For those who communicate with limited speech or by using AAC supports, storytelling can also be adapted. Incorporating visual scene displays, symbol-based storyboards, or pre-programmed holiday vocabulary allows them to select characters, actions, and feelings to build their own stories. Also, sentence prompts, such as “I like…” or “Next…”, can make the storytelling process easier.
The holidays are a magical time of year, offering plenty of inspiration for activities to encourage open communication. Holiday storytelling activities are an excellent way to engage children and adults while fostering the development of essential speech and language skills. As a pediatric home health agency serving children with special needs, we know that meaningful, family-centered activities can make therapeutic progress joyful during the holiday season. We encourage you to blend familiar holiday traditions with these communication activities to help your child connect, express themselves, and grow while creating lasting memories.
