BUILDING TURN-TAKING AND CONVERSATIONAL SKILLS
Intentional and on-going conversations between educators and learners are a
powerful mechanism for supporting well-being and achievement in literacy,
numeracy, science and across the curriculum. Turn-taking is a basic requirement of
conversation but it does not always occur automatically. For some learners turn-taking must be modelled
and taught. Children with poor understanding of turn-taking may interrupt frequently or fail to respond in
conversation. A variety of games such as ‘Memory’, ‘Hot Potato’ or ‘Roll-the-Ball,’ played with a parent or
educator, can help early learners practice signalling a turn, performing the action, and keeping an activity
going. For older students, take turns adding components in a cooperative building activity.
Strategies to promote the development of turn-taking skills:
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Get down to the learner’s level. Be face to face.
Get the learner’s attention before talking to him/her.
Lean forward.
Look expectantly for a response.
Smile.
Wait, and give the learner ample time to respond.
Use hand-over-hand to do the activity, if necessary.
Use simple language to describe the activity.
Provide modelling (e.g., “Your turn.” “My turn.”)
Give praise when the learner takes a turn as expected.
Strategies to further promote conversational skills:
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Encourage active listening behaviours:
 Look at the person speaking
 “uh huh” or nodding as person speaks
 Appropriate (open) body language
Comment on the topic and use open-ended questions (e.g., “How did you do it?”, “Can you tell me
more?”) Wait expectantly for a response. Give the learner many conversational turns.
Talk explicitly about a repeated and routine event (e.g., working in centres, a reading activity).
Talk about the sequence of actions involved in various routines. Children are more likely to maintain
a topic when they are speaking about familiar routines.
Use time markers (e.g., ‘first,’ ‘now,’ ‘later,’ ‘then’) when discussing sequence (e.g., “First we took
out the paintbrush, now you are putting water in your cup, next you will paint a picture on the
paper.”).
Talk about objects and materials to help children understand how objects are used and how to
discuss the cause and effect relationships that occur in action sequences (e.g., “We put the
paintbrushes in the sink so that they can be cleaned.”).
Talk about the reasons for the sequence of actions (e.g., “You need to put the apron on so that you
don’t get your clothes dirty.”)