What’s The Difference Between Identifying and Labeling?
Those first words are so exciting, but what underlying skills do children need to strengthen before growing their first-words vocabulary? Before children are able to use words expressively (to label, request, comment, etc.) children must first understand those words receptively. Receptive and expressive language can become seemingly intertwined at times, but there is a distinct difference. Receptive language is children’s ability to understand language that’s spoken to them. Expressive language is how they are able to use words to communicate. Two foundational tasks that can help determine a child’s receptive and expressive vocabularies include their abilities to identify (receptive vocabulary) and label (expressive vocabulary).
What does identifying mean?
Pointing to a picture in a book when asked, “Where’s the…?” is an example of identifying.
An early receptive language skill to look out for is your child’s ability to identify objects. This means that when you name a familiar object, your child looks towards it, and is eventually able to point to it. For example, if you’re reading a book and you ask, “Where’s the doggy?” Or when looking in the mirror you say, “Find your nose!” When your child looks towards and/or points to these familiar objects, we know they understand what that word means. In order for children to start using these words expressively to communicate, they must first have this underlying understanding of what the word means. Simply put, they can’t name a “cow” if they don’t know what the word “cow” means yet!
What does labeling mean?
Seeing a picture of a dog and saying, “dog,” is an example of labeling.
Labeling is the act of seeing an object or picture of an object (or action) and naming it (e.g. bunny, ball, sleep). This is different than requesting, as they aren’t asking for anything, they’re just naming what they see. Labeling is when your baby says a word for the purpose of saying the name of the object or action they see. When a child sees a dog and says, “dog,” they are naming the object they see. If they see a picture of someone sleeping and they say, “sleep,” they are labeling the action they see.
When should my child be identifying and labeling?
We typically see a language explosion between 12-24 months of age when children add many words to their receptive (words they understand) and expressive (words they say and use) vocabularies. Receptive vocabularies are typically larger than expressive vocabularies at first. If your child is not yet saying many words expressively, make sure your child is first understanding words you would consider to be familiar.
Here are some of the top words babies understand (and often say) first:
mama, dada, milk, water, ball, bottle, baby, eat, bath, dog, cat, sleep, book, car, shoes, no, yes, hi, byebye, go, stop
How do I help make sure my baby understands familiar words?
You can do this by first modeling and labeling these items and action words frequently for your child. They need to hear words repeated many many times in context in order to understand them. Check out these verbal routines to see how you can incorporate labeling familiar words and actions into your daily routines. You can then begin to ask your child to find or show you these items and actions.
To work on understanding names of objects:
Start with just showing them two objects at a time, and slowly increase the number of other objects around to see if your child is still able to successfully find the requested item. For example, place a ball and a book on the table and ask your baby, “Get me the book!” Make sure there are no other objects around at first. Over time, try this same task with more objects around. If your baby is having difficulty finding the correct item, first try pointing or gesturing towards the one you are talking about. If your child still gets the incorrect object (or no object at all), find it for them and say, “Here’s the ___!” to help show them what you were asking them to do.
Asking, “Get me ball,” with only 2 objects in front of your baby is an easy way to test out their understanding of familiar words.
Fun and routine ways to work on understanding names of objects:
*These identifying tasks should be done after you’ve already modeled these words many times for your child in these same activities. “Many times” can mean months of saying the words in context and during routine tasks. Patience is key, don’t give up!
Play peek-a-boo: Play “Where’s mama?” and “Where’s dada?” while doing peek-a-boo behind a blanket, towel, or your hands. (Tip: First refer to yourself and/or your partner as your chosen parent names (e.g. mama, dada, mommy, papa, daddy) throughout the day while pointing at yourself/your partner)
Doing familiar puzzles: Hold up 2 of the puzzle pieces and ask, “Put the dog in the puzzle,” or to simplify your language even further to really focus on the targeted word, try saying, “Get dog!” (Tip: Do this activity after you’ve already done the same puzzle many times with your child while labeling all of the objects for them)
Getting dressed or folding laundry: Lay out your child’s clothes on the floor, and ask them, “Get your shirt,” or, “Find your shoes.” (Tip: Do this activity after you’ve already labeled your child’s clothes each time you put them on many times)
Looking in the mirror: Look in the mirror with your baby. Ask them, “Where’s your nose?” or, “Find mama’s mouth” (Tip: Do this activity after you’ve already labeled your body parts many times when looking in the mirror with baby)
Grocery shopping: Hold up two familiar fruits or vegetables and ask your baby, for example, “We need apples, where’s apple?”
Setting up for meals: Place your baby’s familiar utensils, such as their (empty) bowl and cup somewhere they can reach. Ask them, “Get your cup.”
Car and ball ramps: Have a ball and car available, ask your baby, “Get the ball,” “Put the ball on,” or “Car’s turn!”
*Remember if you’re asking your child questions, try to use the 3 statements to 1 question ratio strategy, to avoid your child feeling quizzed.
To work on understanding action words:
For action words, you can have your child show you in pictures in favorite story books, or act out actions with toys. Again, it’s important that we first label the actions ahead of time many times during routine tasks throughout the day, while looking at books, or while playing with toys. Check out these verbal routines you can use.
Ask your toddler, “Help baby drink,” to check out their understanding of familiar action words.
Fun and routine ways to work on understanding action words:
Playing baby dolls: Have a couple of accessories available, such as blanket/bed, spoon, bottle, or brush. Ask your child, “Give baby something to eat,” or “Put baby to sleep.”
Reading and looking at books: While reading the book, point to the picture that corresponds to what you're reading. Better yet, take time to just look at the pictures and label the actions you see (and objects!). When the book is familiar, ask your baby to point, such as, “Do you see her sleeping?” or “Can you find bear eating?”
Playing ball: When playing pass the ball, try doing “Ready, set….go!” and see if your baby can wait until “go” to throw the ball.
Routine tasks: Try announcing routine tasks and see if your baby responds in a way that you can tell they understand what’s coming next. For example, “Time to eat” (see if your toddler comes to the table), “Time to go to sleep” (see if your toddler goes to their room or bed, or becomes upset that it’s time to sleep if it’s something they don’t enjoy).
Greetings: When saying “hi” and “bye” to people, ask your toddler, “Wave hi/bye-bye.”
What strategies can I use if my child is having difficulty identifying familiar action words?
If your child is having difficulty understanding familiar and early developing action words after you frequently model them (by both saying and showing the action), and while checking their understanding in the above tasks, first try gesturing what you mean. For example, try doing a gesture for “sleeping” (e.g. make a pillow out of your hands to rest your head on and close your eyes), “eating” (e.g. pretend to place food in your mouth and chew), “waving hi/bye,” or miming throwing/pushing the ball when you say “go.” If your child doesn’t respond to these gestures, model the action with any objects as applicable (e.g. show your child feeding the baby doll with the spoon), or point to the action picture in the book. Be patient and don’t give up! The more you teach your child these words in a meaningful context, the better they will begin to understand these words.
How do I help teach my child to label?
The good news is that all of the work you’ve put in to help your child understand words, is also working towards them learning to say the words in order to label objects and actions (which can also help them learn to use these words for other functions, like requesting). As we discussed above, understanding words receptively is the foundation for children using words expressively to communicate.
What strategies can I use if my child is having difficulty labeling familiar objects and actions?
In addition to making sure your child first understands familiar words in order to help them learn to label familiar objects and actions, which includes frequently labeling the words for your child in context, there are a few more strategies to try.
Saying the first sound (phonemic cue), giving verbal choices, and modeling
If your child does not respond to your question (e.g. “What is this?”), try saying the first sound of the name, also called a phonemic cue. For example, if you’re asking your child to label a ball, try saying, “b” to see if this helps trigger your child’s memory for the word “ball.” If they still do not respond, try giving two verbal choices (e.g. “Ball or cup?”). Make sure to alternate if you say the correct label first or second, as many children will just repeat the last word they hear. By alternating the order you say the choices, you are teaching them to really listen to the words. If they still do not respond, label the object for them, “ball,” and see if they imitate it. You can reinforce their response by smiling, or saying something like, “Yes this is the ball!”
Using the 3 Statements for 1 Question Ratio Strategy
When you ask your child to label something for you (e.g. “What’s this?), try to use the 3 statements to 1 question strategy. This means that for every question you ask, you would also model 3 statements (e.g. 1. Time for snack, 2. I’m cutting your bananas, 3. They’re yellow and smell sweet. Q: What is this? [banana]). When we ask children too many questions in a row they can feel under pressure like they’re being quizzed. Especially when they do not know the word or understand what you are asking, this can feel frustrating for them. However, if we model the names of the objects and actions, they will learn the words they need to answer questions such as, “What is this?”
The Takeaway
Receptive vocabulary is crucial for children's language development and is the foundation for their expressive vocabulary. Parents can help their children by modeling and labeling familiar objects and actions frequently, and by incorporating identifying tasks into daily routines such as playing find the…, getting dressed, or doing puzzles, and eventually by occasionally asking your child to label familiar objects and actions. It’s important for parents to understand the different skills required for both identifying and labeling to best support their child’s language development. By building a strong foundation of receptive language skills, children will be better equipped to communicate effectively as they continue to develop their expressive language skills.
What should I do if my if my child is having difficulty identifying and labeling familiar words?
If your child is nearing 18 months of age and is having difficulty identifying and labeling familiar objects, talk to your pediatrician and get a referral for a speech-language evaluation with a speech-language pathologist. There are multiple factors involved in determining if a child requires speech-language therapy. Early intervention has been proven to have better outcomes than the outdated “wait and see” approach. Some children may benefit from an evaluation sooner than 18 months of age, so speak to your pediatrician if you are concerned.
This website and information on this blog post is provided for educational purposes only. It is not meant as medical advice, intended to replace a speech-language assessment, therapy from a speech-language pathologist, or serve as medical care for a child. It is recommended that you discuss any concerns or questions you might have with your speech-language pathologist, pediatrician, and medical team, and develop an individualized team plan specifically for your child.
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