Modelling and recasting are two effective therapeutic strategies we use at Abingdon House School to support children with speech or language difficulties. Rukhaiya Ebrahim, Therapy Lead & SaLT at our Prep School, explains how these strategies can be easily adapted and applied in home environments, empowering parents and carers to support and actively contribute to their child’s communication skills.
Why use modelling and recasting?
Modelling and recasting are evidence-based strategies that help children focus on the speech or language rules or behaviours they need to learn. These two techniques are more effective than giving instructions or asking questions. Done correctly, they offer positive, low-pressure ways of supporting language development, without interrupting or directly criticising your child’s speech.
Where and when can you use these strategies?
You can use these strategies any time throughout the day, as part of your child’s usual routine. That being said, if it is hard to remember to do so, it may be beneficial to choose a specific time where you really focus on modelling/recasting speech or language structures – for example, while on the way to school, or during dinner.
Modelling
What is modelling?
Modelling involves providing your child with a chance to hear a target speech and/or language structure without pressure for them to copy you. It is best to have a clear goal in mind (for example, irregular past tense or the ‘r’ sound) and provide lots of models of this particular structure until the child has grasped it. When modelling, use clear speech, short sentences and provide lots of repetition. Crucially, you should avoid requesting your child to copy you – don’t, for example, say ‘repeat after me’ or ‘say XYZ’.
Modelling examples
Child’s goal: to understand ‘hot’ and ‘cold’
Situation: dinner time
The adult could say:
- The oven is hot. Be careful of the hot oven. It’s so hot.
- The peas are cold. They were in the cold freezer.
- Blow on your hot soup, it’s very hot.
Child’s goal: to understand the prepositions ‘in’ and ‘on’
Situation: getting ready for school
The adult could say:
- I’m putting my keys in my bag
- Your water bottle is in your bag
- My bowl is on the table
- Your homework is on the floor
Recasting
What is recasting?
Recasting is a type of modelling used to respond to an error in pronunciation or phrasing. When you recast, you repeat the child’s sentence back to them with the error corrected, without explicitly criticising the original error. For recasting to be effective, it’s important to use it immediately after the child has spoken and to maintain the meaning of the original sentence.
Recasting examples
-
Child: I like his punny pace.
Adult: I like his funny face too. It is a very funny face. He is so funny.
-
Child: I want the wed one
Adult: You want the red one? Let me find a red lolly! Is this one red? That is a red lolly. That was a good choice picking red.
-
Child: Her goed upstairs
Adult: She went upstairs. I wonder why she went upstairs? Let’s go check why she went up there. -
Child: Let’s go to the dinner shop
Adult: You want to go to the restaurant? We can get dinner in the restaurant. What will you get in the restaurant?
Key tips for modelling and recasting effectively
Modelling and recasting are effective because they can be integrated naturally into conversation and interactions. Be sure to avoid…
- Criticising (e.g., ‘you said it wrong again!’)
- Interrupting the child (e.g., ‘stop and listen, it’s face’)
- Explicitly correcting (e.g., ‘it’s not pace, it’s face’)
- Make the child repeat (e.g., ‘say he hurt his face’)
- Exaggerating the model (e.g., ‘he hurt his F-ace’)
