What are exercises to stimulate language?

Structured activities designed to improve language skills—vocabulary, naming, comprehension, expression, reading and writing—used in neurorehabilitation to practice communication and daily living tasks.

Which cognitive functions do language stimulation exercises train?

They train vocabulary, naming, comprehension, expression, reading, semantic memory, working memory, reasoning, planning, graphomotor skills, visuoconstructive praxis and hemineglect processing.

Can exercises to stimulate language help people with aphasia?

Yes. These exercises target impaired modalities (speech production, auditory and reading comprehension) and can be adapted by severity to support communication and daily functioning in aphasia rehabilitation.

Are language stimulation exercises suitable for adults and children?

Many exercises are suitable for both ages; some are child-focused (e.g., tracing lines for graphomotor development) while others offer versions and difficulty adjustments for adults.

How are difficulty and presentation adapted in language exercises?

Difficulty is adapted via graded levels and phases, multimodal presentation (auditory or written), and paper or digital formats to match cognitive profile and rehabilitation goals.

Which specific exercises can professionals use to stimulate language?

Examples include Hangman, Naming with phonological cues, True or False (Auditory), Describing Objects' Positions, Word Scramble, Converting Numbers into Words, Tracing Lines, Step by Step, Making Words, and Matching Adjectives.

10 exercises to stimulate language

In this article we propose 10 exercises to stimulate language that neurorehabilitation professionals can use in their intervention.

Language is one of the main cognitive functions that allows people to formulate, communicate and understand ideas through sounds, symbols and/or systems of gestures. In other words, “language is the result of a complex nervous activity that allows interindividual communication of psychic states through the materialization of multimodal signs that symbolize these states according to a convention specific to a linguistic community” (Lecours et al., 1979).

Thus, language disorders appear when language development does not follow the expected pattern or when significant deficits occur in some of its aspects. When there is total or partial impairment of language it is generally called aphasia. We already discussed aphasias in a previous post.

Can you imagine not being able to say what you think? Or not being able to understand anything others say? Or not being able to read a sign because you mix up the letters? Language problems translate into limitations in the daily life of people with these disorders.

At NeuronUP we have numerous exercises to stimulate language. We show some examples below:

10 Exercises to Stimulate Language for Adults and Children

1. Hangman

What does it involve?

This game for adults consists of guessing the hidden words by choosing the letters that form them one by one.

NeuronUP Activities - Hangman — NeuronUP activity *Hangman*

What does this activity train?

Vocabulary,
working memory.

Play by levels

It has six phases. In the simplest levels, the user will have fewer points to remember; however, as they increase levels the points will multiply.

2. Naming objects with phonological cues

What does it involve?

It consists, as the name suggests, of naming objects with the help of phonological cues.

We give you an example of an advanced level:

exercises to stimulate language — NeuronUP activity *Naming objects with phonological cues*

What does this activity train?

This activity trains naming.

3. True or False (Auditory)

What does it involve?

This exercise to stimulate language consists of deciding whether a series of sentences are true or false in relation to the situation shown on the screen.

In NeuronUP this activity has two modes: one in which sentences are presented verbally and another in which they appear written, since not all patients have the same type of deficit.

In the following case, the sentences would be presented verbally and the user should listen and indicate whether they are true or false.

NeuronUP Activities - True or False — NeuronUP activity *True or False (Auditory)*

What does this activity train?

The main cognitive function trained is comprehension.

4. Describing Objects´s Positions

If what we want is to work on expression, NeuronUP presents Describing Objects´s Positions.

What does it involve?

This activity is available in paper format and in it the user must indicate the position of various objects located in everyday scenarios.

NeuronUP Activities - Describing Objects Positions - Paper — NeuronUP activity Describing Objects´s Positions

What does this activity train?

This activity to stimulate language trains expression.

5. Word Scramble

What does it involve?

This exercise to stimulate language consists of ordering the letters that appear to form a word.

NeuronUP Activities - Word Scramble — NeuronUP exercise Word Scramble

Do you know what the word is? A hint: it starts with the letter “B”.

What does this activity train?

It trains:

Vocabulary,
working memory.

6. Converting Numbers into Words

What does it involve?

The following activity we propose to stimulate language has to do with numbers. It consists of matching numbers with their corresponding names.

NeuronUP Activities - Converting Numbers into Words — NeuronUP activity *Converting Numbers into Words*

What does this activity train?

This exercise trains:

Reading,
semantic memory,
reasoning.

7. Tracing Lines

What does it involve?

If the previous activity is focused on reading, this exercise is aimed at having children work on Graphomotor Skills with the goal that later they can move on to exercises with letters.

NeuronUP Activities - Tracing Lines - Paper — NeuronUP activity Tracing Lines

What does this activity train?

Graphomotor Skills,
visuoconstructive praxis.

8. Step by Step

What does it involve?

An activity to work on comprehension with children is Step by Step. It consists of children ordering the different steps necessary to carry out an activity.

NeuronUP Activities - Step by Step (text-only) — NeuronUP activity *Step by Step*

This activity is also available for adults.

What does this activity train?

Reasoning,
planning,
comprehension.

9. Making Words

What does it involve?

Another exercise to stimulate language is Making Words. This activity consists of forming words by ordering fragments, syllables or single letters.