Mirror Talk

In their book, Powerful Interactions: How to Connect with Children to Extend their Learning, authors Amy Laura Dombro, Judy Jablon, and Charlotte Stetson write about the difficulty some teachers feel in knowing how to talk to children in the most effective ways. They quote one teacher who remarks that "It's so hard to break the habit of saying stuff like, 'You're doing a great job cleaning up, David.'"

The authors recommend that teachers consider using a strategy called mirror talk.

"Using mirror talk with a child," they write, "means simply reflecting back to the child what you see or hear him doing or saying. Consider what you could have said [in the situation with David]. You observe David cleaning up in the dramatic play area. Instead of general praise, you might say, 'You're making everything neat and tidy in here, David'...Mirror talk supports children's learning because it gives them specific, detailed information about what they are doing and saying...That, in turn, encourages them to repeat, practice, and build on the behaviors."

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