Gingerbread House Language Activity Ideas for Parents

A fun holiday activity to build vocabulary and grow early language skills!



Building a gingerbread house can be more than a fun holiday tradition—it’s can be a powerful opportunity to support your young child’s speech and language development. With a little intention, this hands-on activity can encourage new vocabulary, turn-taking, following directions, and expressive language skills, all while enjoying a fun, hands-on activity. Below are examples of phrases, vocabulary, that you can use to turn gingerbread house decorating into a playful language-building experience at home.

Nouns (People, Places, or Things)

Use these words during gingerbread building so your child learns object names.

Noun Examples:

house • cookie • frosting • candy (gumdrops) • door • roof • walls • lights • wreath • gingerbread •

windows • sprinkles • ornament

Examples of how to model new learned nouns:

“I see the roof.”

“You have the cookie.”

“Let’s add windows.”

Verbs (Action Words)

These tell what you and your child are doing while building.

Verb Examples:

put • make • build • stay • count • having • decorating • sticking • dripping

Examples of how to model new learned verbs (simple ideas):

"Put frosting on top"

"Let's count - 1, 2, 3 candies!"

"Let's build!"

Examples of how to model new learned verbs (complex ideas):

“We are making a gingerbread house.”

“Let’s build the house.”

“I want to decorate the door.”

“I am decorating the roof.”

“The frosting is sticking to my hand.”

Modifiers (Describing Words)

Use descriptive words to help your child talk about what they see and feel.

Modifier Examples:

sticky • colorful • hard • big • little • small • tasty • yummy • fun

Examples of how to model new learned modifiers:

“The frosting is sticky.”

"The lights are colorful.”

"The house is big.”

"Mmmm, yummy candy.”

Expansion & Extension Strategies

Expansion: Repeat what your child says and add grammar to make the phrase fuller. (TIP: Use short, complete sentences.)

Extension: Add more information and details to help your child learn longer ideas.

Expansion Examples:

• Child: “candy” → Parent: “Mmm, it's a yummy candy.”
• Child: “roof” → Parent: “The roof is big.”
• Child: “house” → Parent: “It's a gingerbread house.”
• Child: “sticky” → Parent: “The frosting is sticky.”

Extension Examples:

• Child: “house cookie”
• Parent: “You want to build a big cookie house. Let’s build it.”
• Child: “candy on”
• Parent: “Yes! You’re putting candy on the roof to make it colorful.”
• Child: “door”
• Parent: “You want the door! Let’s put the red door on the front of the house.”
• Child: “sticky frosting”
• Parent: “The frosting is sticky because it helps the candy stay on.”
  

Language Enhancing Tips!

• Follow your child's lead.
• Talk about what you see, feel, and do.
• Repeat new words often.
• Pause (5-10 seconds) to give your child time to respond!
• Have fun!