Language delays are frustrating. My guy understands a lot, but when events move out the patterns he is used to, there's often a meltdown, and it's hard for him to express his desires and feelings, let along engage in imaginative play. He has some words, but doesn't much like combining them.

The Kanen method is built around a trio of key concepts. First is a 4-stage development trajectory, from Discoverer (very small children), Communicator (uses expressions, signs, and noises), First Words, and Combiners, each with their own developmental goals. Second are two acronyms, OWL and SPARK.

Owl is Observe, Wait, Listen. Get down to at your child's level and face-to-face, and really attentively follow what they are doing and saying. SPARK is a method to routine interactions. Start the same way, Plan your child's turn, Adjust the routine so you child can take his turn, Repeat exactly each time, and Keep the end the same. Turn taking and repetition is the basis of learning communication.

It's a firm basis, and wonderfully illustrated, but the book has little to say about children with Autism Spectrum Disorders and/or ADHD, who are likely a significant fraction of children with speech delays. And at $50, it's pricy for what it is (nothing is too much to help with my son, but man... I was hoping for something more extensive.)