WH Questions for Speech Therapy: How to Target

How to Target WH Questions: Where do I Start?

If you are a speech-language pathologist (SLP) like us, you are probably familiar with targeting WH questions in therapy (who, what, when, when, and why). WH questions are some of the most important linguistic areas to target because of their use and frequency in our day-to-day lives. The ability to ask and answer WH questions effectively allows us to be active participants in conversations and gain information. Many individuals with language disorders require explicit instruction to improve their ability to ask and answer WH questions. So where do we begin?

I begin with who, where, and what questions because they are usually easier for the individual to learn. When we are answering questions about people (who), places (where), and things/actions (what); oftentimes, we can label and find concrete examples of what is being talked about. For example, “Who is this?” is usually easier to answer than, “Why are they happy?” When and why questions tend to elicit more abstract answers and can require inferencing.

Targeting WH Questions: Considerations

Understanding WH questions: a receptive language skill

First, how well does the individual understand the WH word/question? It is important for the individual to have receptive knowledge of what the WH question means before they can properly use it.

If the individual you are working with cannot identify the differences between different types of WH questions, then there should not be an expectation to be using them when asking questions.

A receptive treatment goal example may look like… [client] will identify (i.e., point to) the correct photo/symbol in response to a “who” question, during a structured drill activity, with 80% accuracy.

Using WH questions: an expressive language skill

Once the individual has developed an understanding of the WH word/question, they will be better prepared to express or use the word themselves when engaging with others.

An expressive treatment goal example may look like… [client] will respond to a variety of “who” questions, during a conversational task, with 80% accuracy.

Communication profile of user

Is the individual you are working with a reader or non-reader? This may change the type of materials and visuals you use to teach. If I am working with someone who is a pretty fluent reader, I try to limit visuals unless it is during initial instruction.

Is the individual you are working with an AAC user? Consider using visuals for your instruction consistent with the visuals or symbols in their device or following the color key used in their AAC system (e.g., people/pronouns in yellow).

Is the individual you are working with a child, teen, or adult? For example, if you are working with a young adult it may be appropriate to incorporate questions relating to vocational concepts and/or activities of daily living (e.g., “Where do you go for your internship?”).

Does the individual you are working with already have a foundation/understanding of some WH questions already? Assess their current knowledge and work from there.

Targeting WH Questions: Approach

Depending on the current understanding/use and skill level of WH questions, your starting point may be different. Remember, it is key that your client understands the WH word/question before there is an expectation to use it/respond accordingly.

If I am starting from the ground up with WH instruction, this is usually the skill hierarchy I begin with:

Who, where, & what (non or emerging readers)

Understanding the words who, where, and what in isolation. Teaching the individual that who corresponds to people, where corresponds to a place/location, and what usually corresponds to a thing or action.

Example: “Show me who” → therapist shows the individual a visual field with a person, place, and a thing OR sorting activity → therapist makes 3 columns and has the individual sort pictures of people, places, and things into separate columns

Understanding the words who, where, and what in basic questions with familiar items and people.

Example: “Who lives at home? [show me]” → therapist shows the individual a visual field with a person (e.g., parent), place, and thing

Responding to basic WH questions (e.g., “Who/where/what is it?”) relating to their immediate vicinity or a picture.

Example: “Who is it?” → therapist points to a familiar teacher; “Where is it?” —> therapist shows the individual a picture of their school; “What is it?” → therapist holds up a familiar object (e.g., pencil)*

*Note: oftentimes, the question “What is it?” is introduced earlier on because of its frequent use when labeling. It is common for an individual to associate this question with labeling something and not properly understand the function of the word “what” within a variety of questions.

Responding to personally-related basic WH questions (who, where, what) without visual support.

Example: “Where do you go to school?”; “Who is your teacher?”; “What do you eat for lunch?”

When & why

When questions require an understanding of conditional concepts like time. Instruction with when questions can greatly vary depending on the individual. For someone younger, I may start with concepts like morning, afternoon, and night, and go from there. Similar to who, where, and what questions; I usually begin with some sort of receptive task before I move on to an expressive task.

Example: “When do you eat breakfast [show me]?” → therapist shows the individual a visual field of pictures depicting the morning, afternoon, and nighttime.

Why questions (I find) can be the most abstract of them all! However, it is greatly important for inferencing and building higher level language skills. When I begin instruction, I try to give my client an understanding of the “expectation” of a why question; that a why question is looking for a reason and we usually begin our response with “because _____.” I will usually try to focus on concrete why responses and go from there.

Example: “Why was the boy late for school?” → the individual reads a short passage that explicitly states the answer so they can go back and look for it. Therapist provides 3 to 4 multiple choice options to choose from. For non-readers, you can show the client a picture scene that illustrates this scenario.

It is important to note that there is not a “one-size-fits-all” to any therapy approach; however, based on experience, this has been a great guiding hierarchy of skills for my clients who are working on these areas