Begin by modeling good listening skills. Show your child you are really listening to him by making eye contact, using facial expressions and asking him questions about what he said to you. All these things will show your child his conversations do matter, and he is being heard by you. It is important to a child to know he is being listened to. Pay attention to your body language also; this can say a lot about how you listen to others. Once your child sees you are listening and learns the skills of how to show good listening, he is more likely to be a better listener himself.
Games can be a great way to teach and assess listening skills. Kids are usually excited to play games, so motivating them to participate should not be an issue.
One fun game is Simon Says. Have kids stand in front of you. They can be in a line, but placement is not rigid as long as there is enough space between them so they can move around. The leader calls out different commands such as, "Simon says, touch your toes," or "Simon says, turn in a circle." This game is a good test of listening skills: If you simply say, "Jump up and down," the kids shouldn't jump because you didn't begin with "Simon Says."
Another game is Red Light, Green Light. Have the children stand in a row next to each other. The leader then says, "Green light," and the kids can walk forward until you say, "Red light," which means stop in place. Keep alternating red lights and green lights until all children are at the end of the playing space.
You can also play Hot or Cold. Choose an object in the room for your child to find. The child then walks around the room trying to guess which object it is. You will say "hot" as she moves in the direction of or gets closer to the object, and say "cold" if she turns in the opposite direction of the object. Once you say "hot," she will know she is getting closer and should start guessing objects in the general area.
As you read a story to your child, stop periodically and ask questions about what you have read so far. This is called checking for understanding. You want to make sure he can comprehend what he is hearing aloud. Another fun thing you can do with stories is change the ending or other main events. If the child is used to hearing the story, he should notice these changes right away. The same goes for skipping pages. If you purposely skip a page or certain part in the story, he should know and be aware that you forgot something. This will tell you whether or not he is listening.
Always remember to be patient when a child is talking. She is increasing her vocabulary every day, but sometimes it is difficult for her to get her message across quickly. Show her you are listening by helping her think of a word she is missing or ask her questions to help her find the right words.
It is also a great idea to encourage conversation at home as well as at school. If you regularly engage your preschooler in conversation, she will increase her vocabulary and listening skills at the same time. She will understand the value conversation, learn to respect the person who is talking and see that her input does matter.