How to Help Preschool and Kindergarten Students Share About Their Day

Do parents ever tell you they wish they knew what really happened at school?
Do you ever wonder what your preschool student did over the weekend?
Do you have preschoolers on your caseload who are minimally verbal and can’t express themselves?
Do you work with kindergarteners who struggle to complete their weekly journal?

If you answered “yes” to any of these, keep reading.

Over my 17 years as a preschool SLP and 9 years as a mom, I’ve tried—and refined—many ways to help young children share about their day. These simple, practical strategies can make it easier for preschoolers and kindergarteners to communicate with adults at home and at school. They’re easy enough for teachers, administrators, parents, and caregivers to use every day.

1) Use Open-Ended Questions
If you want a child to talk, give them the space to do it. Yes/no questions like “Did you have fun?” often lead to quick answers and end the conversation. Instead, try something like, “What was the most fun thing you did today?” or “Tell me about something you played at recess.” Open-ended questions encourage more than a one-word response and help kids share details you might not otherwise hear.

2) Use Visual Options
Pictures are powerful tools for communication. They help children organize their ideas and give them a way to respond even if they aren’t using words yet. For children with limited verbal skills, visual options allow them to point instead of speak. You can hand-draw simple images like a happy face and sad face or print out picture choices from the internet. A visual choice board of common school activities can be especially helpful for getting more specific responses.

3) Create a Routine of Questions
Choose three to five questions to ask every single day, such as “What was the best part of your day?” or “What did you need help with today?” Repeating these questions daily helps children learn what the question means and gives them time to think about answers before they see you. The more familiar the routine, the more comfortable they’ll be sharing.

4) Explain Why It’s Important
Sometimes children are more willing to share when they understand the reason behind it. Use simple language to explain that telling you about their day helps you take care of them, understand what they need, and celebrate the good things that happen. When children feel their words have a purpose, they often open up more.

Bonus Tip: Maintain Home–School Communication Between Adults
Home–school communication benefits everyone—students, parents, and teachers. Research shows that regular two-way communication strengthens parents’ involvement with their children’s learning and improves outcomes. Even short daily or weekly updates can make a difference in how much a child shares at home.

After seeing these strategies work with my preschool students and my own children, I wanted to create a tool that makes it even easier for children to communicate about their day. That’s how my Home–School Visual Communication Log was born.

This resource includes:

• Social Story – A child-friendly story that teaches why it’s important to talk about their day.

• My Day at School Log – A visual communication log completed by the student at school. They simply circle the pictures that match their day.

• My Day at Home Log – A similar log for home, used daily or weekly. It can replace or supplement journal time for students who can’t yet write about their weekend.

• School Day in Review – A quick log for teachers with space for comments and a parent question prompt (e.g., “Who came to our school today?”).

• Home Day in Review – A quick log for parents with space for comments and a teacher question prompt (e.g., “Who did you go to the park with?”).

• Supplemental Questions – A list of extra open-ended questions for talking about a child’s day.

With these tools and strategies, you can help preschoolers and kindergarteners feel confident sharing their experiences, making those “I wish I knew” moments a thing of the past.