Teaching WHAT in Colourful Semantics helps learners add the object involved in an action.
For some learners, naming an object is much easier than understanding how that object fits within a sentence. A learner may confidently identify an apple, a cup or a favourite toy but still need support to connect it with WHO is involved and WHAT they are DOING.
In my classroom, I begin with real objects, familiar routines and meaningful experiences rather than expecting learners to build three-part sentences from picture cards. As understanding develops, I introduce photographs, symbols and more structured sentence-building activities.
Learners do not need to completely master the earlier Colourful Semantics layers before encountering WHAT. I consider their familiarity with WHO and WHAT DOING and adjust the support according to the individual learner.
In this guide, I will share how I teach the WHAT layer, why identifying the object within a message can be challenging for some learners, and the practical approaches I use in my classroom.
Understanding the WHAT Layer in Colourful Semantics
In Colourful Semantics, the green WHAT layer focuses on the person, object or thing involved in the action. It answers the question:
WHAT is involved?
When WHO, WHAT DOING and WHAT are brought together, the learner can begin to communicate a more detailed message. For example:
The boy + is eating + an apple.
The girl + is painting + a picture.
The dog + is chasing + a ball.
For some learners, I explore the WHAT layer through real objects and familiar experiences before expecting them to identify objects within pictures or build complete sentences. The aim is not simply to teach more vocabulary. It is to help the learner notice how the object contributes to the meaning of the message.
The green WHAT cue can provide a consistent visual reference as learners encounter different objects, actions and contexts. As understanding develops, WHAT can be connected with the earlier Colourful Semantics layers to support increasingly detailed communication.
Why Identifying WHAT Can Be Challenging for Some Learners
Identifying WHAT can involve more than recognising or naming an object. A learner may confidently identify an apple, cup or favourite toy but still need support to understand how that object relates to the person and action within a message.
The visual context can also affect the task. An object may be easy to recognise when presented alone but harder to notice within a busy scene or when several objects are present. The same object may also look different across real experiences, photographs, symbols and illustrations.
For some learners, the language demand increases as more information is added. Combining WHO, WHAT DOING and WHAT requires the learner to notice and organise several parts of a message, even when they understand each element separately.
This is why I look beyond whether a learner can correctly name a WHAT card. I consider whether they understand which object is relevant to the action and are beginning to connect that information within a meaningful message.
Preparing to Teach the WHAT Layer
Before I begin a structured WHAT activity, I think about which objects are already familiar and meaningful to the learner. Favourite foods, toys, classroom materials and objects connected to a learner’s interests can provide a clearer starting point than working through a predetermined vocabulary list.
Whenever possible, I begin with real objects. A learner can hold an apple, use a paintbrush or build with blocks before being expected to recognise the same object in a photograph, symbol or illustration. These experiences help give the object meaning beyond its visual representation.
I also consider how much information the learner is being asked to process. One learner may benefit from choosing between two clearly different objects, while another may be ready to identify WHAT within a wider range of choices or a complete scene.
The green WHAT colour provides a consistent visual reference, but the colour itself does not teach the concept. I use it alongside meaningful objects, actions and the repeated WHAT question so that the learner can begin to notice which object is involved in the message.
Teaching WHAT Through Real Objects and Everyday Experiences
I teach the WHAT layer throughout the school day rather than limiting it to a dedicated Colourful Semantics activity. Everyday routines naturally involve objects, giving learners repeated opportunities to hear how WHAT fits within a meaningful message.
During snack time, I might model, “Sophie is eating an apple.” During art, I might say, “Ella is using the paintbrush,” and during construction play, “Noah is building a tower.” I am not stopping the activity to test the learner or repeatedly asking, “What?” Instead, I model the complete message while the object and action are happening.
I also use learners’ interests wherever possible. Favourite characters, toys, sensory materials and activities can create meaningful reasons to notice and communicate about objects. If a learner is interested in dinosaurs, for example, I can model different objects within their play rather than introducing unrelated vocabulary simply because it appears in a teaching resource.
One approach I find particularly useful is keeping most of the message the same while changing the WHAT. “The boy is eating an apple” might become “The boy is eating a banana.” This helps make the role of the object more visible without changing every part of the sentence at once.
As learners begin to understand WHAT through real experiences, I gradually introduce photographs, symbols and structured activities. These provide another way to explore the same concept, rather than replacing the meaningful experiences that gave the language context in the first place.
What Teaching the WHAT Layer Looks Like in My Classroom
In my specialist classroom, teaching the WHAT layer rarely looks the same for every learner. I might be working on the same underlying concept across the class, but the way each learner accesses it can be very different.
One learner might explore two real objects while I model the complete message. Another might choose the relevant object from photographs, match an object to an action or use the green WHAT cue within a structured sentence-building activity. A learner who is further along may begin adding WHAT independently through speech, writing or their communication system.
I also adjust how much of the sentence the learner is expected to manage. For one learner, the focus may simply be noticing or selecting the object involved. Another may be ready to connect WHAT with WHAT DOING, while another is beginning to combine WHO, WHAT DOING and WHAT more independently.
What matters to me is not whether everyone completes the same activity. I am looking at what each learner understands, how they communicate that understanding and what level of support will help them move forward.
Recognising Different Ways of Responding
Learners may show their understanding of the WHAT layer in different ways. A spoken answer is only one possible response.
A learner might look towards or reach for the relevant object, match an object to a photograph, point to a symbol, select from their communication system or add the WHAT information through writing. Some learners may demonstrate understanding consistently before they begin including the object independently within a complete sentence.
I pay attention to these responses because they help me understand what the learner already knows and what support may be useful next. If a learner can select the correct object but is not yet combining it with WHO and WHAT DOING, I can continue modelling the complete message without treating their current response as incorrect.
The aim is not to require every learner to say a three-part sentence. It is to support understanding and meaningful communication while recognising the different ways learners may show what they know.
How to Support Learners Who Are Finding the WHAT Layer Difficult
When a learner is finding the WHAT layer difficult, I try to identify which part of the task is creating the difficulty rather than simply providing more practice.
Some learners may not yet recognise the object, particularly when it is unfamiliar or shown in a photograph, symbol or busy scene. In this situation, I return to real objects and meaningful experiences before gradually reintroducing visual representations.
Other learners can identify the object but do not yet connect it with the action. I might model a small number of clear examples, such as “The boy is eating an apple” and “The boy is eating a banana,” so that the role of WHAT becomes easier to notice.
If a learner understands the object but finds combining WHO, WHAT DOING and WHAT difficult, I reduce the overall demand. This might mean offering fewer choices, modelling the complete message or temporarily focusing on the action and object before bringing the other information back in.
I also consider whether the learner is showing understanding in a way I have not initially recognised. Looking towards, reaching for, matching or selecting an object can all provide useful information about what they understand.
Most importantly, I do not respond to difficulty by increasing pressure. I adjust the task, return to meaningful experiences and give the learner more opportunities to notice how objects contribute to communication.
A Note About Gestalt Language Processors
For Gestalt Language Processors, I would be cautious about introducing the WHAT layer simply because a learner uses longer scripts or gestalts that include objects. A learner may use a phrase containing an object without yet being ready to analyse and rebuild that language using individual Colourful Semantics components.
As learners move into the later stages of Natural Language Acquisition and begin generating more flexible, self-generated language, Colourful Semantics may become a useful visual support. At this stage, the green WHAT layer can help make the object within a message more visible as learners explore how different parts of a sentence work together.
As always, I consider the individual learner’s language profile and work alongside their speech and language therapist where appropriate. I would not use Colourful Semantics to break down or correct meaningful gestalts simply to fit them into a colour-coded sentence structure.
Evidence-Informed Practice
The evidence base for Colourful Semantics is still relatively small, and I think it is important to be clear about this. A clinical investigation involving six children with language difficulties reported improvements in measures of information, grammar and sentence length during the intervention period, although the researchers highlighted the need for larger studies.
Colourful Semantics uses colour coding to make the meaning and structure of sentences more visible. This is consistent with wider evidence-informed approaches to sentence-level language intervention that use explicit teaching and visual or metalinguistic supports to help learners notice how sentence structures work.
Research into contextualised language intervention also supports connecting language teaching with meaningful activities and experiences. In my classroom, this means using the green WHAT layer to make the object within a message visible while continuing to connect language with real objects, familiar routines and purposeful communication.
For me, the visual framework and the meaningful context work together. The colour can help draw attention to WHAT, but understanding develops through repeated opportunities to connect objects with actions and communication.
Further Reading
Bolderson, S., Dosanjh, C., Milligan, C., Pring, T. & Chiat, S. (2011). Colourful Semantics: A clinical investigation. Child Language Teaching and Therapy, 27(3), 344–353.
Balthazar, C. H., Ebbels, S. & Zwitserlood, R. (2020). Explicit grammatical intervention for developmental language disorder: Three approaches. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 51(2), 226–246.
Gillam, S. L., Gillam, R. B. & Reece, K. (2012). Language outcomes of contextualized and decontextualized language intervention: Results of an early efficacy study. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 43(3), 276–291.
What Comes After the WHAT Layer?
Once learners are beginning to combine WHO, WHAT DOING and WHAT, the WHERE layer can add another useful piece of information by showing where an action is happening.
For example, “The girl is reading a book” might become “The girl is reading a book in the library.” The aim is not simply to make the sentence longer, but to help the learner recognise when location adds useful meaning to their communication.
I do not wait for complete mastery of WHAT before a learner encounters WHERE. Instead, I consider how confidently they are connecting people, actions and objects and introduce the next layer with the level of support they need.
As learners move forward, I continue revisiting the earlier layers across different activities and contexts. Colourful Semantics is most useful when learners can use the framework flexibly rather than progressing through the colours as a fixed sequence of completed stages.
My guide to teaching WHERE in Colourful Semantics explores how I introduce location through familiar places, movement and everyday experiences before moving into more structured sentence building.
Explore the WHAT Colourful Semantics Resource
If you are looking for structured visual activities to support the WHAT layer, you can explore my Colourful Semantics WHAT resource alongside the teaching approach in this guide.
The activities provide opportunities to practise identifying the object involved using visual support, while allowing you to adapt the level of choice and support according to the individual learner.
Final Thoughts
Teaching the WHAT layer is about more than adding another colour to a sentence. It is about helping learners notice how objects contribute to meaning and giving them another way to communicate more clearly.
In my classroom, the most useful teaching often happens during ordinary moments. Eating a favourite snack, building with blocks, painting a picture or playing with a much-loved toy can all create meaningful opportunities to connect people, actions and objects.
I have learned not to measure progress by how quickly a learner can produce a three-part sentence. Some learners may show their understanding by selecting an object, using a symbol or adding WHAT through their own communication system before they begin combining all three layers independently.
Colourful Semantics provides a visual framework, but the colours are only useful when they support understanding and meaningful communication. By beginning with experiences that matter to the learner, recognising different ways of responding and adjusting support when needed, we can help learners explore how objects add useful information to what they want to communicate.
