How to stop Dd shouting all the time?

[wombatcheese]

My dd, aged 5.5, shouts much of the time. When she's playing with her brother and excited instead of a normal volume talk everything seems to come out as a shout.
We've had her hearing checked, which was ok. We repeatedly tell her to just talk with little effect. It appears to have become a habit which she can't break. Neither her father not I shout.
Any ideas to get her to just talk at normal volume? I've thought of a Star chart to reward normal talking, but she shouts all the time.
Also, has anyone been through similar with their DC?

Yes, we call our DS Yellytubby. In fact he shouts so much he has nodules on his vocal chords.

No idea how you stop it though (apart from making them go and play in the garden so you can't here them ).

Hi Jilted, thanks for your reply. I'm trying hard to praise normal talking voice, bit not given much opportunity to!

We used to say, "Indoor voice!" from 2-17 years! Not just you OP.

Yes!! What Donkeys says... We used "Indoor voice" and said if you're going to shout you have to go outside to do that, and then do it a few times. They do learn!!

It is reassuring to know I'm not alone. I'm going a bit crazy endlessly saying 'talking voice only', trying not to raise my voice whilst doing so!

Has she been assessed for ADHD? Is she hyper in other ways?

My DS who is 5.5 as well, is exactly the same - absolutely no volume control! We can repeat ourselves until we are blue in the face and it makes no difference! The only thing that helps here is to shout everything to him really loudly e.g. "DS DO YOU WANT SOME THING TO DRINK", and then point out that that is what it is like for us! He then generally spends 2 minutes whispering, followed by 10 minutes 'indoor voice', followed by the rest of the day shouting . So I feel your pain!

Would a visual help? When she’s talking to you, or rather shouting at you(!), hold up a laminated card with “indoor voice” and image. Or use a hand signal (finger on lips and/or palm-down gesture)?

My bro and SIL used a card with my niece at mealtimes, not so much because she was loud but because she just kept on talking and no-one else could speak. It did help. Might save your own voice, at least!

Make her a circular badge (thin card) and tape a safety/nappy pin to the back. Cut out a smaller circle and attach with one of those gold coloured pin things that you can bend the prongs back to hold the two circles one on top of the other. (Sorry I don't know what they are called, but arty/crafty types will know).

Colour the smaller circle in red, write the "volume control levels around the outside on the big circle,. This is her volume control.

When you want her to talk quietly ask her to turn her volume control down.

I have known this to work in similar circumstances.

Obviously, you pin the badge to her clothing.

Kleinzeit and 3littlefrogs, love those ideas.