You can also turn singing into a game to keep your baby engaged and help them learn new vocabulary. For example, if you’re singing a song about a duck, hold up a toy duck and dance it around while you sing. Singing is beneficial to your child at every age. In fact, you can start singing to your baby while they are still in the womb!
You can also talk about what you’re doing as you go about your daily routine in front of the baby. For example, “Now I’m making my breakfast! Let’s see, what do I want to eat today? How about some yummy oatmeal?” Smile and make eye contact when you talk to the baby to keep them engaged. Start talking to your baby as soon as they’re born. They’ll even hear you if you speak to them in the womb.
Look for “touch and feel” books that encourage your baby to use all their senses, like the classic board book Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt. Talk to your baby not only about what they can see on the page, but what they can feel or hear when they interact with the book. For example, “Do you see the bunny? Feel how soft it is!”
For example, you might say, “Here comes your spoon, with some delicious food on it!” or “Do you want your blanket? Here’s your nice, warm blanket. ” You can also describe actions that your baby uses regularly. For example, hold your baby’s hand and help them stroke your cat’s fur while saying, “Pet the cat!” You can start doing this from the moment your baby is born. You may not hear them repeat any of the words you use until they’re around a year old, but they’ll likely start learning what the words mean much earlier than that. [6] X Research source
Try reacting to your baby’s noises as though they are actually saying something to you. For example, “‘Ba ba ba,’ you say? Is that so? Well, I agree!” You may start to hear your baby cooing and making deliberate sounds (other than crying) by the time they’re 2-3 months old. Most babies begin babbling by the time they’re 6 months old. [8] X Research source
For example, if you say, “Look at the cat,” your baby may respond with “Tat. ” Say, “Cat! Cat! That’s right!” Some babies might start to imitate sounds you make as early as 3-6 months of age, although others won’t begin to do this until they’re closer to a year old.
Keep encouraging your baby to use their new vocabulary. Ask them to say the word, and always respond when they use it on their own. For example, if your baby says “baba” for bottle, respond with, “Oh, you want your bottle?” and hold up the bottle. Most babies first start saying words when they’re around a year old, but some might begin doing so a little earlier or a little later.
You don’t have to be totally silent during your baby’s quiet time—you can still sing, talk, and respond to your baby’s noises. Just keep outside noises to a minimum. Quiet time is important for your baby or child at every age.
If you do have concerns about your baby’s language skills or overall development, talk to your pediatrician. Learning to speak should be a positive experience for your baby. Don’t act frustrated with them if they aren’t able to produce or respond to words and sounds the way you want them to.
When you’re singing a familiar song with your child, you might leave out a word and let your child fill it in. For example, you could sing, “Twinkle, twinkle, little—” and let your child respond with “Star!” Teach your child nursery rhymes or clapping games, like Patty-Cake. You can start playing games like these with your child when they’re still a baby, but they might not start participating until they’re a little older (e. g. , around 18 months to 2 years).
For example, “Which shirt do you want to wear today?” or “Look at all the doggies in this picture. What are they doing?” Give your child a chance to answer the question. If they don’t respond, try making suggestions. For example, “I think those dogs are driving cars! Where do you think they’re going?” While you can start asking your child questions like these at any age, they might not start answering until they’re around 2 or 3 years old.
For example, if your child says, “Want apple,” you can respond by saying something like, “Oh, you want to eat this juicy green apple, don’t you!” This is a great strategy to try when your child first starts using words or phrases, usually between the ages of 12 and 15 months. You can keep doing it as they get a little older, however.
For example, if your toddler runs up to you with a ball and says, “Look, ball!” Say, “Oh, wow, that is a nice ball! What color is your ball?” Start doing this as soon as your child begins to use words. Showing an interest in what they have to say will make the learning process more fun right from the start.
For example, “Please give me your cup,” or “Can you show me your nose?” Model the kinds of language you want your child to use. For example, when you make a request, say “Please. ” If your child responds and does what you ask, say, “Thank you!” Most children start to understand simple instructions by the time they’re around 12-17 months old. [18] X Research source
Narrate the action and do voices for the different characters as you play. For example, “Oh no, the monster captured the prince and took him to his cave! He’s saying, ‘Rargh, I’m going to eat you, prince. ’ We’d better rescue him!” You can start encouraging pretend play as soon as your baby starts to speak or even earlier. They may not contribute much to the conversation until they’re a little older (around 2 years), though.
You may be able to get conversations going by encouraging your child to talk about things they’re interested in. For example, “Why don’t you tell Uncle William about your dragon book?” This will become easier and more fun for your child as they get old enough to put together simple sentences. For most children, that starts to happen at around 2-3 years of age.
Don’t criticize or scold your child if they make a mistake while learning to talk. Instead, focus on modeling the kind of speech you want them to use. Avoid pressuring your child into speaking when they don’t want to.
Your child’s pediatrician will probably ask you about their speech during regular well-child checkups. They may recommend an evaluation if your child isn’t meeting certain milestones. For example, they may suspect a speech delay if your child doesn’t respond to their name by about 12 months or hasn’t started using any words by the time they’re 15 months old.
Possible treatments for childhood hearing loss include hearing aids, surgical treatments (such as cochlear implants), and supportive therapies such as listening therapy or lip reading.
Speech delays can have many causes and come in different forms. For example, your child may have trouble articulating speech because of an issue with the structure of their mouth. In other cases, the speech centers in your child’s brain may work differently from the way other people’s do.
