How to Help Your Toddler Develop Language Skills?
Language skills - understanding what others are saying and responding, are essential in life. Some toddlers might start blabbing out on their own, while others may need a little help to develop their communication skills to their full potential.
Most children say their first distinct words between 12 and 18 months, and it is the period where they progress quickly and learn new words almost every day.
Let's take a look at what you can do to help your toddler learn to communicate.
Talk as Much as Possible
You may notice your child makes sounds when there is a group of people talking and laughing loudly. It may look as if he wants to be part of the conversation. That is a clear sign your child seeks communication.
Therefore, when you are around your child, talk as much as possible. Talk directly to your child, use simple language and short sentences.
Explain every activity you are doing together - undressing, bathing and putting on lotion, and going to sleep. For example, you can say: "Now we are getting ready for bath time." During the bath, say something like: "Let's check the water" and "Time to wash away the soap" and so on.
The more words the baby hears, the higher the chances are that the baby will try to repeat them or respond.
Read
If you aren't inspired to tell stories from your head, you can pick a book and read it aloud. Not only will reading increase the amount of time you spend saying words around your baby, but it can also help your child develop reading habits from an early age.
Try to break the silence as often as possible. You can download some reading apps and always have age-appropriate stories with you. If you are waiting for an appointment at the pediatrician, you can read a quick story or fill in the long ride with a fairytale.
While reading, try to be as expressive as possible, change voice and intonation, make pauses and laugh to keep your toddler's attention.
Reduce the Exposure to TV, Tablet or Smartphone
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), children younger than two should be limited to their TV content exposure. More research is needed about the effect of smartphones and tablets on toddlers, but parents around the world notice children are less talkative than ever before.
There aren't scientific proofs that smartphones and tablets degrade toddlers' language skills so far. But, you should reduce the time your baby spends watching online content. Instead of pressing play on Youtube, you can explain what the song is about and fill in the silence with your voice.
Babies respond better to their parent's voices and not the prerecorded voices they hear from the screen.
Repeat Words and Phrases
Repetition is an important factor that may help your baby break the silence and start talking. Be persistent and repeat every day's phrases in the same manner. You can also find some short songs to sing to your baby every day, a couple of times per day.
There are plenty of books with repetition phrases, intended to support language skill development in a toddler.
Repeat the short phrases loud and clear so the baby can memorize them.
Take Turns
To help your child develop language skills, focus, and provide them their turn for talking. You will probably talk for the majority of the time and the response from your baby may start with eye contact, hand movement, one word.
It may require you to be patient and wait for your child to respond, but after some time, your child will learn the basic concept of communication. For example, while feeding your baby, stop for a second and say: Do you want more? Wait for the baby to open their mouth or start grabbing your hand as an expression that they want more food.
Ultimately, your baby will actively participate in two-way communication, as he becomes able to verbalize their needs and thoughts.
Don't Be Too Pushy
If your child has learned some phrases, don't keep asking them to repeat them! For example, if they know which sounds the cat makes, don't ask the same question multiple times per day.
You can say something like: "Who says meow meow" and wait for the response. Even if the baby doesn't say cat, they will show signs of understanding, which is a step further to verbalizing answers.
How do you practice communicating with your child? If you have more tips, please share them in the comment section! Don't forget to share the article with other parents to help them learn how to make their babies communicate!
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