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Talking Tips

It’s never too early to start talking to your child, and because babies can communicate before they start talking, they understand what you’re saying long before they are able to speak!

Talking and listening to children from the moment they’re born builds their base of receptive language abilities while developing good language and communication skills. Sometimes parents feel awkward talking to a baby who doesn’t understand or talk back. The following talking tips and tricks are made to help you enhance your child’s language base and make you feel more comfortable about talking with your baby.

Birth to 6 months

• Plan for quiet time when just the two of you can talk about the day’s events.
• Talk to others when your baby is around. Your baby will enjoy hearing others, too.
• Look your baby in the eyes, talk and smile.
• Imitate the sounds your baby makes when they coo or babble.
• If your baby tries to imitate your sound, say it again so they can hear the sound repeated.

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6 months to 12 months

• Help encourage talk and movement with games like Peek-a-Boo or Pat-a-Cake.
• Ask your baby questions like, “Where’s the ball?”
• Offer your child a toy and talk about the toy. Ex. Listen to how loud that is.Ex. Feel how soft Mr. Jabby’s arms and legs are.
• When your child points something out, talk and ask questions about that object. Ex. Yes, there’s a doggie walking on the sidewalk outside.

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12 months to 15 months

• Talk about the things you use in daily events. Ex. Can I see your orange cup?Ex. Where is your doll with the brown hair?
• When reading, take time to talk about what’s happening in the pictures.
• Offer your child praise when they name things that they see with a smile or applause.

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15 months to 18 months

• Build on what your child says. Ex. If your child points to the book shelf and says, “Buk” you could follow by saying, “Yes, I would love to read that book with you. It’s one of my favorites.”
• Talk about what you think your child wants to talk about, even if it seems silly it will encourage them to talk more.
• Give your child options during the day to help build response and conversational turns. Ex. Would you like to have milk or water with your lunch today?

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18 months to 2 years

• Let your child participate in your daily activities and/or narrate your daily activities. Ex. Would you like to help me set the table for dinner?
• Teach your child simple songs and nursery rhymes for you to sing together.
• Encourage your child to make friends and talk to other family members and friends.
• Whether playing house or school, having a tea party with toys, playing in the jungle with their stuffed animals, children love to pretend. Engage in playtime with your child.

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2 years to 3 years

• Take your child to the local library and let them pick out a book. Ask them what they like about it, and what the story is about.
• Ask open ended questions. This way the child can develop their own ideas and express their opinions.
• Teach your child their first and last name.
• Ask your child about sizes, shapes, and colors of things in their environment.

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3 years to 4 years

• Look for areas of common interest for topics that you and your child can discuss together.
• The more interactive conversation and play a child is involved in, the more a child learns. Reading books, singing, playing word games, and simply talking to your child will increase his vocabulary.
• Ask your child what kind of things they would like to do.
• Create an open environment to talk and play.

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4 years to 5 years

• Activities such as playing word games and physical activities will not only give you things to talk about, it will also help your child develop listening skills.
• Talk to your child about books or programs and videos that you watch together.
• Create a “library” corner for your child and give them a special place where they can read and imagine.

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For Toddlers

• Use a singsongy inflection in your voice to attract and hold infants’ attention.
• Imitate laughter, facial expressions, and babbles like ‘ma,’ ‘da,’ and ‘ba’ to promote your child’s responsiveness.
• Pause after speaking to give your child a chance to take a turn.
• Build on and expand what your child says (“Oh, you want juice. I have juice. I have apple juice.”) to help develop vocabulary.
• Introduce new words in context: If your child says, “That’s a big truck,” you can respond, “Yes, that is a giant dump truck.”
• Guidelines for Asking Questions:
  • Ask questions that start with who, what, where, when, why, or how, to allow for a variety of responses and further communication.
  • Pause for at least 5 seconds after asking a question. Children tend to take longer to answer than adults.
  • Limit questions that require a simple “yes” or “no” response, as these tend to restrict parent-child interaction.
  • Avoid ‘quizzing’ children with excessive questions. Children tend to ‘turn-off’ or become overwhelmed by rapid questioning.
• Walk around the house, naming items that you see.
• Sit down somewhere quiet where you and your child can discuss your day.
• Poetry, songs, and rhymes encourage children to speak more and take pleasure in language.

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For All Ages

• Gossip and Chit-Chat : Talk about your day, what you did, who you saw, what he or she said.
• Think Out Loud : While making a grocery list or planning a vacation, think out loud. Example 1: “Do we need to get salt? I wonder if there is any in the pantry. I better check.”Example 2: “I’m not sure I want to go to the beach again. I got sunburned last time. Maybe we should take a family road trip?”
• Describe whatever you see : If you’re driving in the car – talk about where you are going, what you see out the window, what route you are taking, and what you’re going to do once you get there. Example 1: “Are we all set? We need to go to the store. I have to get some new shoes. My black shoes are too tight and hurt Mama’s feet. I think I’ll take Foothills Parkway. There’s construction on Broadway. At this time of day, though, who knows? Did you see that horse? It’s on your side, Honey. It’s a pretty brown horse. Oh no, that man is going too fast. He should get a ticket. When we get to the store, let’s get some water too. I’m thirsty.”
• Describe whatever you are doing : If you’re cooking or baking – explain what you’re doing - what you’re getting out of the pantry, the cupboards – why you need it. Talk about what you’re going to do next. Example 1: “Let’s start on this strata. It’s a make-ahead, which is something Mommy likes – then I’m not rushing right before dinner. Okay – where are my eggs – oh – there they are. I need 8 eggs. That’s a lot of eggs, isn’t it? That’s good – we like protein. What do I need next? Some potatoes and flour – that’s in the pantry. I like to get all my ingredients out before I start.”
• Tailgating : Follow your baby around describing what they are doing. By commenting on things your child seems interested in or wants to communicate about—he or she is more likely to place value on those words. But don’t always ask just questions: Toddlers tend to clam up if asked a lot of questions. Example 1: “I think you have your truck! It’s a red truck. I bet that truck is very strong. It sure is a nice red truck. Oh, now you’re all done with your truck. You must be getting your cup. That’s Oskar’s cup. I think you are thirsty!”
• Talk-Ups : Turn to your baby, comment on their actions, turn away. Respond to any communication attempts. This is the start-stop of conversation. Example 1: “You’re trying to reach the table.” (pause- wait for response.) Next attempt: “You did get to the table and now you’re standing up.” (pause – wait for response).
• Sing Songs : Add music, rhymes, and songs to the day. Children love hearing rhymes and songs and will babble along with you or begin memorizing their favorites.
• Reading : Reading is a great activity to do with babies, toddlers and older children. Reading expands vocabulary, provides ample opportunities for eliciting responses from children, or responding to their initiations. Reading too and with children also creates a wonderful, warm bond and strengthens the parent-child relationship. It’s a more intimate activity that makes children feel comfortable and loved.

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Previously Featured Talking Tips

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