Baby talk is the way small children communicate and recreate their world by re-telling and interpreting experiences from their day
Have you ever wondered why your baby is vocal when he or she is alone? Or what they may be trying to communicate? While making sense of the goo-goo, ga-ga baby babble is challenging, according to psychologist Katherine Nelson, baby talk is the way small children communicate and recreate their world by re-telling and interpreting experiences from their day.
Nelson’s Crib Talk theory suggests that this early form of communication is crucial for developing your child’s emotional and cognitive skills. Your child will re-enact everything that happened in the day, so don’t be surprised if you hear an imitation of you.
Few baby milestones are as thrilling as your child’s first words. Your baby might babble his/her first ‘dada’ or ‘mama’ at around six to eight months.
Nelson’s Crib Talk theory suggests that this early form of communication is crucial for developing your child’s emotional and cognitive skills. Your child will re-enact everything that happened in the day, so don’t be surprised if you hear an imitation of you.
Few baby milestones are as thrilling as your child’s first words. Your baby might babble his/her first ‘dada’ or ‘mama’ at around six to eight months.
Pampers®, which researches baby and toddler milestones, believes monitoring baby’s speech helps you understand what they are trying to say and where they are in their development. They have listed an easy stage-by-stage guide to baby talk:
One month
After spending approximately nine months in a calm and relaxing womb environment, your baby will be startled by all the new noises, light and sensations. Crying, quick movements and sighs can all mean that your baby is experiencing something new. As a new parent it isn’t easy to decipher your baby’s needs but you will quickly learn when your child is hungry, tired or uncomfortable.
Four months
At this stage, baby should begin imitating the noises experienced since birth. Listen to your baby’s pitch which will drop or rise when babbling – this is a sure sign that he or she is copying the inflection in your voice. Encourage this by talking slowly and carefully to your child as much as possible.
Six to eight months
This is the age when your child may begin to crawl. Your child might start to point at toys while simultaneously babbling. This is a prime example of early communication. Some babies speak their first words at this stage, often “mama” or “dada”.
12 to 18 months
Your baby should start picking up a few more words over the next couple of months. He or she may also start mimicking conversation by babbling with pauses and ‘responding’ to questions. Although your baby’s vocabulary is still very limited, he or she understands a lot of what you say.
It is essential that you keep chatting with your baby, as this will help to boost language development.
It is essential that you keep chatting with your baby, as this will help to boost language development.
18 to 24 months
Now that your child has mastered a good number of words, he or she will start stringing them together to create simple sentences. As your child progresses, you will find it easier to communicate, which will be a welcome milestone for both of you!
According to Sister Lilian, the best way to stimulate speech development is to talk and listen to your tot, and to interact and play with them. She lists five important things to bear in mind:
- Have a one-sided running conversation with your little one from early baby days
- Use lots of expressions and gestures
- Speak, sing, play music, recite nursery rhymes and read stories to your tot as often as possible
- Be encouraging – show them you’re pleased when they speak!
- Don’t finish their sentences for them, be patient and let them find and say the words