Helping your baby boost their language development

Although you can’t rush your child’s natural development, you can help boost their language skills. Some experts say that the best thing you can do is talk to your 1-year-old continuously throughout the day. You may feel silly initially, but this constant exposure to language will help them learn.

How can you help your baby learn to talk?

1. Start baby-talk early: Research has shown that the earlier you start to introduce your baby to baby talk, the faster they can grasp and understand language. Baby talk is a childish way of framing words and sentences to make them more appealing to a baby. Babies, who are introduced to baby talk earlier in life, might have a wider vocabulary by toddler-hood.
2. Sing: Toddlers love music, and singing is a great way to build language. Teach her plenty of simple songs, especially ones that rhyme. Singing helps to stir the little one’s interest in words and sentences.
3. Encourage imitation: Let the baby copy your words and babble them out loud. It may sound gibberish, but as the baby steps into toddler-hood, their copying would become more accurate, and lay the foundation for meaningful sentence formation.
4. Read aloud: Read to them throughout the day when you’re not rushed. Talk about what you’re seeing in the pictures, if you’re using picture books.
5. Describe people and objects: Point at objects and tell the baby their names, and introduce the baby to people with their names or relation. Using nouns strengthens the object-noun association and significantly improves a baby’s vocabulary.
6. Use a language that you are most comfortable with
7. Follow their lead: If they are curious about something, they’ll want to know the words that go with it. Pay attention to what’s catching their interest, and talk about what they are seeing.