February 26th, 2009

Ever wondered if there are things you could be doing to boost your child’s language skills? Many reports warn of the increasing number of children who begin school with poor language skills and it is not uncommon for parents to worry about whether their child is lagging behind . During this time, there are many things you can be coing to encourage your little one to speak up!

 

Look into my eyes

Good communication is especially important during the toddler years. Your toddler will be better equipped to socialise effectively with others if he has the ability to express himself through words and gestures. To encourage your child to talk make sure that you make eye contact. When out and about, take the time to discuss what you see with your child. Stop, look into his eyes and talk.

Celebrate

Encourage any attempts at speaking.Be patient and listen even if it takes him a while to get the whole sentence out. It takes toddlers longer to organise their thoughts into coherent speech than it does you.

 

Did you know: only 1 in 500 toddlers has severe difficulties with speech and language development

Name those Actions

Verbalise what you are doing. “Look, I’m picking up the toys.” If he gestures to his bottle say, “ Do you want a drink?” This will help model the desired language and your child will begin to realise the connection between what you are saying and the action he is making.

Listen to him

Your child needs to know you are listening when he speaks. Look interested and try to match his expression with yours.

Did you know: toddler girls generally process and use language more easily than boys. They also tend to start talking earlier.

Read, read and read some more

Watching you read and listening to stories will help increase interest in language. Children often associate stories with special times with their parents.

Chat all day long

Chat while you are together, even about the most mundane things. Toddlers learn from hearing language spoken around them. It may seem boring to you, but your little one will love to hear you describe how you are making a cup of tea or their sandwich for lunchtime.

Patience is the key

Toddlers experiment with words, be patient and rest assured that eventually the correct word will appear. Don’t be tempted to correct them every time. Rather than correcting paraphrase what they have said and use the correct word.

Sing a song

Sing along to Cd’s or just on your own, join music  and rhyming groups and show him how much fun words are. He may not know all the words straight away and may even sing the incorrect words..but it is the enjoyment of singing the words that help him develop his speech.

Use your imagination

Discuss what he is doing while he plays. Ask him questions especially during imaginative play..ask him to describe what he is pretending to do or who he is pretending to be. Dig out the soft toys or puppets, give them names and do their voices..your child will love to have conversations with them.

Watch Telly TOGETHER…yes really!!!

Don’t sit your toddler in front of the telly alone. Watch the programme together and talk about what is happening and when it is over, chat about what happened and what he can remember.

Use Baby Signing

Baby signing is a great way to help avoid the frustration a baby feels when he cannot make himself understood. Use signs for everyday actions and objects and watch how soon he’ll be able to tell you he wants milk without even saying a word. I have personally done this with my daughter and apart from being fun, I never had any tantrums caused by lack of understanding. Furthermore, I believe that her advanced level of speech as a three year old can be linked to the signing classes we attended whilst she was a baby.

If you are still concerned about your toddlers speech, it may be worth seeking the advice of a speech therapist. Statistics suggest that 1 in 15 toddlers has mild difficulties with speech and language development, whilst only 1 in 500 have severe difficulties.

In the meantime: Be patient and enjoy watching, listening and learning with your little one…and before you know it, you’ll be wishing for some peace and quiet!

 

 

---

Tags: baby signing, Communication, encouragement, experiences, language, learning, listening, speech development, toddlers

Posted in Child Development, Communication | No Comments »

Comments

Leave us your comments on this Article. Please only use one URL link back to your website or blog - more are not permitted otherwise we think you are spamming us.

You must be logged in to post a comment.