Language Development (1)

From birth to one year old, baby will go from crying to cooing to beginning to talk.     This rapid language development is remarkable in itself and amazing to witness as a new parent.   No baby develops their language skills to a timetable but this guide should give you an idea of when and what your baby will accomplish is their first year :

One Month - Baby understands speech long before s/he can actually speak.   Babies instinctively look at your face and respond to your voice and they make discernible noises very quickly.     Crying and other sounds will tell you everything you need to know about how your baby is feeling and you'll soon learn what baby is trying to tell you.   It's important that you respond to baby's crying in appropriate ways; it's her/his first means of communication and baby needs to know that you understand and that you will respond in the right ways.   This lays the foundations for later communication by speech.

Two Months - Baby will be using cooing more, both as a response to your words and as a means to communicate.     These sounds will include vowel sounds, even some consonant sounds like "k".    Baby will grow more attentive to your words, will follow your voice and show great concentration.   It's vital to talk to your baby and encourage a response.   Always focus on baby's eyes, both when you speak and when baby responds.

Three Months - Baby will learn to recognise your voice and will turn towards you when you speak.   At this age babies begin to laugh and may even startle themselves with the noise until they realise that it's coming from them.   Baby's cooing will develop into longer sounds like "aahhhh" and "ooohhhh".   Keep speaking and singing to baby, keep the communication simple and focused on them.

Four Months - Baby will be smiling and laughing in response to the world around her/him.   Baby's sounds will take on an almost singsong quality as baby learn the patterns of speech, if not the words themselves.    Try to chat with your baby, respond to their sounds, keep up your and of the conversation and relate it to what baby is pointing at or holding.

Five Months - Baby will start to mimic sounds and repeat gestures.    S/he'll leave you in no doubt when happy or sad, both physically and vocally.   Baby will be focusing on your mouth when you talk, watching how you form the words.


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