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mybabyian
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« Reply #15 on: June 10, 2012, 07:25:28 PM » |
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I realize that this is an older post. I am sure by now the child is either speaking or has been determined to need extra help. But, I have often looked online to find out what is normal for speech development just to see how my son is doing. I often have found people with concerns and I have very few times found any suggestions for how to help develop a child's speech. Usually people just say don't worry every child is different. I understand this answer because as parents and especially as mothers we tend to be hypersensitive about our children. It is natural for us to worry too much. With that being said, I have read of ways to help develop a child's speech that may be useful for someone reading this post. Of course, imo, if anyone has any concerns it is best to ask the child's ped because if there is a problem you will want to find out early.
Anyway, I posted this on another thread but I thought I would be relevant here:
Many of the ideas for stimulating speech I read in the book NutureShock. I think they are true not matter how many languages your child is learning. They are:
Speak in motherese. This is when parents speak slowly and vary the pitch of their voice. It is not baby talk because the actual words you are using are the same; its a change in inflection and rhythm. This is a natural thing for all parents but some do it more than others. I have found that when I really exaggerate the pitch of my voice he learns those words faster.
Use “motionese” Supposedly when you want to teach a baby a name for an object you hold the object and move it around, turning it and panning it at the same time that you use motherese to tell the baby the word.
Speak to your baby about what he is focused on. If he is looking at and holding a spoon that is what you talk to him about. Seems somewhat obvious but for example if your baby is playing with a spoon and says “ba ba ba” you might be tempted to say back “Bottle? Are you saying bottle? Do you want your bottle?”
Respond to your babies attempts at speech. When your baby makes a new sound repeat it back or touch her. You can have a conversation where she babbles and you respond back like she is actually saying something. This is highly reinforcing for the baby to talk more and the more practice she has with sounds the earlier she will learn to talk.
Don’t pressure. Just like in early learning we don’t test, don’t ask your baby to say words back to you.
Give your baby a chance to respond. Pause frequently in your speech and see if your baby will try to imitate you.
For long term vocabulary development, read lots of books and speak a lot to your child. You can read the book “Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experience of Young American Children” which talks about a study they did where they counted the words spoken to young children and how this affected there vocabulary development. The children who heard lots of language where far more advanced than the children who had limited language exposure. The author of NutureShock tries to negate this study with the suggestion above to give your baby a chance to respond. I don’t see why these have to be in conflict. You can still talk a lot to your child and let them respond to you.
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