From birth
to one year your
baby will go from
crying to cooing to
talking. Those are
amazing milestones
for your baby to
accomplishment in
such a short period
of time as he
develops his speech
and language skills.
Keep in mind that
these stages of your
baby’s development
are broad and that
no baby will fall
exactly within the
timeframe of these
expected milestones.
One month: Your
baby will understand
speech long before
he begins to speak.
From birth he will
look at your face
and listen to your
voice. He will make
a small range of
noises that will
start to mean
something to you,
such as his way of
exhibiting hunger or
pain. These noises
will include crying
and certain sounds
that your baby makes
while he is
breathing. When your
baby is feeding he
will make sucking
noises and sound of
contentment.
Your baby’s cry
is an important way
for him to
communicate. Crying
lays the foundation
for speech as your
baby learns to
control the air that
comes from his lungs
and learns how to
use his vocal cords.
Crying is your
baby’s way of
telling you that he
is hungry, upset, or
cold. By listening
carefully to your
baby and responding
to his cries you are
letting him know
that he is
important. This is
how your baby first
learns to
communicate with
you.
Two months: Your
two-month old baby
is starting to pay
more and more
attention to his
world. He will be
fascinated by the
sound of your voice
and will follow it
around the room with
great concentration.
The different tones
of you voice will
keep him interested
for short periods of
time.
Your baby will
respond with a
variety of cooing
sounds, vowel-like
sounds, and
sometimes some
consonant sounds
such as a “k”. You
will find that your
baby has quite a
collection of cooing
sounds that she uses
to communicate with
you as well as
discover how to use
the sound of her own
voice.
Talk to your baby
as much as possible
to encourage her
cooing response.
Look directly into
your baby’s eyes to
show that you are
listening. This
helps to establish
signals of
communication
between the two of
you.
Three months:
Your baby will
recognize your voice
and will turn
towards you when he
hears you talking.
He will be starting
to laugh out loud
and will often
startle himself
until he learns that
he is the one making
the sound. Your baby
will be making
sounds such as “ahhhh
gooo”. He will
squeal when he is
happy and content,
again often
startling himself as
he learns his own
abilities.
Continue to talk
to your baby as much
as possible, as well
as sing to him and
read him stories.
The more you
communicate with him
and let him know
that you are
listening the more
he will attempt to
communicate with
you.
Four months: Your
baby is learning
more and more ways
to communicate with
you. He will be
smiling
spontaneously at
everything around
him. His soft
babbling will have
an almost singsong
sound to it, often
ranging into a high
pitch that delights
him as he learns to
like the sound of
his own voice. There
will be lots of
repetition to the
sounds that your
baby makes.
Make sure that
you respond to your
baby’s “oohs” and “ahhs”
with your own voice
tones. This is your
“chat time” with
your baby and you
should take
advantage of these
chatty times as he
learns what
conversation is all
about. Your baby may
also be starting to
let you know when
he’s not in the mood
for talking with
you. He will turn
his head in the
other direction and
may put his arm over
his face. He may be
showing signs of
anger or frustration
by crying out,
especially if
something is taken
away from him.
Five months: Your
baby is becoming
better at
communicating. He
may start to mimic
sounds and gestures
which allows him to
express his needs.
He’ll be able to let
you know if he’s
happy or sad. When
your baby wants
attention he’ll
start to babble
until you respond to
him. If you respond
to his cooing,
laughing sounds
he’ll repeat his
noises often because
he knows that he can
get your attention
this way.
Your baby will
now be watching your
mouth when you talk.
If you talk to him
from across the room
he’ll be able to
locate you easily.
He is learning to
control his vocal
sounds as watches
your response to his
sounds.
Six months: Your
baby is now using
consonant-vowel
combinations. He has
discovered his image
in the mirror and is
probably having
conversations with
his new “playmate”.
Your baby’s language
is becoming much
more precise. There
are several ways
that you can help
him to continue to
develop his language
skills by:
· Speaking
clearly, slowly, and
accurately.
· Identify
objects as you say
their names.
· Use short
sentences.
· Use repetition
when singing songs
and nursery rhymes;
the repetition will
help him to learn.
· Read as often
as you can to your
baby, asking
questions about the
pictures in the
books so that your
baby is interacting
with you.
· Never talk “at”
your baby, let him
respond in his own
way.
Seven months:
Your baby continues
to learn how to use
his language skills.
He has learned how
to wave goodbye and
may accompany his
wave with babbling
sounds. He can say
“mama” or “dada”.
Eight months:
Your baby is playing
games such as pat a
cake and peek-a-boo.
Even though he can’t
speak the words that
belong to these
games, he can babble
and talk to himself.
Your baby
understands the word
“no” means, even
though he doesn’t
like hearing them?
Nine months:
Continue to play
lots of games with
your baby,
especially those
games that involve
singing. Your baby
is responding to
small sentences,
such as “Take
mommy’s hand.”
Ten months: Your
baby’s language
skills continue to
develop. He is using
his own gibberish
language to interact
with you and have a
conversation.
Eleven months:
Your baby can now
say short, one
syllable words such
as “bye” and
continues to talk in
his conversational
gibberish language.
There are several
ways that you can
help your baby as he
learns and practices
his language skills:
· Talk often to
your baby using
simple words to
identify objects in
his life. Name
trees, numbers,
colors, and animals
as you take your
baby for a walk. Use
your baby’s name as
often as you can so
he starts to
recognize it.
· Be patient and
listen when your
baby talks to you.
Respond to his talk
in a positive way,
often repeating one
or two of the words
he has used
correctly.
· Introduce
concepts to your
baby, such as the
“big” dog or the
“little” mouse.
· Give your baby
time to get his
words out; don’t be
tempted to complete
sentences for him.
· Continue to
read to your baby as
much as possible.
Reading should be
part of your daily
routine.
Twelve months: At
the one year mark
your baby’s language
skills are
continuing to
progress as he
discovers more and
more about the world
around him. Before
you know it your
baby will be talking
non-stop as he
masters his language
and vocal skills.
