Talking & Communication in Babies

Respond to Your Baby

• In order to help your baby learn that he can communicate with you, respond to all of the cues he gives you. As a newborn, crying will be his primary means of communicating, so when you meet his needs with food, a diaper change or cuddling, you are showing him that his efforts to communicate are effective. Around 2 months of age, your baby will begin to make cooing and gurgling noises. Show him how conversations are two-way and respond with the same noises he is making. Infants also communicate with their facial expressions and body language. When he smiles at you, respond with a smile back. He may move his arms and legs in excitement to tell you that he is excited to see you.

Narrate Your Day

• Babies are learning how language sounds, so they need to hear a lot of it throughout the day. Talk about what you are doing as you go through your daily routines, saying things such as, "I am making your lunch. I'm using the spoon to stir it up and then I'll put it in your bowl." According to Zero to Three, this helps your infant connect words with objects and actions. Also talk about what you see your baby doing as he plays. "You have the red ball. Can you put it in the basket?" Tell him the names of the things he is seeing and touching regularly so that he will begin to understand those commonly used words.

Wait for a Response

• When you are talking to your infant, make sure you stop and wait for him to respond to you, too. Say things such as, "It's time to get dressed. What should we wear today?" Pause while you wait for him to respond. Though he won't say any words, he will likely babble some sounds back to you or move his body in response. Giving him plenty of time to respond to you will show him that you want to hear what he has to say. As he learns to babble and hears plenty of language around him, he will begin to imitate the inflections of speech as if he is having a real conversation with you.

Expand His Words

• Parents have to act as a baby's translator while he is learning to talk. According to KidsHealth, babies begin to babble some consonant sounds such as "ba," "ga," or "ma," after 4 months of age. By the time he is 6 to 8 months old, your baby will begin stringing several of these babbling sounds together to sound more like sentences. You can respond as if you understand what he is saying. If he says "Bababa," respond with, "Oh, really? You want your ball? Here is your ball." By the time your little one is 1 year old, he will likely be saying a few words that he has heard many times. When he says "dog," you can respond with "Yes, that is a big brown dog." By doing this, you are showing him that you understood what he said and helping him hear his own words used in the context of a longer sentence.