How Parents Hurt an Infant's Language Development

Talk About Your Day

• If parents don't speak around their baby, it can decrease the amount of language the baby is learning. At birth, babies can differentiate between the sound of a human voice and other sounds, according to KidsHealth, so speak often to your infant and watch how he responds to your voice. According to Education.com, two strategies that can help infants learn to understand language are self-talk and parallel talk. Self-talk is when adults talk about what they are doing while the baby is watching, such as "I'm putting your pajamas on you. They have dogs on them, and they are so soft." Parallel talk is talking about what the child is doing, such as "You are eating your cereal. It is so yummy." Even before your baby is able to speak words, he will understand much of what you are saying.

Take Turns Talking

• Another way parents can hurt their babies language development is by not giving the infant opportunities to join in the conversation. Besides hearing language often, your baby needs to learn that she can communicate with you. By asking her questions and waiting for a response, you are telling her that she is a participant in the conversation. Even very young babies who simply coo and babble can be part of a two-way conversation. When she makes a sound, repeat her own sounds back to her and wait. She will soon see that you are taking turns and she will know you are listening to her. According to HealthyChildren.org, about 8 months of age, she will begin to form some recognizable syllables such as "ma," "ba," or "da." She might produce some real words such as "mama" by accident, but if you respond with excitement, she will want to do it again, and you will be encouraging her language development.

Read Books

• Don't make the mistake of believing that because your baby doesn't understand much that you don't need to be reading books to him. Books offer a wonderful opportunity to build vocabulary and for infants to hear the rhythm of language. HealthyChildren.org suggests finding books with large sturdy and durable pages and simple, colorful photographs or illustrations of things your baby will recognize. Read books with nursery rhymes or songs even if your baby is not looking at the book with you. It is helpful for him to hear how words are put together to form sentences and he will be attracted to the rhythmic tones of these rhymes.

Respond to Nonverbal Cues

• Babies are born communicating through nonverbal cues. Parents who do not respond to these cues can be hurting their infant's language development. According to KidsHealth, you should always respond to your newborn's cries promptly in order to show her that you understand what she is telling you and that she is worthy of attention. According to Education.com, babies who feel safe and cared for will want to communicate more because they understand that their attempts will get a response. Nonverbal cues can also be more than crying. A yawn can mean the baby is tired, turning her head away can mean she is overstimulated and excited kicking can mean she is happy to see you. Near the end of her first year, she might also begin to gesture or point to items she sees. Use those opportunities to talk about those objects and give her the opportunity to respond with her own sounds.