Language Activities for Infants & Toddlers

Infants and toddlers grasp language skills early through listening to their parents, siblings and friends. They also learn the skills by watching or participating in various activities. Just because they aren't able to pronounce many words in their speech doesn't mean they don't understand what you are saying. Using the correct language-building tools during playtime is an effective way to increase their verbal skills and vocabulary.

  1. Communication with Children

    • Talking to your child is an effective way to teach him about language. With babies, explain to the child that you are putting a sock on his foot to keep his toes warm. Doing this with each action helps your baby learn language skills. Encourage toddlers to answer simple questions, such as "Where is your foot?" and praise him when he gets it right. Show him his foot if he gets it wrong and then point to your foot and say, "Here's Momma's foot." This type of repetitive action reinforces vocabulary and other language skills.

    Story Time

    • Read books to your baby or toddler. Most children this age have a limited attention span, but if you choose a time when other distractions are minimal, such as bedtime, she will pay closer attention. Instruct the baby to point to different characters in the book, such as a bunny, cat or other character. If she doesn't understand, point to the character and say "Here is the bunny!" Allow the toddler to turn the page at the correct time. These activities help keep the child engaged in the reading process.

    Singing Songs

    • Interactive songs or melodic lullabies teach young children language skills. Most songs for children this age are repetitive and use simple words to teach skills, such as "Itsy Bitsy Spider," and "Wheels on the Bus." Even babies that are too young to understand the words enjoy babbling along to the melody. Interactive songs also increase motor skills as the children mimic the hand movements.

    Puppet Play

    • Many children enjoy pretend games. Give your child a colorful hand puppet and put one on your hand as well. Make up games where the two puppets interact with each other. Even infants enjoy this activity and learn with this type of play. For example, you can both don bath puppets and take turns breaking the bubbles during a bubble bath, or play hide and seek with the bar of soap to see who can find it first.

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