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Take Your Toddler on a Talking Adventure!
By Mindy Hudon, M.S.,CCC-SLP
Isn't it amazing how much your child has grown in one year? The tiny little bundle of joy that you once cradled in your arms is now an active, on-the-move toddler! He's curious about his environment and wants to learn how everything works. A toddler's curiosity helps him learn and develop new skills. Although these years are challenging, they do allow parents the opportunity to play a critical role in their child's speech and language development. So, put on your running shoes and become your toddler's guide to a language adventure. 
A toddler will understand more words than he will actually say. He may only be saying one or two words, most likely words he hears frequently such as, "more, ball, or baby." As he listens to his parents and caregiver's speech, he will start to imitate more words. He will use "jargon" (unintelligible talk with adult like inflection patterns) frequently, and then start to combine true words with jargon to communicate a message.
"Henry started to form words and put words together at about 15 to 18 months, but Charlie didn't seem to be heading in that direction. So, that's when I spoke to the pediatrician about it," says Kathy O'Brien, M.Ed., guidance counselor and mother of 4-year-old Henry and 2-year-old Charlie. "I didn't feel comfortable waiting, so we immediately started using suggestions from professionals in the field. We started making changes on how we communicated with him."
Providing a rich language environment for toddlers is essential. Talk about everything that you or your toddler is doing ("That's a big cookie. That cookie tastes good.") Also, talk about things in your environment ("See the blue bird. That bird is flying up in the sky.") Help your toddler learn to ask questions, like "More cookie?" or "Help?"
"We began saying the word we thought he was trying to say repeatedly, in hopes that he would repeat it," says O'Brien. "We gave him choices like, 'cookie or cracker.' It's amazing how easy it is. If you have a ball and you say 'bounce bounce bounce' and all of a sudden your child says 'bounce, bounce.' It's like magic!"
