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Baby's First Words
Speech Milestones to Look For
By Mindy Hudon, M.S., CCC-SLP
Jennifer Cronin, a kindergarten teacher and the mother of 6-month-old Lily and 2-year-old Andrew, practices language modeling. "Every time Lily babbles to me, I say it back to her," she says. "I talk in a lot of high-pitched tones because she delights in it. I think she's having a conversation with me. It's way too cute!"
Cronin adds that she enjoys watching her son interact with her daughter. "Andrew imitates Lily's babbling," she says. "I think it is wonderful that they talk together. They are learning how to have a conversation and are responding to each other. This is a skill that will be important for their entire lives, especially when they interact with other children, for example, in daycare, preschool, kindergarten and beyond!"
Equally important is gesture development, because it leads to good language development. A baby begins communicating his wants and needs by gesturing (reaching out, pointing, etc.) around 6 months of age. Research indicates that babies can learn sign language to communicate with their parents before they even speak a single word!
"Help him start to realize cause-effect relationships (shaking a rattle) and object permanence (playing Peek-a-boo)," advises Frank. "These early cognitive skills are important for speech and language development."
During months 7 to 12, your baby will start to enjoy Peek-a-boo and Pat-a-cake games. He starts to recognize his name and common words (i.e. "cup," "diaper"). His understanding of directions is emerging, and he begins to respond to requests such as, "Want more?" Also, his babbling has developed to include long and short groups of sounds such as, "upup, gagagaga." These babbles will form into what we know as words. Although the words may not be clear, if your baby consistently uses the same sounds to indicate an object or desire, then it can be considered a "true word." For example, if your baby always says "mo" to indicate that he wants "more," acknowledge this as a true word.Want to see more?
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