Baby Talk..We all Start Somewhere!

       Learning to talk is so much fun and finally getting to hear you precious baby say her first few words, or even attempt at saying them honestly bring parents the greatest joy and excitement...it's getting there that may not turn out to be the easiest. Learning to talk takes quite a long time. That being said your child won't be able to form two-word or three-word sentences until she's well into her second year of life or sometimes even later.Your baby will respond to you from birth due to the fact that she can recognize your voice and speech rhythm she's able to tune in to you. Your newborn also has an inbuilt ability to draw attention to herself by responding to you. The baby engages more readily with you if you put your face close to your baby's furthermore, your newborn will look more interested if the pitch of your voice is high. All of this helps her early understanding of talking. Soon your baby will move her lips as if she is trying to speak, squirm and make it out to seem as if she is trying to have a conversation with you.

     Parents often see huge gains in their child's speech. Your toddler's vocabulary should increase and he or she should routinely combine three or more words into sentences. some children develop in their own way and at their own pace, observing that your child is talking a little later than his/ her peers is nothing to drastically worry about or stress over. as long as they are in their age groups respective milestones and reaching goals slowly as they come, everything is normal. it is when these particular milestones aren't met that you should be observing further and consult your child's pediatrician.

        To encourage your child's speech there are various things to take into account such as the way you approach your child regarding speaking, the environment in which they are learning and getting stimulated by etc. It helps to keep the environment and atmosphere as calm and non-hurried as possible to better stimulate your child's learning. Modelling talking skills is important and it is also important that in your own speech, you strive for a slower rate. The child will feel that you are calm and anticipate trying to mimic this notion  when practicing speech. Telling the child to "slow down and take your time" will do little to nothing if the rest of the people are talking rapidly, interrupting, contradicting and always verbally competing with each other. that creates negativity n the environment in which your child is feeding off of, therefore you would want that to be as calm and welcoming in the warmest of ways.

      Another particularity that is important to look at when dealing with a child's speech development is to look at some red flags going up signaling a problem and correlating them back  to family traits and dynamics. Some of these traits include: tendencies toward perfectionism , compulsiveness and impatience,  low tolerance for frustration, hypersensitivity, unrealistic self-expectations and finally, low self concept and self esteem. Parents need to carefully consider the extent to which any one, or several of these factors, might be serving as a source of actual or potential stress to the family life and environment and particularly to their child. Keep things as simple as reasonably possible. For example, while it may be beneficial to make things available to a child and encourage participation, there is a find line between encouraging and pushing. Awareness of this can make a difference and you will notice a change as your child begins to feel the change. Young children do not need to talk like, read like, or behave like miniature adults they're just children and they need to be stimulated in the right way so they can experience learning in a genuine and fun way, that's easier on you as a parent and more enjoyable for them.

'' Five effective speech therapy for tips for toddlers from Kimberly Scanlon, licensed speech pathologist and author of My Toddler Talks (available at Amazon.com). This video is perfect for parents of late talkers or language delayed children. Visit http://www.MyToddlerTalks.com to learn more about how to stimulate speech and language in toddlers. Sign up for Kim's newsletter to receive a free Speech Therapy for Toddlers Cheat Sheet plus additional tips and resources.''

Links:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdzlTyknaH8

http://www.asha.org/public/speech/development/Parent-Stim-Activities.htm

http://www.chicagospeechtherapy.com/5-ways-to-stimulate-speech-development-and-learning-in-your-toddler/