Written by:
Janet Hanna, Extension Educator
Source: NebFact Communicating with Children
University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension
Building Strong Families
Did you know?
- Infants are mastering language simply by listening to us talk.
- Babies begin
learning about language in the first months of life. They can hear
the difference between all the consonants and vowels used in any
language.
- By
the age of 6 months, infants have trained their ears to the sounds
of their native language, and they have learned to distinguish these
sounds before actually learning words.
Baby talk, or "Parentese,"
makes it easier for the baby to learn a language because the sounds
are greatly exaggerated.
When talking
with a child:
- Use short, simple sentences.
- Reduce the
rate of speaking.
- Repeat words,
phrases and sentences.
- Repeat what
you say to your child.
- Repeat what
your child says to you.
- Pause between
words.
- Talk about
he here and now.
- Use a lot
of questions and requests.
- Use a slightly
higher pitch and an exaggerated intonation pattern.
- Talk about
objects that your child is focused on or actions he/she is engaged
in.
Try some of these
suggestions when “talking” to your baby.
If you wish to
leave feedback about this TIPS for Families, click on the TIPS
Feedback Form link below. For
more information on Communicating with Children go to the University
of Nebraska-Lincoln publication website at www.ianrpub.unl.edu
and click on Families.
