Help Your Child Talk

Learning to talk is exciting. It starts right after birth. It should be fun for your child, family and friends. But it is not necessarily easy. The process of talking involves paying attention, listening, thinking, understanding, wanting and needing to speak. It also involves taking turns, as well as being able to coordinate all the right muscles, the lips, jaw and tongue to move in the correct way in order to make words.

Children learn to talk at different ages. Some children utter their first intelligible word before they are one year old, while others may not speak until they are over 2. Generally, however, most children start to talk by 18 months. The key to verbal communication is to produce sounds and words to satisfy one’s needs. The first words of a child usually serve to call the people he/she needs.

Children need to be encouraged to talk in the same way as they are encouraged to walk. Use specific praises e.g. “Good talking!” even if they are unable to say the actual word clearly.

And remember, children can understand what is being said long before they can use the words themselves.

12 Tips to Talking

The following are some ways in which you can help your child learn to talk. Be patient. The process is gradual and may seem slow. Words may be unclear and your child may stumble or hesitate.

1. Use short phrases when talking to your child when you are playing together – toddlers often have a difficult time isolating a word from a long paragraph. Try to repeat single words and short phrases.
2. Have fun with nursery rhymes and songs, especially those with actions.
3. Encourage your child to listen to different sounds (e.g. animals, aeroplanes, the doorbell).
4. Gain your child’s attention when you talk to him. Encourage him to look at you or at the object that you are talking about by holding the toy/object next to your face when you’re labeling it.
5. Encourage your child to communicate in other ways, not just through words. Use gestures and pictures. Similarly, respond to your child’s gestures. If your child reaches for an object, pick it up and hand it to him/her while saying the word. Gradually, delay the time you take to respond to your child and encourage him/her to request for the object verbally.
6. Give your child choices (e.g. “Do you want an orange or a banana?”).
7. Talk about things as they happen (e.g. when changing him, watching television, unpacking the shopping).
8. Listen carefully and give your child time to finish whatever he is saying. Take turns to speak.
9. Give your child opportunities to talk. Praise your child for all his/her attempts to communicate. You can say, “Good talking.” and respond to his/her speech appropriately by giving him an item requested, responding to his question or comment, etc.
10. Help your child to use more words by adding onto what he is saying.
For example:
Child: “Ball.”
Adult: “Yes, throw the ball. Good! It’s a big ball.”
11. If your child says something incorrectly, say it back the correct way. However, do not force your child to repeat the word(s).
For example:
Child: “Pi…”
Adult: “Yes, fish.”
12. Dedicate a special time with your child each day to play with toys and read picture books together.