Talking to your baby plays a key role in their development. Finding multiple ways throughout the day to talk, explain, and describe items to your baby can have significant positive effects on their language development. Talking to your baby while at home is an easy way to begin to build your baby’s vocabulary before s/he can speak.
At Home Conversation Tips
Your baby just arrived in your home, and could use a tour! Take your baby from room to room and point out important items in each room. Explaining what these items do and what they are for will lead to more conversation and teaching.
You’re not the only one, grandparents, teachers, babysitters, and other caregivers can all contribute vocabulary words to your baby by starting to talk with your baby. Leave a short list of vocabulary words for your babysitter to practice with your baby.
Conversation starters from Talk With Me Baby:
- This is the kitchen. We cook our meals in the kitchen using the stove, the oven, and these pots and pans.
- We’re standing in the living room. This is our couch, where we sit to relax. Here is a table that is holding a lamp. Lamps light up the room.
Talking Tips are provided by Talk With Me Baby, an Atlanta organization working to bring the concept of language nutrition into public awareness and educate caregivers on the importance of talking with their baby every day, in an effort to close the word gap.