From the very first moment you become a parent you spend lots of time talking to your child, longing to hear those first words of mama or dada. Here at First Steps communication and language development form a very important part of our curriculum. We want the children to leave First Steps ready for school being able to communicate their interests, needs and wants confidently.
It can often be difficult to know if your child is where they should be. Are they saying enough words? Should they be stringing a sentence together by now? Knowledge on the expected milestones can give parents the confidence to evaluate where their child is at.
Ages and stages
0-6 months
• Turn to you when you speak
• Smile when they hear your voice
• Respond to sounds other than speech – toys that make sounds
• Enjoys music and rhythm
• Repeats the same sounds a lot
• Coos and goos when content
• Different cries for different situations
• Gurgling sounds occur while you are playing with baby, or they are occupying themselves happily
• Babbling begins (4-6 months)
6-12 months
• Obviously listens when spoken to
• Turns to look when their name is called
• Enjoys simple games (Peek a Boo) and finger plays (Round and Round the Garden)
• Recognises the names of familiar things (bottle)
• Begins to respond to requests
• Sound of baby’s babbling changes
• First words have appeared 1-2 years
• Points to pictures in a book
• Can follow simple commands (Push the bus.)
• Understands simple questions (Where is …?)
• May want the same story, rhyme repeated many times
• Has more words as each month passes
• May ask 2 word questions (More milk?)
• Words are becoming clearer
2-4 years
• Understand 2 stage commands (Get your socks and put them in the basket)
• Begins to understand opposites
• Understands simple who, what questions (3-4 years)
• At an age where hearing difficulties may become obvious
• Vocabulary increases massively
• Language becoming clearer
• Sentences becoming longer (3-4 years)
• Able to speak about interesting experiences (3-4 years)
4-5 years
• Enjoy stories and can answer simple questions
• Understands almost everything said to them
• Speaks clearly and fluently
• Can use long and detailed sentences
• Most sounds are pronounced correctly
It is always important to remember that every child is different and some children will develop their speech earlier than others. Adults role modelling effective communication is key to the learning and development of children’s own communication skills. Eye contact, body language, gestures and vocalisations will all help children to learn the power of communication.
From the start encouraging your baby to make vowel-like and consonant-vowel sounds such as “ma,” “da,” and “ba” will help to work towards those first sounds and words. When your child begins to make these first sounds reinforce attempts by maintaining eye contact, responding with speech, and imitating vocalisations using different patterns and emphasis. For example, raise the pitch of your voice to indicate a question. Teach your baby to imitate your actions, including clapping your hands, blowing kisses, and playing finger games such as pat-a-cake and peek-a-boo. Talk as you bathe, feed, and dress your baby. Talk about what you are doing, where you are going, what you will do when you arrive, and who and what you will see. All of this will enable your baby to understand the world around them more and the different ways in which they can communicate.
As your child gets older and develops more speech make sure you use simple and clear words that they can imitate and give them time to respond to you when you ask a question, sometimes young children need a little longer to process the information before responding. Singing simple nursery rhymes and songs is a great way to introduce new language in a fun way. Spending time looking at stories with your child is another excellent tool to encourage new language development, make sure you point out things in photos and ask your children questions throughout the story. Getting down to your child’s level and giving eye contact will help your child to watch the shapes formed by your mouth when you make different sounds. Don’t be afraid to be silly and have fun with it making animal noises, singing songs together and role playing with your child will all benefit their communication and language skills.
At First Steps Nursery, we have a screening tool kit which can enables us to assess children’s language and understanding. If you have any concerns or questions regarding your child’s communication and language development a member of the team will always be happy to discuss this further with you.