Parents play a critical role in a child’s language development. Children who are read to and spoken with a great deal during early childhood will have larger vocabularies and better grammar.
- Language development supports many other aspects of development, like cognitive, social and literacy development.
- It starts with sounds and gestures, then words and sentences.
- Have fun together
Read books, sing, and say rhymes with your child every day is good for language development. Provide your child with writing materials and the time and space to use them.
- Give them time to think
When you ask your child questions, remember to ask more open-ended questions such as how and why, instead of close-ended questions such as what, when, where, or even yes/no questions. This gives your child plenty of opportunity to elaborate and talk freely.
- Repeat what you say
It’s good to say the same thing over again. Babies and toddlers need to hear words and sentences lots of times to understand them and learn new words. This is key aspect of baby talk.
- Make it easier for them to listen
Turning the music, radio or TV off helps children focus on your words.