7 Tips to help your child’s language development

Language development – there is such an enormous range of ‘normal’ when we are talking about speech and language development in our kids, that it can be hard to know what to expect and when we should worry. As hard as it is, try not to compare your child’s language development with that of other children, even older siblings. Some little ones just don’t stop talking from the moment they utter their first word at around 10 months, while others take a little longer.

As a general rule of thumb, first words (other than ‘mumma’, ‘dadda’) should develop at around 9-12 months old, with 2 word sentences (‘more milk’, ‘bye mummy’) by 2 years old. Little ones need a vocabulary of about 50 words before they can start combining them into little sentences.

Just remember that you can’t ‘make’ your child talk, however, you can provide every opportunity for them to develop and use their language. Here are my top 7 tips in helping your child learn language:

1. Talk, Talk, Talk!
It sounds pretty obvious, I know! Children learn by us modelling language for them… the good and the bad, so be careful what you model J Using simple language to start, talk about what you are doing, where you are going, what they are doing and things that you see, smell, hear.

2. Aim Your Language at Your Child’s Level
Little children can only process little sentences. Start by modelling single words… ‘ta’, ‘more’, ‘drink’. Don’t worry about how your child is saying the word, as long as they are trying to use their language. When your little one starts using single words, then model the next stage by using 2-3 word sentences. Don’t worry if your sentences aren’t grammatically correct (‘Car go brrrm’), and don’t worry about all of the social niceties (‘please’, ‘thankyou’). Keep it simple and keep it repetitive. Some children will repeat a word or sentence straight away, and for others, you may need to say it 100 times.

3. Avoid Asking Too Many Questions
It’s a natural thing to ask a child lots of questions in an effort to get them to talk. In fact, this often has the opposite effect and can be discouraging, even intimidating to some little ones. Try modelling the language appropriate for what they are doing or asking and labelling the things you can see in a book, rather than asking ‘What’s that?, What’s that?’ Of course, also avoid making a statement into a question (‘That’s a dog isn’t it?’).Bundaberg Events

4. Expect Your Child to Communicate
Kids are clever little things, and if they can get want they want with a point and a squeal, they will! Try not to anticipate all of their desires, and particularly in the presence of big brothers and sisters, expect your little ones to communicate for themselves. We’ve all done it… big brother asks for a banana, so we automatically give one to little brother too! Try to at least ask them (‘banana?’) and encourage him to ask for himself. Again, don’t worry about how they say the word(s) intially, as long as they are trying to verbalise.

5. Follow Your Child’s Lead
It’s a well known fact that children are much more communicative and much more likely to talk about things that they are interested in. So, sit back and watch! Look at what he wants to play with or look at; wait and let him show you how he wants to play with a toy or what he wants to do. Then match his actions with simple language models… ‘up, up, up’, when he’s piling his cars on top of each other; ‘Uh oh, fall down’, when they come tumbling down. Let your child choose which books to look at… you don’t need to read it word for word, let your little one choose his favourite pages and talk about what he is pointing to.

6. Wait!
One of the most difficult things to do when interacting with a little one who isn’t talking, is to play in silence. As adults, we feel like we need to fill in the gaps… who likes uncomfortable silence? Unfortunately this means that there is no opportunity for our little ones to communicate, even if they want to! If we’re busy talking, we tend not to stop, look and listen to what our kids might be telling us. Again, it’s about setting up an expectation of communication… if someone else is doing all of the talking, there is no need to talk.
Wait… to see what your child is interested in.
Wait… to see what he would like to do with his chosen activity.
Wait… to observe what he might be trying to tell us.
Wait… after we’ve modelled some language, to allow him time to respond.

7. Turn off Technology
Now, I’m not going to be a buzz-kill and say that kids shouldn’t be allowed to watch television, or play games on the computer, playstation or ipad, but what I will say is that there needs to be a balance. Let’s face it, in this time of technology, our little ones can often navigate through an ipad much more easily than we can, and will be much more computer savvy by the time they get to school than we will ever be. However, a child cannot learn adequate communication skills without interaction with other human beings! Play is crucial for development of understanding, problem solving, concentration, social skills, and expressive language. Be selective with what you let your little ones watch and play using technology, and the amount of time they spend doing it. Let’s face it, even Blinky Bill doesn’t model the most desirable language! Consider getting out the playdough, going on a bug hunt, building a farm, making a cubby… following their lead of course 🙂

(I will veer slightly and say that for a very small number of children who are unable to communicate verbally due to a diagnosis such as autism or cerebral palsy, technology may be crucial in enabling them to communicate… a discussion for another time :))

Happy Chatting

This blog was written by Alison Marsh from, Alison Marsh Speech Pathology.  Thanks so much for sharing your tips on language development Alison.