Introduction:
A baby's vocalizing and linguistic experimenting can range from coos to growls to rhyming combinations of words, and it can all seem as adorable as it does silly. However, speech is an important milestone in a child's development and growth. It is crucial to pay close attention to the child's speaking attempts. Most babies start talking or attempt to talk between 12 months to 18 months. However, some babies have delayed communication. These babies are known as “late talkers.” A toddler between the ages of 18 and 30 months may have a limited spoken vocabulary for his or her age but a solid grasp of language and normal playing skills, motor skills, thinking abilities, and social skills. It is important to consult an expert if a child has a speech delay, as it may indicate some sort of problem.
When Do Babies Start to Talk?
Talking is a way of communication to express feelings. All parents will eagerly wait to hear the first words and may be excited to listen to their baby's first words. Communication will be developed at three months of age by the “cooing” sounds. But the talking starts at 12 months to 18 months.
Talking is a way of communicating and is a very crucial thing that helps in the overall development of the child. Therefore, children must develop these milestones at a proper and specific age. If there is any delay in achieving these developmental milestones consult a speech therapist or pediatrician and seek their suggestions. Kaleigh Loeffler, a speech-language pathologist of a child's health, explains speech milestones for babies and toddlers and the different ways to encourage the child to talk.
What Are the Things to Be Expected as the Baby Grows?
Most babies speak out their first word by the age of 12 to 18 months of age. But the baby starts communicating at a very early stage after birth. When the baby is three months old, the baby expresses or tries to communicate by smiling and “cooing,” and when it reaches the age of six months, the baby starts babbling, which is a speech-like expression. They may sound like “puh,” “buh,” “ma”.
The Following Are the Things That Are Expected as the Baby Grows:
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Between Birth to Three Months of Age: The baby has to express themself by making cooing noises, and it is imperative to keep track of this because early observation and intervention may help the child overcome developmental disabilities in the later stages.
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Between Four to Six Months of Age: At four to six months, the babies start making sounds by laughing, giggling, and blabbing.
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By the Age of 12 Months: At the age of 12 months, the babies start using long string words such as ba-ba-ba-ba,da-da-da-da-da, and mi-mi-mi-mi.
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At 12 to 18 Months: Most babies start speaking single words. They start calling familiar people like ma-ma and da-da and everyday objects like a cat, ball, etc. The babies will experiment with the different sounds and a few words before the age of one year. Do not worry if the baby does not form complete words by the age of one year. Sometimes, the blabbing continues to the next year of life, which is okay if the baby is still communicating.
After the period of one, Kaleigh Loeffler, a speech-language pathologist of Child's Health, says it is imperative to keep track of the following:
How Many Words Should a Baby of Eighteen Months to Two Years Old Talk?
The word count varies from child to child, but it is said that the child should reach a mark of 15 to 50 words at the age of two years. But it will be difficult to track the number of words. Instead of counting the number of words, just check whether the baby's vocabulary is improving or not.
Talk to the child's doctor if the baby cannot speak 50 words in two years.
What Are the Factors That Affect the Ability to Talk?
Few medical or systemic health issues may affect the child's speaking ability. The following are the few factors that affect the baby's ability to talk:
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Autism spectrum disorder.
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Cerebral palsy.
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Hearing impairment.
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Lack of communication.
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Behavioral factors such as anxiety and pressure to communicate.
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Delayed development of physical and cognitive development.
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Poor stimulation (lack of communication with the child and playing).
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Family history of speech and language difficulties.
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Lack of approach for a baby to speak.
What Are the Few Myths About Delayed Talking?
There are a few misconceptions said from the very olden days which are not valid. The following are a few of them.
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A widespread misconception is that it is okay to delay speech in boy babies. But it is not true either in boy babies or girl children. If there is any speech delay, consult the speech therapist and go to speech therapy.
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One more misconception is that bilingual talkers may have delays in their speech. There is no research showing that.
What Are the Red Flags Signs of Delayed Speech?
- Does not say a single word or babble by eight months.
- Does not speak around ten words by 18 months.
- Does not use two-word sentences by age two.
- Persistent drooling and unclear speech.
How to Teach the Baby to Talk?
Here are a few tips that help the baby to talk:
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When the baby tries to communicate, respond to them.
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When a baby smiles, smile back at them.
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Narrate the thing and try to narrate most of the daily routine.
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Sing songs and nursery rhymes.
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Play games like ball games which help in the child's development and improve communication skills.
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Keep continuing the conversation. If the baby says “an apple,” keep continuing the conversation and say, “this is a red apple which tastes good,” and so on.
Conclusion:
Talking is a way of communication to express feelings. All parents will eagerly wait to hear the first words and may be excited to listen to their baby's first words. Communication will be developed at three months of age by the “cooing” sounds. But the talking starts at 12 months to 18 months. The babies will experiment with the different sounds and a few words before age one. But do not worry if the baby does not form complete words by the age of one year.
