Helping Toddlers Develop Good Language Skills

Young children start talking at different stages, over a pretty wide range. Some say their first real words well before their first birthday, and others hold out for months longer. Some stay pretty much quiet until age 2 or even 3, and then suddenly start talking a blue streak, never to be quiet again.

However, no matter when a child begins to talk, once he does, parents can take an active role in helping him speak well. As a mother, I know it is tempting for us to latch on to the cute mispronunciations, odd phrases and malapropisms that come forth from our children, but we must be careful not to encourage those things in our enthusiasm over their cuteness. Write all those things down, or even record them or video tape them if you want to, but don't repeat them or encourage your child to repeat them.

I'm not advocating formal speech therapy for a normally developing child, and certainly not punishment or rebuke for the normal mistakes they make. They are learning, and they have to make those mistakes in order to learn! However we parents are our children's first and most important teachers, and we can gently but effectively guide them into proper speech.

In my experience, the simplest way to help your toddler learn language skills is to become a chatterbox. Talk to your child about everything, and I do mean everything. Keep up a running commentary on everything you and your child are doing, from dumping out a bucket of sand to spreading peanut butter for a sandwich to folding and putting away dish towels. Talk, and talk, and talk some more. It may feel silly, and it would annoy adults, but your child will love it and will begin to absorb the basics of good grammar and pronunciation from listening to and responding to you.

Hand in hand with talking to your child is listening and responding to your child's speech. You can correct your child's grammar and pronunciation without him ever feeling like he's being corrected! Simply repeat after your child everything he says, correcting whatever mistakes he's made in your response. For instance, my three-year-old loves to declare about people he likes "She was so nice of us!". It is adorable and makes everyone smile, and I would hate to stop and correct him every time he says that. So instead, I simply grin back at him and say "That's right sweetie! She was so nice to us!" When he says "I'm miz-able", I respond "Oh dear! Are you miserable? Sorry to hear that!" When he's telling a story I will interject with repetitions or questions that contain a speech correction. He thinks I'm being attentive (and I am) and loves the opportunity to embellish his story even more. In the mean time, he's hearing what he's just said repeated back to him in proper English.

Without any books or programs or videos you can be your child's first teacher. All he needs is your thoughtful attention! So start chatting with your toddler today!