Talking to Your Toddler
Talking to your toddler is really important. It helps develop verbal skills and research shows that if you talk to your kid when she's little, she'll be more likely to talk to you when she's an tight-lipped teen. So get those lines of communication open early!
Here are some tips for talking with your toddler:
report abuseHere are some tips for talking with your toddler:
- Listen! When your kid talks to you, pay attention! She'll feel heard and will be more likely to engage in conversation.
- Don't correct her! Don't correct your kid's baby talk by telling her she's saying things incorrectly. Instead, just repeat the phrase back to your kid correctly. She'll get the picture eventually and won't feel like she's messing up in the meantime. You want her to try to talk, even if it isn't grammatically perfect!
- Don't use baby talk yourself! As cute as it is to call water "wa-wa" and a bottle "ba-ba" it doesn't help your kid develop language if you use baby talk. O-tay mama?
- Make her answer in words! Instead of asking your kid yes-or-no questions, give her options so she has to use a word to answer. For example, instead of saying, "Do you want a drink?" ask her if she wants water or milk to drink.
- Ask questions! Ask your kid all sorts of questions. Ask her how her day was, what she thinks about things, how she's feeling. The answers might be short at first, but in time she'll gain the skills to respond!
We have loads more info about your toddler on our toddler page!
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