In many articles, you can read that it is always important for the baby to start talking to learn english. But here I will tell you otherwise. First of all, by the help of this method which I will try to give the clues of it in this article, my daughter learned English and Turkish at the same time.
Let’s take a look at how and when talking ability develops;
Baby’s Progress in Talking
At this stage in life, children are simply mimicking noises they hear. They are mostly keen on pitch and sound levels. You will hear them produce gurgling and cooling sounds.
In 4-7 months, you will expect some babbling sounds at first. You will be able to recognize the Bs, Ds and Ms in their sounds.
A child between the ages of 7 and 12 months has diversified sounds into squeals and grunts. You can expect the first words to be pronounced around the first birthday.
By this age, the child’s vocabulary has grown, and they will be able to pronounce a couple of words.
You are now able to understand better what the child is saying. The child will speak in small phrases and sentences a lot more.
1- Never underestimate the power of will
Despite all the pyschological issues, gathered around infant caring in your life, you must be determined to talk in English with your baby during your everyday life. You will see that the rest will become very easy.
2- Always respond to Cries!
Crying is one of the ways a baby learns to communicate, and in the first year crying is the key communication system. When you respond to your young one’s cries, babies learn that you hear them and they perceive the world as a place where their needs are met, making them feel safer.
3- Don’t forget to say good morning!
All babies are born with the ability to learn languages.They start listening in the womb. Their brains collect all the clues to learn and talk till they can speak out loudly. And this doen’t end of course.Your baby will develop receptive communication skills even before expressive skills. In other words, your young one will be able to comprehend what you are telling him even before he is able to speak on his own. It’s important to raise your baby in an environment that is filled with conversation, as this makes him able to speak naturally. The important thing here is that you don’t have to make the baby speak correctly. When you speak correctly, your baby learns to speak correctly as well.
You must place English in your everyday life from morning till the other morning. Say hello, tell what you are doing to your baby. If it is crying, tell your baby; “You must be hungary, my little baby”. Whatever you talk in your native tounge , you must say it in English. The other family members must talk in their native language for the baby to learn both languages. I was mostly alone with my baby, so I chose to talk in English in the mornings and afternoons and Turkish for the rest of the day. My baby started talking( first sounds) around 5 months. ( She could speak clearly around 13 months both of the languages). She never stopped since 🙂
* Always listen to nursery rhymes, learn and sing them. If not possible,listen together.
*Use big words. Children don’t perceive language as easy or hard — only meaningful or not meaningful. If they’re interested, the word has meaning.
*Use your voice to your advantage. Make your conversations lively and engaging, and vary your pitch and noise level when speaking.
*Be descriptive. Colors, shapes, and sizes bring your conversation to life.
*Use your daily routines. Diaper changes, baths, driving in the car, getting dressed — all are great times to talk.
*Read books. This is different than talking to your child, but the brain takes it all in, and reading complements your conversations.
*Take a break. You don’t need to talk every waking moment you’re with your child. Make conversations meaningful and valuable for you both.
4-Correlate Words with Actions
This is one of the best ways in teaching babies to talk. For example, if you see your baby touch his feet, take the opportunity to teach him by saying something like “feet.” If the child hears his daddy speaking, you can say “Daddy’s home.” If he becomes excited when the cat comes into the room, you can say “here’s your pussy cat.” The point is to teach the names by describing the actions.
Telling a baby what he is about to do helps him understand your language. You can tell the baby, “You are going to clean up” just before a bath, or “It’s time to feed” as you prepare the baby to eat. When changing the baby’s diaper, you can say “You need a diaper change.” This helps the baby to develop his language, and he also learns to understand what he is supposed to do and hence becomes active in that action.
You don’t just talk about the baby’s actions, but your actions as well. Self-talk helps the baby make sense of what is going on around them. You can describe your actions as you relate to the baby. You can say something like “I’m going to put you to sleep now” or “Daddy’s going to feed you today.”
5- Play games in English
Speaking is more exciting to the child when you make it a game. You can start a “what’s this” game, whereby you ask your kid to name objects, colors, and numbers in your surroundings. You can make the game fun by starting with objects that you know the child already knows, such as cars,and then sneak in new objects and words. With older children, you could have a more complex game of “what happens next.” Tell a story, and then let your child tell you how it ends or what happens next.