There are two parts to language and communication:
Receptive language is the language you receive.
This is when you baby listens to what you are saying.
Expressive language is what your baby can say with words, motions, and expressions.
In the first months, your baby will coo with mostly vowel sounds, “ooh,” “aah.”
Consonants will come in later as baby starts to babble. Babies should have one word or sound by their first birthday.
Practice receiving and expressing with your baby.
When baby makes a noise, talk back to your baby. This give and take is practice for taking turns having a conversation. Use real words and sounds. Babies respond to high-pitched voices. Use sound and rhyme! Find old favorite nursery rhymes and learn (or create) some new ones.
Babies learn language by hearing it—just like you would learn a new language. Talk about what you are doing, name the things you are using. If your family speaks more than one language, talk, sing, and read in those languages.
Casa Verde Pediatrics, Inc. 