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Before babies come into the world, they are already exposed to language

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Babies can begin to hear sounds at 24 weeks

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Crucial point of neurological development

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Prenatal Development: What Babies Learn in the Womb

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They begin to respond to the rhythm of language. They recognize stress, pace, and the rise and fall of pitch.

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Some activities consist of talking, singing, reading, and rhyming

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Activities to Get Your Baby Talking: 0-3 Months

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Jen Meyers and Jamie Loehr, M.D., authors of "Raising Your Child," say it is never to early to start working on your baby's language development. Try these easy activities to encourage Baby's language comprehension.

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Making eye contact and understanding that crying is a way to express language

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Infants can distinguish between language sounds and other noise. ex: Babbling, cooing, makes " raspberry" noise.

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Baby starting to blow "raspberries"

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Crying, Cooing, Communication: Baby's First Year

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Babies begin to babble and coo and this is the first sign that the baby is learning language. They are now capable of making of the sounds in all of the languages throughout the world.

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Bababababa, dadadadada, ahgagaga. Got that?

Babies are speaking to us all the time, but most of us have no clue what they're saying. To us non-babies, it all sounds like charming, mysterious, gobbleydegook. To researchers, though, babbling is knowable, predictable, and best of all, teachable. This week, we'll find out how to decipher the vocabulary, and the behavior, of the newest members of the human family.

First, we explore the wordless conversation of synchronous movement, and the bonding that happens when a parent and child sway in harmony. In her 2014 study on toddlers, Laura Cirelli discovered that 14-month-olds who felt they were bouncing in sync with a dance partner were more likely to help that partner pick up an object that was out of reach. Music and rhythm creates connection because, as Cirelli says, synchronous movement is its own kind of language-a language of affection. "When we are moving with other people [and] singing familiar songs, these are cueing us, babies and adults, to think about the relationships we have with these people."

Psychology professor Rachel Albert studies babbling, which until recently was considered to be mere motor practice, something babies did to exercise their mouths. Few people thought of it as a vocabulary all its own.

But parents, take note: All those repetitive syllables are an important signal. Albert says they tell us that babies are "putting themselves in this optimal state of being ready to learn." Babbles create an opportunity for a social feedback loop - also known as a conversation. And if you listen closely, you can even decipher a babble's four distinctive categories, from the whiny "nasal creaking" of newborns to the more mature bah-bahs and dah-dahs of older babies.

But Albert says if you can't tell your "quasi-resonant vocalizations" from your "canonical syllables," don't worry too much. All you really need to know is this: babbling equals learning.
Additional reading (and viewing)
There are a wealth of interesting videos on the language and behavior of babies and toddlers. We recommend:

This demonstration of Laura Cirelli's experiment with music and synchrony in babies.

This video of a little girl named Katrina during a dinnertime meltdown. In a 2011 study, Researchers Mike Potegal and James Green found that tantrums involve two predictable emotions: anger, followed by distress.

And check out this video of a baby demonstrating repeated syllables known as "canonical babbling."
This episode of Hidden Brain is part of an NPR-wide project called Copyright NPR 2022. How To Raise A Human. It was produced by Parth Shah and edited by Tara Boyle. Our team includes Rhaina Cohen, Jenny Schmidt, Thomas Lu, and Laura Kwerel. Follow us on Twitter @hiddenbrain, and listen for our stories each week on your local public radio station.

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Baby Talk: Decoding The Secret Language Of Babies

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Bababababa, dadadadada, ahgagaga. Got that? Babies are speaking to us all the time, but most of us have no clue what they're saying. To us non-babies, it all sounds like charming, mysterious, gobbleydegook. To researchers, though, babbling is knowable, predictable, and best of all, teachable.

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Children are able to attach meanings to words. They also start to mimic new words that they hear.

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Vocabulary and language development in children 1-2 years

At 1-2 years, your child will learn to use and understand more words and more types of words.

At first they'll understand and say mostly nouns - for example, 'dog' and 'bus'. Eventually they'll understand and say a few verbs - for example, 'eat' and 'run'. Adjectives come next - for example, 'big' and 'blue'.

At this age, your child uses meaningful words, made-up words, sounds and gestures to communicate.

Understanding and language development in children 1-2 years

At around 12 months, your child will understand the names of things they see or use often. For example, they'll understand the words for:

common objects like 'cup' or 'doll'

body parts like 'tummy' or 'toe'

clothes like 'sock' or 'hat'.

But your child might use the same word to refer to different things. For example, they might call all animals 'doggie'.

At around 15 months, your child will point to things and ask you to name them.

At around 18 months, your child will refer to themselves by name. A few months later, they'll begin to understand and use 'I' to refer to themselves. This is when they start to realise they're a separate person with their own ideas.

During this year, your child will understand:

familiar phrases like 'Give me the ball'

simple instructions like 'Stop that'

very simple explanations like 'The sun is out, so we need our hats'.

Using words and sentences

Language development includes learning to use words and sentences.

At around 12 months, your child will start using words to talk to you. Your child might also enjoy saying the same word over and over. There will probably be a lot of made-up words too.

By 18 months, your child might know and use 20-100 meaningful words. You'll notice your child using new words nearly every day.

At around two years, your child will start putting two words together - for example, 'mummy car' or 'me go'. They'll use only a few descriptive words at this age - for example, 'big' or 'red'. Their word combinations will consist mainly of nouns and some verbs ('dog eat', 'car go').

Pronunciation

Your child will use a range of speech sounds, but it's normal for toddlers to pronounce words differently from the way adults say them. For example, your child might say 'tar' instead of 'car', or your child might leave off the ends of words altogether, like 'ca' instead of 'cat'.

Your child's pronunciation will often be hard to understand. But by the time they're two years old, someone who doesn't know them well should be able to understand about half of what they say.

Conversation and communication

Learning to have a conversation is part of language development.

Your child might start early conversations by drawing attention to something. For example, they might say 'Wassat' ('What's that?'), use a made up word, and/or point.

Your child will answer simple questions and also understand the difference in your tone when you ask a question or make a statement. And your child knows that if you point to something and say 'Look', you're showing them something.

In general, your child understands more than they can say. Your child will try to make it easier for you to understand them by combining words, gestures and sounds and by changing the rhythm and tone of their voice.

Growing up in a bilingual or multilingual family doesn't affect how early or quickly children learn to use language. Sometimes multilingual or bilingual children mix their languages for a while, but this stops once they understand that they're using more than one language.

When to get help for language development

If you notice any of the following signs in your child, or you're worried about your child's language development, it's a very good idea to see your child and family health nurse, GP or paediatrician.

Your child:

isn't interested in sounds

doesn't respond to their name or noises

isn't trying to communicate with babbling, words or gestures

has stopped using a language skill they once had.

Children learn new skills over time and at different ages. Most children develop skills in the same order, and each new skill they learn builds on the last. Small differences in when children develop skills are usually nothing to worry about.

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At 1-2 years, your child will learn to use and understand more words and more types of words. At first they'll understand and say mostly nouns - for example, 'dog' and 'bus'. Eventually they'll understand and say a few verbs - for example, 'eat' and 'run'.

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10-12 Month Baby Communication Milestones to Look For

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Uses two-three word sentences that contains only the most necessary of words convey meaning. Vocab will grow from 5-300 words. is able to use at least two prepositions, such as in, and under. Creates short sentences.

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Child Development: Your Baby at 18 Months

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90% of what children say is grammatically correct. Ex:
"I falled down" instead of " I fell down". Can use pronouns such as " I me, my" etc. approximately knows 900-1000 words. Understands most simple questions. Should be able to tell u there name and basic information.

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From Sentences to Stories: Building Oral Language & Early Literacy Skills 36-48 Months.

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Where a 3 year old should be at in speech development and how adults can improve their child's language skills.

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Children can understand roughly 1,200-2,000 words. At this time, they will regularly produce phrases longer than six words, and begin to express concepts from past and future time. "I saw a dog at the park yesterday."

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Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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CDC's milestones and parent tips have been updated and new checklist ages have been added (15 and 30 months). For more information about the updates to CDC's developmental milestones, please review the Pediatrics journal article and these important key points.

How your child plays, learns, speaks, acts, and moves offers important clues about your child's development. Developmental milestones are things most children (75% or more) can do by a certain age.

Check the milestones your child has reached by 4 years by completing a checklist with CDC's free Milestone Tracker mobile app, for iOS and Android devices, using the Digital Online Checklist, or by printing the checklist [755 KB, 2 Pages, Print Only] below.
"Learn the Signs. Act Early." materials are not a substitute for standardized, validated developmental screening tools.
What most children do by this age:

Social/Emotional Milestones

Comforts others who are hurt or sad, like hugging a crying friend

Language/Communication Milestones

Cognitive Milestones (learning, thinking, problem-solving)

Draws a person with three or more body parts

Movement/Physical Development Milestones

Catches a large ball most of the time

Serves herself food or pours water, with adult supervision

Holds crayon or pencil between fingers and thumb (not a fist)

Other important things to share with the doctor...

What are some things you and your baby do together?

What are some things your baby likes to do?

Is there anything your baby does or does not do that concerns you?

Has your baby lost any skills he/she once had?

Does your baby have any special healthcare needs or was he/she born prematurely?

Concerned About Your Child's Development?
Act Early.

You know your child best. Don't wait. If your child is not meeting one or more milestones, has lost skills he or she once had, or you have other concerns, act early. Talk with your child's doctor, share your concerns, and ask about developmental screening.
If you or the doctor are still concerned:

1. Ask for a referral to a specialist who can evaluate your child more; and

2. Call your state or territory's early intervention program to find out if your child can get services to help. Learn more and find the number at cdc.gov/FindEI.

For more on how to help your child, visit cdc.gov/Concerned.

As your child's first teacher, you can help his or her learning and brain development. Try these simple tips and activities in a safe way. Talk with your child's doctor and teachers if you have questions or for more ideas on how to help your child's development.

Help your child be ready for new places and meeting new people. For example, you can read stories or role play (pretend play) to help him be comfortable.

Read with your child. Ask him what's happening in the story and what he thinks might happen next.

Help your child learn about colors, shapes, and sizes. For example, ask the color, shapes, and size of things she sees during the day.

Click here for more tips and activities

Encourage your child to use "his words" to ask for things and solve problems but show him how. He may not know the words he needs. For example, help your child say, "Can I have a turn?" instead of taking something from someone.

Help your child learn about others' feelings, and about positive ways to react. For example, when he sees a child who is sad, say "He looks sad. Let's bring him a teddy."

Use positive words and give attention to behaviors you want to see ("wanted behaviors"). For example, say "You're sharing that toy so nicely!" Give less attention to those you don't want to see.

Tell your child in a simple way why she can't do something you don't want her to do ("unwanted behavior"). Give her a choice of what she can do instead. For example, "You can't jump on the bed. Do you want to go outside and play or put on some music and dance?"

Let your child play with other children, such as at a park or library. Ask about local play groups and pre-school programs. Playing with others helps you child learn the value of sharing and friendship.

Eat meals with your child when possible. Let her see you enjoying healthy foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and drinking milk or water.

Create a calm, quiet bedtime routine. Avoid any screen time (TV, phone, tablet, etc.) for 1 to 2 hours before bed and don't put any screens in your child's bedroom. Children this age need 10 to 13 hours of sleep a day (including naps). Consistent sleep times make it easier!

Give your child toys or things that encourage his imagination, such as dress-up clothes, pots and pans to pretend cook, or blocks to build with. Join him in pretend play, such as eating the pretend food he cooks.

Take time to answer your child's "why" questions. If you don't know the answer, say "I don't know," or help your child find the answer in a book, on the Internet, or from another adult.

Count simple things, such as fingers, toys, or bananas. This will help your child learn about numbers and counting.

Give your child choices that are simple and healthy. Let her choose what to wear, play, or eat for a snack. Limit choices to 2 or 3.

Continue to teach your child skills to play with others, such as using words, sharing toys, and taking turns.

Teach your child to play outdoor games with friends, such as tag, follow the leader, and hide and seek.

Spend time speaking to your child in complete sentences, using "grown-up" words. This will help her learn better speaking skills and helps with future reading and writing skills.

Let your child help with simple chores, such as bringing in the mail, feeding a pet, or wiping down tables. This helps build independence.

Teach your child to stop and wait when excited by playing red light, green light, or freeze dance (play music, turn it off, and have everyone freeze when it stops).

Play your child's favorite songs and dance with your child. Take turns copying each other's moves.

Give your child time to solve her own problems with friends. For example, if they are arguing over who gets to be which superhero, let them work it out. Stay nearby to help if needed. If they can't work it out, use questions to help them think of other solutions.

Use words, such as "first," "second," and "finally." When playing, telling stories, or doing chores, ask your child what comes next. This will help your child learn about the order of events.

Comfort your child if he is afraid and talk about his fears. For example, "Monsters can feel scary even though they are not real and can't hurt you." Help your child learn things he can do when he is afraid, such as hugging a stuffed animal.

Play simple games, such as Tic-Tac-Toe or matching games.

Try to make time for active play each day. Your child will have more fun if she can choose the activity. For example, give her choices, such as playing music and dancing together, playing outside, or taking a walk together.

Help your child notice when he hurts someone's feelings by describing what you see. Encourage him to say sorry and help him find a way to make the person feel better.

Take trips to the library to let your child pick out books.

Limit screen time (TV, tablets, phones, etc.) to no more than 1 hour per day of a children's program with an adult present. Don't put any screens in your child's bedroom. Children learn by talking, playing, and interacting with others.

Special acknowledgments to the subject matter experts and others who contributed to the review of data and selection of developmental milestones, especially Paul H. Lipkin, MD, Michelle M. Macias, MD, Julie F. Pajek, PhD, Judith S. Shaw, EdD, MPH, RN, Karnesha Slaughter, MPH, Jane K. Squires, Sincere gratitude to Natalia Benza, MD and José O. Rodríguez, MD, MBA for their thoughtful review of the Spanish-language translation of these milestones. PhD, Toni M. Whitaker, MD, Lisa D. Wiggins, PhD, and Jennifer M. Zubler, MD.

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What developmental milestones is your 4-year-old reaching?

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Check the milestones your child has reached by the end of 4 years. Take this checklist with you and talk with your child's doctor at every visit about the milestones your child has reached and what to expect next.

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Strategies for parents to use with their children such as imitate, interpret, expanding, commenting and describing

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When we help children learn how to use language, we want to start by helping them do more of what they're already doing by reinforcing and helping them feel proud about their attempts to communicate. Early language acquisition is instinctive and for most children tends to happen quite naturally. But how we as adults respond to their attempts to communicate can have an impact-accelerating or decelerating their language development.

As a speech-language pathologist who works with young children who are in the process of acquiring and developing language, I have collected many strategies and techniques that help children learn. Here are some of the basics that you can begin to use at home in everyday interactions with all children - those who are acquiring language typically and those who may be having a little more trouble.

As all parents know, words aren't the only way to communicate. Young children point, make eye contact, and use body language to give us messages. Recognizing, encouraging, and positively reinforcing these precursors to language set the stage for speech production and language to come. But even before kids figure out how to point to something they want, they communicate with us in other ways.

Early on, when infants cry because they're hungry or uncomfortable, they may simply be reacting to how they feel - but when parents interpret and respond to their cries and sounds, babies begin to notice the reciprocal relationship between vocalization and getting their needs met. This encourages them to begin intentionally communicating their needs, through things like pointing and body language and making more sounds.

Eventually words will become the most efficient way for them to communicate with us, but until then parents shouldn't overlook the importance of shaping nonverbal communication, which cements the utility of communication in a child's mind and drives him to learn to communicate in more sophisticated ways.

One of the most interesting things about the development of language in children is that it is closely related to play. The time period when kids begin producing their first words, usually around 12 to 13 months, is also the same time that symbolic play evolves. By symbolic play I mean something like a child holding a banana to her ear and pretending that it is a phone.

Developmentally speaking, it makes sense that these two things would occur at the same time because children must first learn to think symbolically in order to use language, since language is symbolic (a word represents an object, for example). So when you join your child in imaginative play, you are actually encouraging and helping to expand her new capacity to represent things mentally and symbolically.

Observing and understanding your child's play skills can help you as a parent know what to expect next. For example, if your child hasn't moved past banging a spoon on the table, you shouldn't expect her to be using speech to communicate yet because, developmentally, the intent to communicate is still emerging.

There are lots of ways parents can create opportunities that encourage kids to practice their communication skills. A favorite is putting things just out of reach. For example instead of handing your son a granola bar that you know he wants, let him see it slightly out of reach and wait for him to ask for it in some way.

How you arrange things in your home can create lots of opportunities for talking. Walk around the house and notice where the books and toys are. Maybe put the more desirable toys a little higher up (but still within eye-level). Similarly, you can try giving kids only part of a puzzle or Mr. Potato Head toy. Let them ask you for the other pieces they need. The goal here isn't to frustrate your child, but it is to manipulate the environment in a way that encourages him to ask for things, notice things, and use intentional communication.

Another fun way to get kids communicating is to pretend to be forgetful. During a routine that you and your daughter have established - for example getting dressed - you can forget to put her socks on before her shoes. If your daughter is used to socks coming before shoes, she is going to notice the change in routine and "catch" you being forgetful.

You can also pause during some predicable activity, like singing a favorite song. If she likes "The Itsy Bitsy Spider," maybe one day sing, "The itsy bitsy spider ran up the - " and then pause, encouraging her to fill in the blank. This not only encourages her to retrieve and use new vocabulary words, but also teaches her turn taking and that using language in a back and forth exchange is fun!

When working with kids on language skills, your goal should always be to help them reach just the next level of complexity - nothing more and nothing less. For example if your child communicates in one or two word bursts, your goal should be to model and use three and four word sentences. But make sure to follow your child's lead so they remain engaged and empowered to try out new words and communicate in new ways.

Talking and communicating with others should be fun! Remember, language is something kids acquire naturally, so we want to watch what they're interested in, observe and listen to how they communicate, and help bring them to the next level of language skill.

Here are some strategies you can use with kids from birth all the way up to five years old, depending upon their language level. How you do these things may look different during infancy compared to when kids are starting to use words, but the basic idea will remain the same.

Imitate: If your daughter is making noises (babbling), making another sound in play, or even banging a spoon, you can do that too. Imitating children's sounds, words, and actions shows them that they're being heard and that you approve of what they're doing or saying. It also promotes turn taking and, best of all, encourages them to imitate you and your more complex language utterances.

Interpret: If your son is pointing to the apple juice that he wants to drink, he is communicating with you. Take this to the next level by interpreting what he is trying to say. Respond with, "Apple juice! You want apple juice!"

Expanding and recasting: When your daughter says "red truck," you can expand on that by saying, "Yes, a big red truck." If your son says, "The dragon jumping on the bed," you can recast his grammar by saying, "The dragon is jumping on the bed. Use stress and intonation to highlight the words you want your child to focus on.

Commenting and describing: Instead of telling kids what to do during playtime, be a sportscaster and give a play-by-play of what they're doing. Say, "You're driving the red car around in circles," or, "You're putting the cow into the barn. The cow is going to sleep." This models good vocabulary and grammar and helps kids organize their thoughts. Maybe they weren't actually putting the cow to sleep - maybe they were just putting it inside the barn-but by suggesting that you've given them a new concept to consider.

Eliminate negative talk: Try not to say things like, "That's not where the cow goes," or, when they're coloring, "The sky isn't pink." Remember we want to encourage all attempts to communicate and validate those attempts so that kids do more of it. We all respond better to more positive phrasing.

Contingent responses: Respond immediately to all attempts to communicate, including words and gestures. This is a big one. It shows kids how important communication is and gives you the opportunity to model more sophisticated language skills.

Balance turn taking: Give kids the space to exercise their communication skills by making sure they get a turn. Turns don't need to be talking, either. A turn could be your child handing you a toy or making eye contact. Maybe your daughter will look at you because she needs help opening a box. You can say, "You need help opening the box!" Then you can wait for her to hand you the box - that's her taking another turn. Turn taking can be hard for parents because we're used to taking charge of situations, but it is important to give kids the opportunity to use the skills they are developing.

Label things: Even when kids aren't ready to use words yet, you can prepare them by labeling things in their environment. During bubble baths keep referring to the bubbles; during snack time you can label the apple juice.

Limit "testing": If you know that your son knows which sound a pig makes, don't keep asking him. Testing him during playtime instead of just playing with him can be stressful. Instead you could say, "I wonder where the pig is going?" It still invites him to respond, but it doesn't put him on the spot.

Labeled praise: Instead of just saying "good job," put a label on that praise. If you're child isn't yet using words, (or even if they are) you could say, "Good job putting all the blocks back," because it reinforces their good behavior even more. For a child who is using some words to communicate, you could say, "Nice job telling me that you want apple juice," or "Nice job saying more juice please." This will help create positive feelings around communication and motivate them to continue to try and add new words.

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Helping Toddlers Expand Language Skills - Child Mind Institute

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When we help children learn how to use language, we want to start by helping them do more of what they're already doing by reinforcing and helping them feel proud about their attempts to communicate. Early language acquisition is instinctive and for most children tends to happen quite naturally.

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Children will continue to expand their vocabulary and develop more complex language.

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Reading stories and expanding vocabulary 

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Communication Trust Platform 3: Six Year Old Talk

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Milestones 72+ months

This is a continuation of the speech and language developmental milestones resource from 72 months (6 years on-wards).

The rate at which children reach their speech and language development milestones can vary depending on the child and the environment that surrounds them. Some children will develop certain speech and language skills quicker than others. However, despite a bit of difference between children, we expect most children to develop certain skills within a certain time-frame. You will see that many skills mentioned in the content below may be repeated over several age groups as children are all different and some children take longer to develop these abilities. This information sheet is just a general guideline, and many experts vary considerably on what they believe to be the normal stages of development.
To try and make this information easier to read we have created a made-up child called Bill. Bill was lucky, he had a childhood free of any illness or accidents and he had pro-active parents who played with him and gave him lots of quality one-to-one attention.
Speech and Auditory Awareness Milestones 72 months +
Speech is error-free and adult-like.
Expressive Language and Semantics (content) Milestones 72 months +
Bill's vocabulary continues to grow and he is able to converse and argue his point of view.
Social use of Language (use and Pragmatics) Milestones 72 months +
Bill comprehends subtle humor and giggles about silly things. He uses the telephone for social calls. Bill now regularly plays games with rules and enjoys football. He will regularly argue about the rules. There is also more focus on the social aspects of play and the acceptance of the group.
Receptive Language (comprehension, perceiving and understanding) and Cognition Milestones 72 months +
Bill's understanding of the world around him increases especially as he is now attending school. He has to listen, process and learn, often without any visual input. However, his auditory memory and processing skills are such that he does not have difficulties taking on board and storing new information.
Morphology and Syntax (structure) Milestones 72 months +
Bill is now able to use passive sentence forms, e.g., "The bus was hit by the car" and he will correct his own sentence errors. He now uses mature expressions, e.g., "This is serious. Dad has hurt his leg, and he is playing in the final on Saturday". Bill argues verbally and uses more complex negation often, e.g., "I can't get it," or "I can't figure it out". He uses mature vocabulary, e.g., "surprisingly," "frightening," "disappointing".
Gross and Fine Motor Skills Milestones 72 months +
Bill continues to excel at certain motor tasks that involve art and sport.

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Speech and Language Developmental Milestones 72+ months

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This is a continuation of the speech and language developmental milestones resource from 72 months (6 years on-wards). The rate at which children reach their speech and language development milestones can vary depending on the child and the environment that surrounds them. Some children will develop certain speech and language skills quicker than others.