A ready way for you to check your child’s development
As a parent you may spend many anxious moments worrying
whether your child is developing well, whether anything is wrong, or worrying
about illnesses or learning disabilities. Well, most developmental articles or
charts are just general reference points. Some babies grow and pass each stage
quickly while others develop slower but do catch up. So, don’t fret if John has
not said “ ba-ba or da-da,” when your neighbor’s child born a few days later
already has.
Every baby is like a sponge and receptive to things in his
or her immediate environment. A baby who has people talking and interacting with
him or her all day long tends to learn words faster than children who spend
long hours alone in a crib or play pen with toys. As a child grows, its brain
too develops along with other systems such as bones, muscles, and motor skills.
And, from birth until age three the child absorbs everything around it—sounds,
sight, music, words, and more.
As you know, communication begins during the first few days
of life—a baby learns quickly that it can seek comfort from its mother and that
crying is what gets attention in terms of food, comfort, and companionship. The
first sound a baby recognizes is that of its own mother.
So, be prepared for a baby that absorbs sounds and sights
quickly, and if you are lucky, the baby at six months of age will make a few
basic sounds that form words, and speak a few words of your native tongue.
The progression you will see is from cooing and blowing
raspberries the baby will babble and then use repetitive words like ba-ba, or
da-da, followed by strings of gibberish and magically at eight months or a
year, the baby will start forming proper words.
You may have noticed babies that speak two languages at the same time,
their mother tongue and English—this is because a small baby when exposed to
two different languages constantly begins learning both without a hitch.
Here is what normally happens: from birth to five months a
baby reacts to loud sounds, when you move, he follows you around with his eyes
and by turning his head, responds when you speak or coo to him, learns to show
pleasure as well as displeasure by fussing, crying, giggling, and gurgling.
Then between 6-11 months a baby understands what you say and
parrots the sounds -- mouths ba-ba and ma-ma and other syllables-- and
communicates with gestures.
Once a baby is between 12-17 months he or she can sit with
you and look at picture books, learn to follow what you ask, recognize objects,
and family members. So, if you say, “Where is dad,” the baby will point to his
father. The baby will also speak with two syllable words, and will imitate
simple words.
At 18-23 months you will find a great change as many skills
are enhanced and the baby loves being read to. He will listen to stories, point
to body parts and objects, understand clearly actions like come, open your
mouth, eat, and can pronounce vowels, say few words, and ask for things like
milk or cookie.
It is from here on that learning is rapid. So, it is
important for the parents and care givers to optimize learning during this
phase.
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