How to encourage speech or language development in toddlers?
Communication is a vital ingredient of one’s life and we learn the basics of it in our childhood. Children have their ways and age of developing and speaking skills are built according to it. Sometimes, kids experience some delay in the development of their speaking skills. Such issues are very much concerning for the parents as they don’t want their child to fall behind other kids. But, the truth is that it is natural for some kids that their skills might develop a bit late. Parents need no to worry about that thing, but they can surely make efforts to encourage every skill of the child. However, taking too much might be problematic and you would require some medical assistance before it turns worse for the kid.
There can be slow oral-motor development in your child but you still should consult a doctor, if you find a problem with the process.
Here are a few reasons that might be causing delays in the speech and language development of your child.
- Any oral defacement that has stopped the development of the tongue and mouth palate.
- Any disability that leads to slow movement of the tongue
- Hearing issues also lead to problems in speaking. Audiologists can check and provide decent support in such a case.
Finding the right preschool at the right time is also an important characteristic to foster speaking habits within your child.
What can parents do?
The medical deformities are not in control of parents but if the growth is slow then some activities can add to the process. Parents can arrange certain activities, or practice certain habits to have better transformation in speaking. Even the preschools work on the process and give kids the right atmosphere to enhance their speaking capabilities.
Here are some common practices for the parents:
Encourage communication from your end
You must regularly try and communicate to the kid with words along with gestures. No matter whether the kid responds or not when you utter words then he/she will develop a tendency to speak. Parents make sounds that attract the attention of a kid and those sounds are responsible for the major growth of the hearing and speaking skills of a child. Even nursery schools practice such activities that involve various sounds to enhance oratory growth.
Read before your child
You should start reading in front of the child when he/she is a baby. Make sure that reading is age-appropriate and involves some sounds and words that are easy. Include books that contain catch images and read the context related to it loud and clear in front of your child. Such practices leave a mark on the developing brain of the kid and repetition of such activities becomes the base for proper growth of the brain and related organs.
Utilize everything around you
The day-to-day activities are capable of teaching a lot of things to a kid. You can talk the day through to your kid and make them learn new things every day. It can be anything like groceries, vegetables, fruits. Humans are born with the tendency to speak, you just need to polish the skill completely for a good result. The better you will teach and involve the child, the better will be the result of his/her communication and linguistic skills. Make sure you avoid the baby talk like most of the parents do. They find it cute but it is not encouraging for the child. Don’t be too fancy or even strict, just try to keep it simple and you will get results for sure.
The best way to deal with issues of delay is to recognize them as soon as possible and treat them accordingly. The concerns should be put up in front of a doctor before it gets late. Note that don’t be in a hurry to teach speaking too early to your kid. Everything needs time and your child deserves that time to grow properly. However, including some interactive activities is never bad and such practices should be promoted.
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