Babies and toddlers are greatly motivated to learn. To learn effectively, however, they need to acquire language, as it is through language that they develop thinking. Language can only be acquired through interaction with supportive adults. From birth, babies start to interact with their family or carers, building up dialogue through which they gradually make sense of their world.
Feel-good factor
Babies and toddlers function at their individual optimum levels when they feel good. Studies show that positive emotions help to make the vital brain connections necessary for development; on the other hand, stress and anxiety are likely to produce disruptive chemical reactions which can sometimes even block connections.
Teaching babies to talk
Through communication, parents and carers act as enabling mediators between babies and toddlers and their worlds. It is from their talk that babies and toddlers acquire language. It is the adults caring for them who teach them, often unconsciously, to talk.
Without the input of appropriate model speech, babies cannot pick up language, as it is from listening to these models that they work out the sounds that make up words.
At about six months, when their tongue, lip muscles and mouth cavity have developed sufficiently, they start babbling their first sounds. By 12 months they have linked them together to make what parents excitedly think might be 'baby's first words'. The excitement on hearing baby's voice does much to motivate everyone and affirms to the baby that 'talking' is what pleases!
To provide appropriate language support, adults, including parents, need to be aware how physical and mental development is interlinked with speech development and how adult communication needs to be continually adjusted to accommodate these developments.
Adults also need to be able to see the world through the child's eyes to understand how they are thinking. Once babies can sit up by themselves, the world looks more exciting and, once they can crawl, they are independent.
Boys and girls
Studies show that there is a difference between boys' and girls' brain development, which is apparent in their acquisition and use of language. In the early stages, boys' linguistic development may be slower. Boys often say less and talk about different things from girls, many of whom are chatterers. Boys often look for different types of play activities from girls, and this reflects on their language and vocabulary. How many girls say 'car' in their first five words?
Second languages
Studies show that young children apply the same strategies in acquiring an additional or foreign language as they do in their first language. They need no formal teaching to pick up either language, merely to be exposed to language-rich activities that are right for their development.
If they are already having dialogues in their first language, the speed of learning their second is quicker, as they already know how to use their innate language-learning strategies. Since they already know how to make sounds, they need little or no babbling practice but pass through a 'silent period' when they are acquiring words and working out meaning.
During this time, if children feel good, they use body language and single words or phrases to make dialogue until they suddenly 'break through' to speaking fluently.
Language and culture
Most activities are culturally based; even how people say 'hello' differs from culture to culture. Emergent bi-lingual children, whose home language and culture is not English, have to learn some new concepts, already familiar to English children, at the same time as picking up English. This can cause some delay in speaking.
Where little English is understood at home, the delay may be longer due to less daily exposure and support in English. But in time, most bi-ingual children manage to become skilful communicators in both languages.
Research shows that babies absorb language more quickly when it is at the appropriate level for them. Parents and some older siblings in many societies appear to have an innate ability to adjust their spoken language, often unconsciously, to communicate with babies and young children. This adjusted speech is referred to as parentese, carerese or infant-directed speech (see box). Parentese should not be confused with baby language in which authentic words are substituted by made-up sounds considered easier for babies to understand, such as 'Doggie, geegee'.
Listening
Listening is an integral part of communication. Babies are confused by background noise and learn best when the model speech is focused on them without interruptions or distractions. Every voice is unique and it takes time to get used to different voices, especially where these include varieties of English in which vowel sounds differ, such as Scottish, Australian and Singapore-English.
Mistakes
As children begin to speak they make mistakes. These are not lasting errors, but 'slips' that show us they are in the process of working out the sounds and structures of English. Any adult-imposed correction can demotivate, and it is not likely to be remembered.
If an adult replays the correct version without any fuss, the child will probably pick it up and may even use it immediately in dialogue. If the opportunity to use it does not arise immediately, the child will have heard the correct version and will make the adjustment as and when ready.
Children have remarkable innate strategies for revising their language, self-correcting to gradually match the adult speech they hear. If a child makes the same mistakes over many weeks, however, this could be due to poor hearing and it is advisable to arrange a professional hearing check.
Parents' role
Babies and toddlers love to see carers spend time with their parents; it helps to bond the carer-home relationship. Parents also need to feel that they can have a part in their children's 'other life'. They frequently ask, 'What did they do today?' If carers tell them within their child's hearing about a dialogue their child has enjoyed, it will give parents an idea about their child's current language ability and give the child a chance to feel good about it. It really is good to talk!