Teach Me Speak

Here are excerpts stimulus to help children learn to speak a adapted from the book "Teach Me How to Say It Right: Helping Your Child with Articulation Problems" by Dorothy P. Dougherty.

1. Are you a good model?
Model the correct way of speaking to children. The language used is clear, natural, and most importantly of all "speak the language correctly." Before your child to talk, he will listen to everything you say, and how you say it.

2. Did you go into your child's world and follow him?
When children begin to communicate with you, focus on the words and objects that are important to his life. For example, if he pointed to a squirrel ran in a tree, do not talk about the dog across the street. Talk about the squirrel. For example, say "Look at that squirrel, he has a bushy tail"

3. Is there a dance melody in your baby's brain?
Everyone knows that instinctively sing to calm fussy babies. The psychologists believe that music increases brain development starting from the early months of life. By exposing your child to music since the beginning of his life, you can increase the ability to comprehend information, hear the sound difference, and stimulate its ability to repeat words he hears. Many children's favorite toys that play music, and he probably would enjoy listening to the radio, or you, because you hum, whistle, or sing your favorite songs.

4. Are you part of the action?
When you play music, sing, sing and laugh, show that you enjoy it and be part of that activity. Although your baby is unique and can enjoy various kinds of music, some experts think that the newborn most comforted by the soothing soft music, including songs before bed, ballads, soft blues, and folk songs. When your child sit in your lap, he can enjoy and listen to you sing more cheerful songs, like "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," "Itsy Bitsy Spider" and "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." Many of the songs have movement adapted to the lyrics. Show your child by actions and words that you enjoy your time together.

5. Did you play with sound?
From the beginning, give your child a different sound listening experience. Hear the difference between sounds, or auditory discrimination, have an important relationship to learn to say the sound correctly and learning to read. Give comments on the sounds around you. Say, "Listen to the clock ticking," or ask, "What is the brother heard a plane? His voice is so loud "Talk about the sound to your child when he made a splash in the tub, pat his hand and asked him to gain a foothold. At a pan with a spoon, or drop the block into a different empty containers made of plastic, metal, or cardboard. Talk about the difference in sound when the beam fell into their places.

6. Do you make eye contact with your child?
Make eye contact before you start talking with your child. Get used to calling his name rather than just "Hi" or "Listen," to draw attention longer. If your child looks away, calling his name again to see if he was interested to continue to play and talk with you. Use only one name that is used consistently because some experts believe that using more than one name (Tom, Tommy, Thomas) can confuse the child at an early age.

7. Do you use words that clearly?
Speak clearly and slowly to your child about what is going on around him. If you speak in a slow but comfortable pace, and say clearly, will be easier for him to learn to speak clearly. Also, use phrases and short sentences, so that he could understand the grammar rules more easily. However, do not leave the complex sentence entirely. Research has shown that children exposed to sentences that contain complex words (like "because" and "a"), learn to express these words earlier than children whose parents rarely use those words.

8. Repeat, repeat, and repeat
Play the same game and sing the same song over and over again. Your child will soon learn to anticipate the words and gestures. In about six months, your child usually have a favorite book. While reading the same book four times in one morning (at the request of your child) may be tiring for you, but repetition will reinforce their learning. Reading the same words over and over will help him learn to make connections between the words when he heard and saw the pictures. A child must hear a word many times and understand its meaning before he would disclose it.

9. Do you recognize and create opportunities for learning?
Visiting the zoo, museum, or aquarium will give your child a wonderful opportunity to learn about the world. Unfortunately this does not happen every day. Therefore, it is important to learn to recognize that there are hundreds of opportunities around you every day to improve your child's speech and language learning. The ability to speak and learn a language is not the activities that require your special time each day, but it is happening throughout the day in a simple form. Most important is the attention. Talk with your child every moment of everyday things.