You Can Be the Next Super Model
How to be a “Language Model” for Your Children

Don't let stress from parenting rob you of modeling dreams; you may have just landed the most important modeling career of your life. Laura Dyer, author of Look Who's Talking! How to Enhance Your Child's Language Development Starting at Birth, (Meadowbrook Press) reminds parents of the importance of being super "language" models. She offers the following suggestions:

·  Understand the importance of language. Strong language skills build a solid foundation for literacy for your child. This, in turn, impacts academic success. It's never too early to begin talking, singing and reading to your baby. Studies show that children whose parents talk to them often have significantly larger vocabularies during the preschool years.

·  Consult a good resource to check your child's language milestones. Develop a keen awareness of your child's level of comprehension and expression. Read and talk often to your child, matching what you say to their specific level or (one-step ahead). For example, if your child is speaking at the one-word stage, model one- or two-word phrases in a natural way.

·  Give your child lots of opportunities to communicate. Remember that babies can communicate even before they have words. Look for their gestures, eye-gazing and vocalizations. Model the words they will eventually use.

·  Follow your child's lead. Let your child choose an object and talk about it with him or her. Expand your child's utterances. Take a two-word phrase and turn it into a four-word sentence. This helps your child learn new vocabulary. Let your child change the topic of conversation and go with the flow.

·  Refrain from overtly correcting your child's grammatical errors. Children go through phases of learning sounds and grammar. When your child says something ungrammatical, model the correct sentence without drawing attention to the error.

·  Avoid asking your child lots of yes-or-no questions, especially those to which you already know the answer. Kids are smart and they pay closer attention to real, open-ended questions such as, “What would you like to do today?” Give them a chance to expound on things you see and read in their own words and phrases.

·  Don’t over-anticipate your child's needs. When you know your child wants something, wait just a few seconds and see how he or she might communicate that with you instead of providing it automatically. Help your child avoid frustration by asking him or her to show you the needed item with a gesture. If your child needs help, provide the words by giving choices of two things and letting your child pick one.

Remember, a child's vocabulary typically grows at least ten-fold between the ages of 18 months and three years. If your child shows warning signs of language delay, consult a speech-language pathologist. The impact of good early language skills is too important to take a “wait-and-see” approach.

Posted: 4/30/2004 11:22:49 AM

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