3 Months
- Babies cry to let you know what they need; e.g. when they are tired, hungry, in pain or want company.
- Babies make cooing sounds and use mostly vowels.
- Babies will imitate some of the sounds you repeat back to them.
- Babies make a variety of vowel sounds, like “oo”, “ah”.
- Babies smile when you talk to them and when you use a gentle or animated voice.
- Babies pay close attention to your face and look closely at you, especially when you talk to them.
- Babies startle to loud noises and look toward sounds in their environment.
How to make daily routines into language learning opportunities:
- All children need to have a variety of experiences, even when they are babies and haven’t yet begun to talk.
- During a walk outside, talk about what you are seeing. When babies hear you talking to them, they will begin to pay attention.
- During feeding time, dressing time and bath time, talk to your baby about things your baby shows interest in. Give your baby the words your baby will need later when it is time to start talking (e.g. “Let’s put your diaper on.”) (“You sound like you are hungry.”).
- When your baby makes cooing sounds, imitate them and look at your baby’s face. It is important for your baby to see your face because your baby will become more engaged and want to interact more with you.
- Give your baby time to make sounds back to you. It sometimes takes the baby a few seconds to make the sounds again. Be patient and give lots of time. Even before your baby can talk, you can share making sounds back and forth. When you are changing your baby’s diaper and your baby can see your face that is a perfect time for singing songs and sharing time together.