Instruction
As scientists and doctors have established, the child already hears while in the womb, so the first rule for stimulating the development of the baby’s speech is obvious: it is necessary from the first days of the child’s life to constantly talk to him, clearly pronouncing the words. When the baby is six months old, you can start showing him various objects and toys, clearly pronouncing their names. Of course, the child will not be able to immediately reproduce these names, but a certain vocabulary will begin to accumulate in memory.
Any action performed with the baby, whether it is washing, feeding, and the like, should be spoken by the mother and accompanied by simple words. For example, “top-top” and “yum-yum”.
Fine motor skills of fingers and pronunciation of words are well developed by games such as “The mouse cooked porridge” or “Ladushki”. It has been proven that the development of fine motor skills stimulates the speech center. Therefore, play with children more often, let's touch objects that are different in shape, texture and temperature. Now there are many games and toys that help diversify the exercises. Many prefer to use items such as buttons and beads for this, but the baby can swallow them, so the child must be under constant and vigilant supervision of the mother.
Every day at least half an hour should be given time to talk with the baby. Ask leading questions in determining the name of an object or toy. All this must be done with great care and patience. Patience and regularity are the first assistants in the development of a child's speech.
If the mother notices that the child understands, but finds it difficult to speak, then special exercises should be used that will help to master the conversational speech of the baby. It can be any game available, but if the mother sees that the child has lost interest, you should switch his attention to another game or activity.
A good help in mastering colloquial speech can be the first children's books with vivid illustrations. When showing a picture to a child, it is not necessary to ensure that he will certainly pronounce the word “cow” or “goose”, it is enough if the baby at first simply points to the picture and meaningfully pronounces “mu-mu” or “ha-ha”.
If the child has a persistent unwillingness to speak, you should contact a speech therapist. The doctor will diagnose, if there are violations of the physiology of development, he will probably prescribe medication and massage, if there is a mental deviation or oppression of the speech center, it will be necessary to start regular classes at the medical facility. If the reason is behavioral, you will have to patiently and monotonously again and again return to games for the development of speech, exercises for the tongue and other exercises.
In this article:
The development of speech in children is the most important indicator that the physical and mental state corresponds to the age norm. There are numerous methods for improving speech abilities, but the main condition for the successful development of the crumbs is parental communication with him from the first days of life.
It is important to know the main milestones in the development of speech in a baby and control their timeliness.
Why is speech development so important?
Speech is the highest cortical function, a form of communication between people using sounds and signs.
Speech is formed in parallel with thinking, a violation of its formation affects the overall development of a person, including the following points:
- cognitive abilities;
- mental development;
- features of behavior and character;
- communication success.
The developing functions of writing and reading are closely related to the development of motor and sensory speech.
What determines the development of speech
Speech development disorders can be caused by the following factors:
- pathology of pregnancy and childbirth;
- birth trauma with brain damage;
- anomalies in the structure of the oral cavity, respiratory system, hearing organs;
- lag in psychophysical development;
- chronic stress due to poor family relationships;
- frequent illnesses;
- multilingual social environment;
- lack of full-fledged verbal communication with the baby in the family.
The development of speech in children of primary preschool age largely depends on social adaptation. Visiting a kindergarten, various developmental circles, active communication with peers, interest in reading books contribute to the normal development of the baby.
The main condition for adequate speech development is the daily language communication of parents with a child of any age.
Stages of speech development
The speech development of a child goes through several important periods.
First period - preparatory
It lasts from the moment of birth until the baby reaches the age of one year. It is at this time that the formation of verbal speech begins.
The first sounds are deprived of the function of speech. The whimpering baby publishes immediately after birth. It is a typical cry of a baby in response to negative external stimuli and internal discomfort. The sounds of the outside world and their own crying are important for babies, as the auditory cortex of the brain develops.
The development of speech in newborns from two to three months has the following features:
- the baby pronounces vowel sounds (ah-ah-ah, s-s-s);
- combinations of vowels and consonants appear (bu-u, ge-e).
All sound combinations are pronounced only on exhalation. For children, this is a training of the respiratory apparatus.
From three to five months, the active speech development of the baby begins. Hearing a voice, he looks for the speaker with his eyes, turning his head in the direction of the sound. Often children unconsciously imitate the intonation and rhythm of adult speech addressed to them.
The babble stage begins at five months of age. The child's speech at this time contains vowels and consonants connected in short syllable chains (ma-ma, ba-ba). At seven to nine months, the number of spoken syllables increases.
At 10 months, a child understands spoken speech better. What should a 10 month old baby say? If the development of the baby proceeds normally, he responds to the name, imitates the sounds that he hears from adults.
How many words does a 1 year old baby say? With normal development, the baby says from five to ten words. For children of 1 year of age, a doubling of syllables with an emphasis on the first (ma-ma, doo-du) is typical. When trying to pronounce polysyllabic words, a child at the age of 1 skips or changes some sounds. This is due to the imperfection of the articulatory apparatus and auditory reactions in a one-year-old baby. Children at this age can easily follow simple instructions (come to me), use gestures and sounds to attract the attention of adults.
Second period - initial language acquisition
Lasts until the age of three. Period features:
- words are always associated with certain actions, objects;
- when pronouncing a word, the child skips sounds or syllables, swaps them;
- one word names different things;
- the sentence includes one word, more often a noun;
- no abstract concepts;
- knows and shows different parts of the body on himself and dolls.
These features refer to the first part of the second period, when the child uses sentence words.
Closer to the age of three, sentences pronounced by children already consist of two or three words that are used in different cases, numbers, adverbs and pronouns, prepositions and conjunctions appear in speech. The number of spoken words reaches 200-300. Kids name household objects, recognize various animals in pictures and when watching television programs.
The development of a child’s speech at the age of 3 involves the gradual mastery of the pronunciation of whistling and hissing sounds, the letters “r” and “l”, there are attempts to say something that is not related to the current moment.
Third period - improvement of speech practice
It lasts from the age of three until the baby enters the first grade. Here, speech develops in the process of verbal communication, and not in connection with a specific situation, emotion, action, and contributes to the development of the baby's intellect.
In preschool children, speech development includes the ability to pronounce long phrases. Gradually, the number of words used increases and grammar improves. Characteristic is the predominance of a passive vocabulary over an active one, that is, he knows more words than he can pronounce and does not always correctly understand their meaning. The speech development of preschool children largely depends on the family surrounding adults.
Fourth period - mastery of written language
There is a further expansion of vocabulary and deepening of language knowledge. Before school, kids master speech in the process of practice, entering into dialogues with adults. Having entered school, they begin to learn the language, speech becomes more conscious. Written language develops, contributing to the development of oral.
How speech develops at home
The development of the child's speech activity occurs gradually and only in the process of communication. Experts will tell you what simple methods will help improve speech skills in different age groups.
From birth to one year
The development of a child's speech up to a year should be monitored by parents, an observing pediatrician and a pediatric neurologist.
In an infant, the development of speech is determined by the environment, the information that he perceives by ear: rattles, the sounds of music, nature, the voices of loved ones. It is important that the mother verbally comment on all her actions - feeding, swaddling. Parents should show and name the names of loved ones, toys and objects.
The development of the baby's speech will be faster with gentle handling, free swaddling, light massage and gymnastics. The development of speech can be stimulated by naming new products introduced into the diet: cottage cheese, porridge, juice. In parallel, the mother should tell that milk is given by a cow that says “MU” and eats green grass. This expands the knowledge of the baby about the world around him.
How to teach a child to speak at 9 months? It is necessary to stimulate the desire of the baby to say something. In the tenth month, games such as "magpie", "palmies", "hide and seek" will be useful.
From one to two years
How to teach a child to speak at 1 year? The speech development of a child in a year will go faster if you read interesting books with bright pictures to him every day, sing together, repeat words.
What should a child say at 1 year old? At this age, the baby knows the names of many surrounding objects and body parts, pronounces individual words-sentences. The development of speech in a child at 1 year old can be stimulated by frequent walks, visits to the circus, the zoo. Mandatory outdoor games and the development of fine motor skills (hand massage, finger games). It is necessary to gradually and tactfully replace the simplified words in the baby's vocabulary with the correct designation of objects (“woof-woof” for “dog”).
From two to three years
The speech development of young children can be stimulated by developing self-service skills in them: teach them to wash their cup, brush their teeth regularly, fasten buttons and zippers on clothes on their own, lace up shoes and sneakers.
A baby who speaks in short sentences needs to be gently corrected, contributing to the enrichment of his speech with new words. Mutual contact between parents and the child is obligatory: any question of the baby must be answered and always listen to his answer to the question asked.
At preschool age
The speech therapist advises teaching the baby to follow the instructions in sequence: go to the kitchen and call your grandmother. For a job well done, he must be praised.
In preschool children, the development of speech is closely related to the acquisition of new information, and not only to their own experience. Therefore, the methodology for the development of speech of preschool children includes the following activities:
- active communication with the child;
- reading fairy tales, children's books and discussing them;
- to accustom to talk about their impressions, the events of the past day.
The development of coherent speech in preschool children occurs not only through the reproduction of already known words, but also through the rapid assimilation and repetition of what they hear from adults. Therefore, it is necessary that others speak competently, clearly, avoiding obscene words.
At preschool age, the speech development of children according to the Federal State Educational Standard implies fluency in the language as a means of communicating with adults and peers.
What to do with a developmental disorder?
A child of any age category develops at its own pace, this also applies to the formation of speech.
If the child has not spoken by the age of two or three, it is necessary to undergo a full examination by a pediatrician and narrow specialists. Then the baby should be examined by a speech therapist and defectologist. If a speech development disorder is diagnosed in children, the specialist will select the optimal method for the formation of speech skills.
Language development classes should be carried out from the first days of life. Poems for babies for the development of speech should be short and rhythmic. Mom needs to recite them with an affectionate intonation, stroking the baby, accompanying bathing and feeding with verses.
How to develop a child's speech in 1 year? Classes for the development of speech in children of 1 year include a few simple tricks:
- encourage repeating the words spoken by the mother;
- ask to finish the learned rhyme;
- name the seen objects, toys;
- together with mom sort out small items (peas, cereals).
Classes with a child for the development of speech should be accompanied by eye contact with him, you should always speak with a little man clearly and clearly, without simplifying the words. Exercises for the development of speech in children include various techniques for developing the mobility of the tongue and improving articulation. Any developmental techniques are effective only if they are regularly performed.
Methods for the development of the speech of preschool children are aimed at complicating phrases, forming correct pronunciation and the emergence of abstract concepts. The development of children's speech is effective through theatrical activities: playing scenes with toys, reading poems and fables with expression, monologues. It is necessary to encourage the theatrical "practice" of the baby, as this contributes to the development of the emotionality of speech, teaches empathy.
The method of developing the speech of preschool children implies not only an increase in vocabulary, but also an improvement in diction. Therefore, tongue twisters are widely used for the development of speech for children. Excellent means of developing the speech of preschool children are modeling, designing, drawing, compiling applications and herbariums. In the process of teaching a child any skills, you can not scold him for mistakes, inaccuracies.
Early speech development of a child is more likely if parents praise the baby for any attempt to say something, welcome his desire to communicate.
Diagnosis of speech development
Diagnosis of speech development of children differs depending on the age of the patient. The use of speech therapy methods for diagnosing the development of speech should be preceded by a thorough study of the characteristics of the state of health of the child. This is important, since any disorders of the somatic, neurological and mental spheres can cause speech problems.
In infants and young children, it is extremely important to identify the slightest violation of the organs of speech. To do this, a speech therapist determines the mobility of the tongue and soft palate, the presence of anomalies in the structure and malformations of the organs of hearing and vision. Voice reactions are also assessed: the emotional coloring of crying, babble, its variability depending on the situation.
All examination methods have one goal - to determine whether the child knows how to use speech. To do this, the speech therapist must do the following:
- establish contact with a small patient;
- ask to name objects, images in drawings;
- compose a short story based on the proposed picture or tell about something interesting.
To analyze the sound pronunciation, a speech therapist offers a small patient to repeat a phrase containing many sounds. For example, "The black puppy was sitting on a chain near the booth"; "The old grandmother knitted woolen stockings."
Adequate development of the speech of young children involves the following points:
- show on yourself or on the doll items of clothing, body parts;
- answer what clothes you need to wear on the legs, what on the head;
- do what mom said (bring a cup, give me a pen);
- to distinguish a large object from a small one;
- navigate in time and space relationships (today or yesterday, right or left).
The speech therapist determines the development of the speech of children under three years old, analyzing the child's understanding of the words addressed to him, the correctness of his answers to the questions asked and the fulfillment of the tasks given to the baby. For this, various methods of speech therapy and defectological examinations have been developed.
Signs in the behavior of the baby, which should alert parents:
- does not cry, experiencing discomfort;
- after three months there is no cooing;
- at 5-7 months does not respond to music, intonations, voices of relatives;
- no babbling at 9 months;
- at 12 months does not utter a single word and does not understand the speech addressed to him;
- at the age of 2 he cannot perform the simplest tasks, does not recognize close people;
- at the age of 3 he cannot retell short stories, read poetry.
The correct development of the speech of children of primary preschool age involves the understanding of complex sentences and the correct execution of multi-stage tasks. A primary school child should understand metaphors, proverbs and be able to interpret their meaning, write the names of objects or a short story.
Speech development of a child is an important indicator of his health. Like any function, speech can be trained and should be practiced daily. Numerous methods have been developed by specialists for different ages to promote the acquisition of speech skills. A speech therapist will help you choose the appropriate method after consulting a pediatrician and a neurologist. It is necessary to follow the recommendations of the doctor and patiently deal with the baby. Then the child will talk and develop normally, bringing joy to loved ones.
Useful video about games for the development of speech in children from 1 to 2 years old
Speech is an instrument of intellectual activity, a form of communication between individuals and a way of existence of our consciousness. The value of speech for a person is enormous. Speech plays a special role in the harmonious development of the child at all stages of his physiological, intellectual and psychological growth. Some babies amaze with the ability to speak beautifully and accurately express their thoughts even at a very young age. And others and to school cannot express and explain, it would seem, the most simple things. The speech of "belated" children is poor and tongue-tied. They do not understand the meaning of words and the meaning of phrases. And the most serious problems begin for such children at school - they study poorly, have difficulty communicating with their peers, and often after a couple of years they have serious complexes and psychological problems.
Various speech therapy and psychological techniques will help to assess the level of speech development of your child, but their implementation requires the participation of professional specialists. Previously, parents can analyze the speech development of their baby using a fragment of the J. Chapey School Readiness Questionnaire. So, the block "Speech development" in this questionnaire includes the following questions:
- Does the child pronounce words clearly?
- Is he able to tell a story or a situation that happened to him on the street, in kindergarten or at home in your absence?
- Can the child identify the main objects around him and explain their purpose?
- How easily does the baby answer questions from adults?
- Does the child have a sufficient vocabulary compared to peers?
- Does the child speak correctly?
- Does the child use sentences of 5-7 words?
If a negative answer is received to one or more questions, the parent should consider starting to engage with the child and actively develop his speech. What should you pay attention to first of all?
Such games will not only become a fun and exciting activity for the baby, but will also help him form a beautiful and correct speech.
Interesting facts about children's speech:
- It is believed that the age of 7 years is the most favorable for the development of beautiful speech in a child.
- According to statistics: more than half of modern preschoolers have problems with sound pronunciation.
- One of the complex forms of speech pathology in children is OHP (general underdevelopment of speech). The main signs of this disease: the appearance of the first words only by 3-5 years, unstable attention, poor memory.
- Among other serious speech pathologies, there are: dysarthria, alalia, stuttering, delayed speech development (SRR), rhinoalia.
- If a child has not learned to speak by the age of 6, the likelihood that his speech will remain at a primitive level for the rest of his life is huge.
- Boys are three times more likely to have speech problems than girls.
Norms of speech development of a child from birth to 7 years
|
Age |
Signs of speech development |
|
2 months |
Pronunciation of individual sounds. |
|
6 months |
Cooing, reaction to address by name, pronunciation of some consonant sounds (b, p, m), imitation of sounds. |
|
1 year |
Imitation of some words, the ability to pronounce at least 10 simple words, understanding more than 20-30 words. |
|
2nd year |
The use of more than 30 simple words, the appearance of the first questions (who? where?). |
|
3rd year |
The appearance of more connected speech, the complication of sentences, a variety of intonations, the appearance of adjectives, the ability to use words in the plural, the appearance of questions for adults, the expansion of vocabulary (more than 200 words). |
|
4th year |
Use of more common sentences (more than 4-5 words), ability to answer simple questions, use of verbs. Vocabulary - up to 1 thousand words. |
|
5th year |
Using extended sentences, writing short stories, the ability to name antonyms for words. Vocabulary - up to 2 thousand words. |
|
6th year |
Enrichment of vocabulary (up to 3 thousand words). Ability to compose simple stories based on pictures and answer questions. Speech is completely intelligible and generally grammatically correct. |
|
7th year |
Using complex and common sentences, making long stories with plot development. Active growth of vocabulary. |
Ekaterina Rakitina
Dr. Dietrich Bonhoeffer Klinikum, Germany
Reading time: 9 minutes
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Article last updated: 03/28/2019
The article discusses the features and gives recommendations for the development of the speech of children up to a year by months. Speech is the interaction of the respiratory system, vocal apparatus and nervous system, and its development can be compared with the development of sensory or motor skills. A child without deviations in anatomical development, but by chance found himself without communication, will never speak. It is wrong to think that just hearing our speech, the child will speak on his own. It is necessary to develop the correct speech of the baby from birth, without waiting until he grows up.
What affects the development of speech
The development of the ability to speak is directly interconnected with the skin, vision and hearing. It is from them that impulses come to the central nervous system (CNS) with information about the world that surrounds the baby: sensory sensations from touching the skin, mother's voice and visual perception of objects. And this is an impetus to the fact that the baby has a motivation to communicate, and the more information there is, the more actively the child wants to talk.
By activating the fine motor skills of the hands, parents contribute to the active development of speech, because there are speech centers on the palms. By stimulating the skin, we send a signal to the brain and activate the cells responsible for the development of speech. This is how, massaging the fingers and palms of the baby, we contribute to the formation of speech and thinking of the child.
The ability to speak in children can be divided into conditional periods. While the baby is in the mother's tummy, all his needs are satisfied at the physiological level, but at birth everything changes immediately. Now he himself must somehow signal his needs, which are also prerequisites for the ability to speak.
Development of speech up to a year by months
For clarity and your convenience, we have arranged the speech up to a year in the form of a table:
The development of a child's speech by months to a year |
|
| Age, months | Speech development up to a year by months |
| 1 month | The kid begins to understand when he is addressed, and looks at the speaker with interest |
| 2 months | The cry has an intonation, the facial expressions of the baby are actively developing. By the intonation of the cry, you can determine what the baby wants |
| 3 months | Beginning of the "buzz". The child pronounces vowel sounds with pleasure and begins to try the consonants “g”, “k”, “n”. When communicating, the baby looks at the “interlocutor” |
| 4 months | First laugh |
| 5 months | The kid tries to pronounce sounds “in a chant”, there is an intonation in the voice |
| 6 months | At this age, the child begins to speak the first syllables, speech begins to develop. It is important to communicate with the baby as often as possible, talk, sing songs, tell fairy tales, conduct a “dialogue” with him |
| 7 months | The baby actively uses his voice to attract attention, observes his mother's reaction to the sounds he utters |
| 8 months | First babbling and first unconscious words - the baby begins to pronounce repeated sounds and syllables, such as “ma-ma-…”, “ba-ba-…”, “boo-boo-…” |
| 9 months | Active babbling and the emergence of non-verbal communication with gestures, the beginning of play behavior |
| 10 months | The appearance of the first conscious words - “mom”, “dad”, “woman”, “on” ... |
| 11 months | Vocabulary expansion. At this age, it is important to show how to pronounce sounds correctly - with the help of game gymnastics for the tongue, lips, cheeks. It's time for toys that develop the speech apparatus - whistles, harmonicas, pipes. It is necessary to show and explain to the baby what this or that word means. |
| 12 months | At the age of one, the baby already understands what is being said to him and can fulfill simple requests. He has already mastered several dozen words (of which he can pronounce 8-12 words and understands up to 50 words) and, with the help of facial expressions and gestures, he can conduct a “dialogue” with you. At this age, try to talk more with the baby so that he pronounces himself or repeats simple words after you. |
All of these stages follow each other, but, given the individual characteristics of the child and the saturation of communication with adult family members, they may shift in time. If the mother talks little with the baby, does not conduct a dialogue with him, it is naive to expect early speech development from him.
Stages of speech development
Let us consider in more detail each of the stages of the development of a child's speech from birth to a year.
Is your baby over 10 months old?
Yes!Not
Scream period
The first two weeks of life are unconditioned reflexes to such stimuli as hunger, temperature discomfort, pain. And upon receiving the desired crumb calms down. In addition to hearing the crying of the baby - his voice, parents spontaneously form a stereotype - attracting attention with their voice.
In the third week of life, with the progressive formation of the oral cavity and tongue (the process of sucking), he begins to pronounce individual simple vowel sounds, not so clearly, but quite understandable. At the same time, the baby develops hearing and vision. It is activated by hearing the voice of the mother, can stop looking at stationary objects. And the more often he hears the voice of his mother, the calmer he becomes, he latently feels his security. But the cry is still present, it can be expressed as a form of communication and develop simultaneously with the ability to speak.
The cry continues until about the beginning of the third month, only it changes, and a sensitive mother can already hear intonations: joy, pleasure, pain, anger, etc.
The crying phase can even last until the baby already knows how to pronounce individual simple words. This is a kind of communication.
What is needed during this period? The peculiarities of this phase are that parents, and the mother, first of all, must create the necessary conditions for the formation of hearing and vision: it is necessary that the sound of rattles, motionless, bright and colorful objects surround the child as often as possible. It is necessary to develop tactile sensations by putting small toys with different textures into the baby's palm.
And be sure to talk! Say more often the sounds available for repetition by the baby.
coo baby
Repeating simple vowel sounds from 2 to 6 months, the baby is humming. But already consonants join the vowels: x, g, k. Moreover, the child manages to combine them into simple syllables: gu, agu, ku, etc. The most interesting thing is that children of different nations combine them in the same way, regardless of the language of their parents.
Cooing in a child occurs most often unconsciously: looking at a toy, swimming, touching any objects, but at the same time it can already be observed that his “speech” is a reaction to the voice or appeal of mom or dad. These are the first manifestations of a conscious desire to communicate. The baby can look into the eyes and wait for a response with facial expressions.
What should parents do in the second phase of the formation of the ability to speak? TALK! But only in the language of the child, pronouncing simple, already familiar syllables. Such verbal communication can be recognized without difficulty. When there is a pause in the voice of mom or dad, he tries to answer you with the same sounds. He seems to be trying words and sounds, trying to catch the intonation.
An excellent way to promote the formation of the speech apparatus will be massage of the fingers on the hands. This is important for the development of fine motor skills, and the ability to use both hands in the future.
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