“allooooo, ow youuuuuu?” the sixteen month old asked with a big smile on her face…

This little girl never fails to amaze me. Yes, she has tremendous vocabulary for her age and understands a lot...but it has been a pleasure to watch her grow from using single words to phrases and short sentences at almost two years of age.

I watched the process as a bystander—I remember her mother telling me, “I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing by talking so much. I don’t have a point of reference you see. Everyone in my family has older children and I don’t think I paid much attention to these aspects when the kids were small.”

A parent talking too much, did she say? Here’s what happened:

“Oh you are yelling to tell me that you want something? Well this is how you ask, Please may I… Now you say it.”
“Ok, you said Peezzz…you can have the toy.”

“Do you like the beans? Good, I packed it because you like it and it makes you happy.”

“Please wait, I’ll finish talking to aunty and then I’ll come to you.”

“Is it your turn or is it my turn?”

“Oooh, she looks angry in this picture!!! Look at her face—her eyebrows (pointing to the eyebrows on the face) are touching…she looks angry.”

As you can see, this mom was right to trust her instincts. She modeled the appropriate skill, cued her daughter to approximate the words or gestures, and pointed out the non verbal aspects of communication. She used her voice to highlight certain words and concepts, to emphasize emotions and expressions and to indicate when to use a quiet voice and a loud voice.

Did the child understand and use all these skills right away? No! But she had plenty of opportunities to observe, practice and learn the correct skills.

What can you do to aid the development of pragmatic skills in your child? Start by being aware of how you communicate. Next, get to know your child’s strengths and weaknesses. Then, model, model, model…and be consistent.

Suggestions to follow:)

Ms. S