STIIMULATING
INFANT LANGUAGE
DEVELOPMENT
I. INTRODUCTION AND
BACKGROUND**
Research: human brains
begin development very early
Early months and years of life
are critical and can be
predictive of eventual lifetime
achievement
Youtube…
• 3 month old baby clearly says I
love you
• Amazing!
Sheehan (Stanford Child
Neurology); child’s brain is:
The research of Fowler and
colleagues:**
2 groups of babies
Group A: began language stimulation
at 4 months
Group B: began language stimulation
at 12 months
Justice, L. & Redle (2014).
Communication sciences and
disorders: A clinical evidencebased approach (3rd ed.)
Turnbull & Justice 2012 summarize
research of key indicators of
caregiver responsiveness:
Research of Tamis-LeMonda
and colleagues:
One study showed that:
The most powerful
mechanism…
Youtube
• Still face experiment
• Shows how important caregiver
responsiveness is!
II. GENERAL LANGUAGE
STIMULATION IDEAS
Cheap, easy--daily life!
1. Start talking to the baby at
birth**
Face to face
contact is ideal
2. Begin reading to the baby
very early
When reading to the baby,**
 Use simple books with colorful
pictures
 Label common objects and
actions for the baby (“Look—
bear. The bear is eating.”)
Youtube
• Early Literacy: Sharing
Language
One of my personal
favorites:
My children’s book
program…
• Emphasizes Love, Talk, Read
Not this!!
3. Introduce music**
Sing to the baby
Play music
The baby can play!
4. Ask questions
5. Introduce 2 languages
from birth
6. Introduce the baby
7. Play turntaking games**
Peek-a-boo
Patty cake
8. Remember that most
newborns
9. Put a safe-glass mirror**
In the baby’s crib
Point out and label her body
parts
10. Imitate sounds the baby
makes
11. Use greetings and
expressions
12. When cleaning the house
or going on errands…
13. Provide many
opportunities
14. Make sure
Even paper can work!
• Youtube
• Baby laughing
at ripping paper
• Micah is 8
months old
Youtube
Hysterical over bubbles
What are some common house hold
items that the baby can play with?
What are some cheap/free activities
to do?
15. Let the baby
16. Label
17. Use the same words
18. Start a scrapbook**
 Soft cotton cloth book
 Cut favorite animals and favorite objects
out of fuzzy cloth; glue them into the book
 Go through the scrapbook with the baby;
have him feel the pictures as you name
them
 You can also let the baby touch other
pictures and objects
III. LABELING PLAY: THE
RESEARCH OF WILLIAM
FOWLER**
Labeling play: naming
common objects that
babies encounter in their
daily experiences
There are ways to
specifically do this that
make words easier to learn
The keys:
For example:**
There’s the cat.
Here’s your
bottle!
I see Grandpa.
Advantages of Word Labeling
over Ordinary Speech:
Ordinary speech: proceeds
in the background, unrelated
to baby’s attention or
interest
Word labeling: engages
baby’s attention directly
There’s the doggy! See
the doggy?
Word labeling:
Ordinary
conversation:
Word labeling:
Ordinary conversation:
The bottom line is…..
variety!