Speech-Language Activities for the 6-to-12 Month-Old

· Respond to your child’s coos, gurgles, and babbling; treat these utterances as if they were real language.

· Talk to your child during your daily care activities.

· Read colorful books to your child every day.

· Keep your speech rather simple and concrete.

· Recite nursery rhymes and sing songs.

· Show interest in all the different sounds you hear (ice clinking in a glass, doorbell ringing, rain falling).

· Share eye contact during the give-and-take of your interaction as your child coos and babbles.

· Take your child with you to new places and situations.

· Play simple games such as Peek-a-Boo and Pat-a- Cake, with your child.

· Play simple music for your child.

· Show delight with your child’s efforts to communicate.