The early age of the child is one of the important stages in human life, since it was at this time that the intensive formation of speech, cognitive processes and the motor sphere began to occur. The development of speech at an early age is strongly influenced by social and biological factors. This type of communicative activity is formed in parallel with the mental and physical development of the child in the process of ontogenesis, which is an indicator of its overall development.
Speech development
Early childhood occupies an important place in the development of the child. By this age, kids from one to three years old can be attributed. This time is most conducive to the development of native speech. As a rule, the gaps made in the development of speech at an early age are difficult to fill in more adult years.
Scientists have found that the baby's speech abilities begin to develop in the womb, and also identified factors that affect the formation of the child’s speech.
- Biological: healthy pregnancy, successful childbirth, heredity, healthy mental and physical development after birth, the correct structure of the speech centers in the brain.
- Social: a favorable developmental environment from birth, a full-fledged speech environment.
Stages of formation of a child's speech at an early age
When a child grows up a little, he already has words in his vocabulary like “woman”, “mother”, “dad”, etc., however, he understands much more and can correlate a certain word with the subject that this word is indicated. In order for the development of speech in the young group to proceed smoothly, parents should communicate with the child as often as possible: show objects, comment on their actions, and turn to the baby himself with simple requests.
In the process of development of speech of the second group of an early age, namely from two to three years, both active and passive vocabulary are formed. In addition, the child begins to better understand verbal instructions. For example, if a one-year-old child can be given one-step tasks, such as “bring me a toy,” then in the period from two to three years the child understands more complex verbal constructions that he can perform.
Typically, a two year old child should have about fifty words in his arsenal. But it is worth considering that different experts call different numbers. Therefore, there is nothing to worry about if a child of two years old has a poor vocabulary, most likely, he accumulates a passive arsenal. But if at this age the child does not speak at all, and neurological problems are noted by the parents, in this case it is necessary to consult a specialist. It is common for a two-year-old child to pronounce some words incorrectly, as a rule, the problem is sonorous, hissing and whistling sounds. Children at this age can skip them or replace them with others.
By the end of the development of speech, 2 groups of an early age, that is, three years old, have more than five hundred words in the child’s vocabulary. Some children at this time are able to build phrases and speak sentences using numbers, tenses and case forms. It is at this age that the child has numerous “whys”, which is not only a good way to cognize the world, but also a means of developing speech at an early age. Therefore, it is very important to communicate with the child and discuss everything that interests and surrounds the baby. In the event that at this age the child has a small vocabulary and does not know how to build elementary phrases, you should contact a neurologist and speech therapist, as well as engage in self-education on the development of speech of a young child.
Features of the formation of speech
Undoubtedly, each baby is individual. Some begin to recite passages from their favorite books by heart in a half to two years, while others find it difficult to make simple sentences. Is it worth it to sound the alarm? In modern psychology, two types of children with normally developing speech are distinguished: “silent” and “talkers”.
- "Silent" usually begin to speak late, but almost immediately without obvious defects. They need to get used to the new environment and it is important that they are understood. This type of children should be given increased attention when a child asks a question. But if the "silent person" does not begin to speak at a young age, namely up to three years, it is worth consulting with a specialist.
- "Talkers" like to ask questions, talk a lot and be more active in everything that surrounds them.
Scientists came to the conclusion that the high activity of the child contributes to the speedy development of speech. Thus, for the development of speech at an early age, the child should be encouraged to outdoor games.
How to help the child in the development of speech?
Each parent wants his baby to speak as soon as possible. And it is better to contribute to this with the help of certain classes on the development of speech at an early age, as well as through the sensory channel of perceiving information about the world around us, which is the main one at this age. Simply put, through touch, smell, taste, hearing and vision, you can familiarize the baby with the outside world. We suggest considering examples in more detail.
Touch
Tactile feelings for the child in the first years of life are one of the most important. Affectionate mother's touches, gymnastics, stroking, finger games, toys of various textures and shapes - all this allows you to familiarize the baby with the environment.
Hearing
From birth, it is important to introduce the baby to adult speech, the sounds of nature and music. The more the baby learns, the faster it will begin to imitate parents as they grow older.
Vision
Since birth, you can hang bright objects over the baby’s bed so that the baby learns to focus his vision and keep his attention on certain objects. As a child grows up, it’s worth introducing not only a huge assortment of toys of various colors and shapes, but also discovering something new and interesting outside the home: in a forest, in a zoo, on a river or in a city street.
Taste
It is possible to introduce the baby to the outside world in the process of feeding. Specialists recommend voicing those products that mother offers her child. Milk, juice, cottage cheese, fruit and vegetable purees are an opportunity to introduce the baby to the flora and fauna. For example, when offering a child milk, it is worth mentioning that it is given by a cow, which grazes in a meadow and says “mu”.
Sense of smell
Smells can not only enrich the perception of the environment, but also create associations in the crumbs, a certain mood, and subsequently - positive memories. The smell of freshly baked mother’s pie, wildflowers, autumn foliage - all this and much more contributes to the correct perception of the child and its development as a whole.
Large and fine motor skills
Large motor skills are responsible for the movement of the body, legs and arms. For the physical and mental health of the child, it is important to pay special attention to the active movement, and it is worth starting from the very birth of the baby. We propose to consider a lesson on the development of speech at an early age, conducted in the younger group of MDOU (see video).
A well-known fact is that fine motor skills and speech are interconnected, since the speech, motor and motor centers in the brain are located close to each other. For this reason, any activity that is aimed at stimulating fine motor skills favorably affects the formation of speech. Handy tools: buttons on clothes, shoelaces, zippers, a toothbrush and much more will become excellent simulators for the development of fine motor skills of hands.
Psychologists advice
The development of speech at an early age requires constant training, and you can help your child in this difficult matter using the following methods:
- If it seems to you that it makes no sense to talk with a newborn baby, since he still doesn’t understand anything, you should postpone these thoughts and voice your actions as often as possible during feeding, swaddling, bathing and walking.
- It is important to take time to read bright colorful books and do it daily without fail.
- Repeat various nursery rhymes and short poems as often as possible.
- When talking with a child, it is important to look him in the eye.
- It is necessary to draw the attention of the child to various objects, to describe in detail what he sees and hears.
- Instead of cartoons, include children's songs and tales.
- Speak to the child the names of loved ones and the names of all the objects that surround him.
- During the conversation, watch your speech, it is important that it be expressive, clear, competent, but at the same time simple and clear.
- Up to a year, it is typical for a baby to use simplified words in speech, for example: instead of “I want to eat,” he can say “am” or, when he sees a dog, “woof”. During the period of this age, it is worth correcting the speech reproduced by the child and enriching it with the help of new words and phrases.
- When talking with a child, you should choose a descriptive style of communication. For example, instead of “running a dog,” it’s better to say: “Look, a dog runs past us. She is black and can bark loudly. ”
- In a playful way, give your baby simple instructions (take a mug from the kitchen or a toy from the room). Connect other family members and be sure to thank the baby after completing the assignment.
- Read and use visual material as much as possible, as children at this age have difficulty hearing information.
- Ask your baby more questions, stimulating him to think and prompting answers. For everything else, always tell the child what you think and what you are doing at a certain point.
- During a conversation with the baby, show that you are listening carefully: look in the eye, answer questions, smile and nod.
- Ask your child about how his day went in kindergarten or for a walk, and after any game, always remember interesting points.
- In the development of speech of children of early and preschool age, it is important to create the right atmosphere, and parents can help in this directly. Therefore, it is important to support all the crumbs' undertakings, to praise even for minor successes, to play with him as often as possible and to devote more time, despite the workload of moms and dads.
What to look for
Each child is individual, and the process of mastering speech can occur in different ways. There is a certain list of situations in which you need to contact a specialist:
- If the baby does not cry before feeding by the end of the first month.
- If the baby by the end of the fourth month does not walk and does not smile even to parents.
- When at the seventh month of life, the baby does not respond to intonations, does not recognize the voices of loved ones.
- If by the end of the ninth month the child does not babble and cannot imitate the intonations of adults.
- In a year, the baby does not wave the handle as a sign of farewell and is not able to fulfill elementary requests (“bring”, “show”, “give”).
- If in a year and a half the child does not call dad “dad”, and his mother “mom”.
- By one year and nine months does not utter about six meaningful words.
- At two years old, it is difficult for a child to show certain parts of the body; he does not recognize loved ones in photographs. Also unable to fulfill simple requests, for example, "take a book from the room."
- At the age of three, he does not retell short tales and poems, does not name his name and surname. In addition, when at this age the child speaks very slowly or, conversely, quickly, it is also worth showing the baby to a specialist.
Common Parent Mistakes
Sometimes many parents, because of excessive guardianship, inhibit the development of the baby's speech, without noticing it. Consider the most common mistakes:
- Some parents tend to underestimate, while others, on the contrary, overestimate the speech requirements of the child. In the first case, mom and dad try to understand his desires with only one glance, and in the second, they demand from the baby that he say something specific. It often happens that in the same family they use different behaviors: for example, dad pesters: “repeat”, “say”, and mother cares. Such approaches can adversely affect the baby's speech development.
- First of all, the model for the child is the parents. Therefore, in a conversation with the baby, exclude various onomatopoeia, lisp and "baby talk". In addition, make your speech more interesting using all the diversity and richness of your native language.
- No need to accelerate the natural process of speech development of the child. The baby needs to be given a break and to avoid overwork from memorizing verses and other speech activities.
We create the right environment for the development of speech
In accordance with the Federal State Educational Standard (GEF), the development of speech at an early age requires special attention and a favorable atmosphere for the child. In order for the baby to please his parents with independent speech as soon as possible, you must do the following:
- One of the main means of developing the speech of young children is constant communication, therefore it is important to talk with the baby as often as possible on various topics.
- Speak different situations: in the process of dressing, undressing, washing, bathing, eating, walking and preparing for bed.
- The child must clearly understand what is required of him in a particular situation. The same work needs to be done during the game, when watching cartoons, reading books.