Parents await baby’s first word with a vigilance that rivals the arrival of baby himself.

The ability to communicate is one of the markers of leaving babyhood and entering full personhood.  In about 17 years, this ability will also be a marker of leaving home, and entering college.  Got SAT scores?

Talkative Toddlers defined:

Toddler

Well, to be precise I’ll define a toddler as someone who might or might not walk alone yet.  And if he does walk, he might or might not do it with unsteady steps, hence the word, toddle.

To be imprecise, yet ironically more accurate to the way the word is used, I’ll decree that a toddler is generally considered to be a child between the ages of 12 and 36 months.  A child with one or two birthdays behind him.

Talkative

The ability to use, understand, enjoy, practice, or respond to a developmentally-appropriate quantity of spoken language sounds, body language cues, and meanings.

Your 12 to 24 month-old will be talkative when he:

• Uses words and/or body language to express himself.
• Learns enough words to follow simple instructions.
• Has favorite songs, fingerplays, poems, or stories.  And enjoys hearing them repeated.
• Speaks baby jargon.  This interesting phenomenon sounds like “real” speech because of your baby’s ability to imitate grownup speech rhythms and vocal inflections.

Your 24 to 36 month-old will be a talkative one when he:

• Speaks in sentences.  Two and three words, at first.
• Understands orientational words like under, over, on, behind, in, out, and front.
• Is able to follow more complex instructions.
• Remember the words to his favorite songs, fingerplays, poems, or stories.  He’ll even say the words along with you as you read.
• Enjoys naming things.  Pictures in books, body parts, environmental graphics and print.

Success Secrets Revealed:

1. Talkative toddlers began life as talked-to babies.
2. They were seen and heard.  Adults spoke Parentese to them, listened to their cues, respected their requests.
3. Their parents knew what to expect.  Their loved ones understood that babies can understand more words, and understand them sooner than they can express those very words.
4. Talkative toddlers are multimedia-savvy.  In addition to words, there are songs, poems, and storybooks in their world.
5. They had role models.  Their big people (parents, siblings) played with songs, poems, conversations, books —  words in general.

I’m talking about the ability to talk.  There are differences in temperament, learning styles, and personality that will determine some children’s communication preferences.  Those traits are for people to choose and honor as they grow.  It is the work of parents to make sure that children have words at the ready when they want to use them.

That used be called “Mother -wit.”  Now it’s called psychosomatic.

It’s a rare instinct that hasn’t been dulled by disrespect, replaced by reference libraries, or made out to be too primitive for these technology-based times.

The way that parents (most adults actually, in every studied culture, the world over) automatically talk when they’re talking to babies is an anthropological victory.  In the baby biz, we call that special language “Parentese.”

As an attuned parent, you are learning your infant’s rhythms, preferences, and habits, so of course you’re learning your family’s new language.  But surely you’ve also witnessed something like this:

While mother shops, a young baby sits contentedly in her stroller, minding her own business, conducting a taste test on her toes.  A middle-aged stranger strolls by, glimpses baby’s fresh face, perfect contentment, perfectly cute outfit, and becomes enchanted by all that happiness and all those pastels.

Within seconds, the grumpy lady who hasn’t faked niceness to her own neighbors since the last hurricane warning is overtaken by her instinct to communicate with a baby.  And of course, to be answered back.  A smile, a giggle, a wiggle — even a brief glance will do.  To ensure her chances of success, the lady formerly known as grumpy will: