Our little toddlers are extremely inquisitive and always learning, and that’s a good thing! What we as parents can do is to help them out in fun and easy ways – they’re still young and while they’re definitely smarter than we think (have you seen them play with our smartphones?), we have to tailor the way educational activities are presented to them!

Our aim shouldn’t be to force-feed knowledge to them in hopes of producing a genius, but to build a foundation for them to remain curious throughout their life. Like the saying goes, “give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime” – so we’ll be nurturing their desire to learn through their own abilities!

1. Label Household Objects

Choose several objects at home to stick a label on, like your television, drawer, fridge, cabinet, chairs, tables. Get some cute paper, write the name of the object in big, easy to read letters and use some blu-tack to stick it on the object. If your child is able to recognise and read letters, ask them to read out the individual letters and help them with pronouncing the word if they need help. 

If they’re too young to read, help them out by reading the letters to them, and then the whole word. Show and tell them what the object does, keep repeating yourself daily, and they’ll eventually come to understand the name of the object.

2. Sing a Song, Learn Some Words

Nursery rhymes are catchy and a great way for our children to pick up new words. Some classic nursery rhymes include the Alphabet Song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Itsy Bitsy Spider! Not only do our children like the sound of these songs, they’ll also begin to hum along and repeat those words too!

Not only are our children learning new words, they’re learning how to hold a tune! Introduce singing in the car and at home, and you’ll be surprised at how much they’ll learn through singing.

3. Introducing Responsibility

This tip works hand in hand with the first tip where you label your household objects – let your child help you out with keeping and organising things in their proper places. You could start with things like putting their toys in the storage containers (label it as ‘ToyBox 1’ and so forth) after they’re done playing with them, then proceed to their clothes (teaching them a simple way of folding clothes will help their fine motor skills too!).

Once they’re used to it, you can actually turn it into a game! Ask them where the ‘homes’ of certain items are, and deliberately put items in the wrong places to get your children to move them to the right places.

4. Using Textures to Engage Toddlers

As mentioned before, toddlers love using their senses to learn and experience things! They grab, sniff, and bite almost anything that they can get their little hands on – all out of curiosity and without malicious intent.

Another easy way to get them started on the alphabet and numbers is to make use their sense of touch! Write the letters of the alphabet and numbers on a large sheet of drawing block/art paper, and then decorate the letters with your child – use items with a range of different textures, like cotton balls, glitter, beans, sandpaper, pasta, and any other items with unique textures!

Let them trace out the way the letters and numbers are written, and read it out to them as they trace it. After a week or two, do the same with names – their own name and the names of family members – and once again read out the letters, along with the names after they’re done with tracing those letters.

5. Make a Book With Shapes

There are a ton of books out there that teach kids about shapes, but what about creating one of your own? You can use a cute notebook and draw out the basic shapes on it as a guide for your toddler to look at, then flip through magazines or newspapers with them and pick out shapes that match those in the notebook. Once they find matching shapes, cut them out and paste them in the book!

You can also use your camera on your phone to capture photos of objects with distinct shapes while you’re out and about with your family, then print them out and paste them in the book too.

Pregnancy and Baby Singapore provides you with the latest news and practical tips to help you in your parenting journey. For more tips on your pregnancy and baby in Singapore, subscribe to our mailing list and like us on Facebook, to receive new articles for mummies like you every week!

When looking at gender differences in development, it can be difficult to tell if those difference are from biology or from social pressure. But researches have found that there isn’t much difference between baby boys and girls. There is a difference – but subtle ones.

Gender identity

Toddlers may know their gender by the time they are 3 years old but they are not fully aware of what that means. They will choose the toys they want to play with, whether it’s a truck or a doll, it makes no difference to them.

Between 3 – 4 years old is when they will start to be more aware and choose the toys they think are appropriate for them. It’s also around this age when they start playing with friends of the same gender.

Getting dressed

On average, girls learn how to do more detailed and complicated tasks earlier than boys. Such as dressing themselves and doodling. This, however, also depends on their fine motor skills, which develops differently with each child.

Interaction

Girls tend to develop social skills earlier than boys. However, this also is dependent on the upbringing of the child. The situation which their brought up in affects their interaction skills. Example, toddlers with elder sibling tend to be more comfortable with interacting with other kids.

Physical activity

Generally, boys are more active and restless than girls – but this is just a small difference. All kids, regardless of gender, just loves moving around. They need at least 3 hours of activity a day to satisfy their need to get up and about.

There is however, studies to prove that boys are slightly more likely to let their frustrations show compared to girls.

Potty training

Girls do tend to be potty trained a few months ahead of boys. Not quite sure why this is though. Perhaps it’s because boys are more restless and the action of peeing takes more practice and focus.

For more pregnancy and childcare tips, subscribe to our mailing list and like us on Facebook, to receive new articles for mummies like you every week!

Praise, correctly used, is a powerful and indispensable tool that any parent can use to raise a child right. Kids World finds out more.

Imagine this typical scenario. Your child throws a temper tantrum after you tell her to go to bed. She starts throwing her toys and clothes around the room. Most parents will see red. Some will attempt to calm the child down, or reason with her.

Eventually the child does go to bed, but only after she’s picked up her stuff. This could be either her punishment for messing up, or that reasoning with her worked. You tuck her in, give her a goodnight kiss but oops, you forget to praise her for clearing up the mess.

Should you have praised her, or was it unnecessary as she was being disciplined? To many of us, praise should be meted out if our children do the things that meet our expectations within the social norm, or if it’s good and positive behavior that leads to an accomplishment.

In the above situation, it won’t matter to some parents that something remotely good came out of the experience (e.g. she put her stuff away). What they focus on is the initial undesirable behaviour, so they nag and scold, when in fact, they should praise.

Praising Her Won’t Spoil Her

Praising her for picking up her toys won’t turn her into a spoilt brat, even though it may seem that way. What matters is how the praise is given, and that’s where effective praising and effective parenting come into play.

Subconsciously, parents find themselves giving out love and approval to their children only when they are being “good”. They deny praise when kids are “bad”. How then, should this be tackled? Especially in the opening scenario, how should praise be given without spoiling the child?

It certainly helps if the praise is specific and within the right time frame. Be firm and genuine in your praising, not artificial or forced.

Here’s an example of artificial praising in the wrong time frame; that is, before she picks up her toys. It is actually unintentional manipulation of a child’s behaviour:

“Go and show me that you’re a good girl and pick your toys up. Okay, that’s a good girl.”

And here’s an example of specific praising in the right time frame, after she has cleared her toys voluntarily:

“I know you’re sorry for throwing a tantrum because you picked your toys up and put them away. Good girl.”

Continue on next page..

---

Praise Builds Self-Esteem

By praising genuinely and correctly, we bolster a child’s self-esteem, confidence and even integrity. We affirm the child’s positive actions, without overlooking her negative ones. The situation mentioned is an extreme example of how praise could have come into play.

There are more obvious situations, which usually involve accomplishments and good behaviour. But the bottom line is, children generally respond well to praise.

“Praise helps most when it conveys not only your approval but lots of information about what your child is doing right,” says Rex Forehand, co-author of Parenting the Strong-Willed Child.

Praising is part of the reward package that parents can give to their children. The first type of reward is of course, the material reward. Some children may, at first, respond only to material rewards, like a sweet, a toy, or money.

But child experts advise that once desired behaviour has been established with a material reward, it should be maintained by a combination of material and social rewards. Social rewards, as opposed to material rewards, are actions that someone adopts to create positive feelings in another person. Praise is a social reward.

Once you’ve combined material and social rewards for your child, you can progress on to just social rewards alone. This will inhibit the development of a situation where the child behaves well only to obtain the material reward. The child should eventually learn to “feel good” merely by the genuine, affirmative tone of your voice and the love and nurturing quality in your actions.

Following on are some strategies on how best to praise your child:

• Affirm Realised Expectations
  Your husband is sick and resting at home on a school holiday. As he retreats to the bedroom for some rest, tell (don’t command) your four- and six-year-old kids that they can’t make too much noise or they’ll disturb daddy. 
  
  Throughout the day, as the children adhere to your expectations, praise them. When the day is over and your husband joins the rest of the family for dinner, express your pride in your kids to your husband on their good behaviour, and ensure they are within earshot.
   
• Observe New Accomplishments
  Your little five-year-old boy has just learnt to perform a cartwheel, and he rushes home after school to tell you the fantastic news. You respond with, “Really? That’s great!” Then ask him to demonstrate to you his new skill. Your active presence and observation of his accomplishment serves to emphasise your verbal praise, which further fuels his confidence.
   
• Praise Throughout the Learning Curve
  Your child is being toilet trained, and the first time he does it on the potty, reward him with praise. Even if he slips up subsequently, don’t be harsh on him as he might feel your praise wasn’t genuine the first time around. And if he does it consistently on the potty, continue to praise him each time and don’t consider it a given fact that he knows you’re proud of him. Always applaud your child’s efforts to improve.
   
• Notice Appropriate Behaviour First
  Your child has finished her meal and with minimal sloppiness. But she hasn’t put her bowl in the sink. Instead of nagging at her, say, “you’ve finished eating. How neat you’ve been today… that’s good.” Pause, then say, “now don’t forget to clear your plate.” The child will soon realise that you took time first to notice the correct behaviour, before pointing out what needed to be done next to complete the task satisfactorily.
   
• Offering Unconditional Praise
  Sometimes, your child needs to do absolutely nothing to receive praise from you. Out of the blue, tell her how much you love her, how glad you are that she is your child, and that even though you get angry at times, how much you still adore her. This does wonders to enhance a child’s sense of self-worth. She will feel that she doesn’t need to exhibit the correct behaviour or accomplish tasks successfully all the time in order to be loved and appreciated. Take time to celebrate the less obvious things in life, instead of waiting for major milestones or achievements to happen.
   
• Praise that Serves the Child’s Purpose
  A child also has his own purposes to fulfill, not just his parents’. Usually, he will attempt to do these developmental activities with quiet determination, without you egging him on or under your watchful eye. Examples are, your baby trying to walk, your toddler trying to write, your school-going child trying to master his times tables, and even your child trying to perfect his piano playing.
  
  Once you’ve gotten wind of what your child is trying to do on his own independently and using his own initiative, use this observation to describe to him what you’ve noticed and that you are aware. Gradually, he will feel appreciated because he will realise that you’ve made the effort to support and encourage his independent attempts to learn and improve his skills.

While these guidelines for effective praise is by no means a comprehensive list, it will put you on the right footing to nurture a happy, well-adjusted child. “Remember that making your child feel special is one of your most important tasks as a parent,” says Anita Landau Hurtig, a paediatric psychologist from the Department of Paediatrics at the University of Illinois, Chicago.

“No one can build a child’s self-esteem the way a parent can.”

Continue on next page...

---

Avoiding the Praise Trap

Using praise the wrong way is more harmful than an abundance of praise. “The problem is not that praise itself is bad,” says Robert Walrath, a child psychologist in Bedford, NH, USA. “It’s that many parents and teachers are using it inappropriately. They think they have to be positive all the time, or their children will become psychologically damaged.”

In order to use praise correctly, here are a few common mistakes to avoid:

1. Don’t flatter and gush. “The main problem with inflated praise is that kids eventually learn to tune it out. It then loses its ability to build confidence and erodes children’s trust – in themselves and you,” says Linda Braun, executive director of Families First, a parenting programme in Cambridge, Massachusetts. 
    
2. Don’t praise too often, inappropriately. When the excessive praise is used for anything and everything, children “may have trouble appreciating their real accomplishments later on, when you praise them sincerely,” says Martin Seligman, author of The Optimistic Child
    
3. Don’t overlook the child. This happens when there is an over-emphasis on the accomplishment, rather than the child. The child will end up equating his self-worth with his tangible successes. If he fails, then his self-esteem will dip drastically.
    
4. Don’t pressure him. Alternate your ways of praise. If your child does something right and you reward him each time with a sticker or star, he’ll end up being overdriven and silently pressured. Your child should progress at his own pace without feeling that doing good is like taking part in a competition.

 

Subscribe to our mailing list and LIKE our Pregnancy and Baby Facebook page for the latest updates on parenting! 

Do you take pride in your toddler’s growing skill sets? Do you want to help him overcome his shyness and grow confident too? Well, if you can relate to the above situations reading this post is a good idea!

As a parent, your duty is not just to provide food, clothing and shelter for your toddler but also to prepare him to face the world. It is your responsibility to develop your little darling into a confident individual. Are you looking for some tips on help how to build confidence in toddlers? Fret not! Go ahead and give this post a read!

1. Encourage Him To Solve Problems:

If your toddler is struggling with a task, do not try to solve his problem instead show him how he can himself deal with a tricky situation. By doing this, you will help your toddler learn to tackle his problems independently without your spoon feeding.

2. Motivate Your Toddler:

Motivate your toddler to learn new things. For example, take him to the garden and encourage him to water the plants. He will feel his responsibility towards nature, improve his motor skills in a fun way and will feel confident of doing tasks independently.

3. Praise Him:

If you want to know how to build confidence in toddlers, then start appreciating him for little efforts. Whether he plays a game well or learns a new skill, try to praise your little one. Doing this, will give a boost to his self-confidence, and will motivate him to keep up the good work.

4. Stop Over-Watching:

It is good to keep an eye on your toddler’s activities so that he is safe. But constantly hovering over your toddler is not a healthy habit. Your toddler will not feel confident of his abilities and will constantly seek your guidance and intervention.

5. Support Your Toddler:

Whatever task your toddler takes up, support him in his endeavor. It will boost your toddler’s confidence as he will know he has a strong support system. Going forward he will not hesitate in taking small risks.

6. Play With Your Toddler:

Playing with your toddler is the best way to communicate with him in his language and understand his psyche. Toddlers also gain confidence and develop social skills when they interact with others while playing.

7. Accept Him:

Accepting your toddler the way he is, helps him become a confident individual in the long run. On the other hand, comparing your toddler with his peers will make him doubt his abilities. He may develop an inferiority complex early on in life.

8. Listen To Your Toddler:

You should not always dictate your toddler what he should do and what he shouldn’t. It is also extremely important to lend a patient ear to your little one and listen to what he has to say. It will help your toddler confide in you and learn to express himself more confidently. This will help in building confidence in toddlers & will also help in building an open communication channel with him that will last a lifetime.

9. Learn From Him:

As a parent, you must be adding a feather to your cap every time you teach your toddler a new skill. Sometimes it is better to turn the tables and become the student while your toddler dons the hat of a teacher. For example, ask your toddler how he selected the color for a painting. Your inquisitiveness will make your toddler feel capable, and he will be brimming with confidence in his abilities.

10. Make Him Follow The Rules:

Every home should have some discipline, rules, and regulations. Whether it’s time for getting up or going to bed or having meals, it is necessary to help your toddler follow a routine. You should also help your toddler to follow a code of conduct. Inculcating good habits in the initial years will help him develop a confident personality.

Now you know the magic mantras to turn your toddler more confident. Why wait? Try them today and watch them work wonders for his personality.

Subscribe to our mailing list and LIKE US on Facebook for useful insights on parenthood!

Article written by Hansika Kaushik

Does your child face difficulty while spelling words? Does he find it difficult to distinguish letters? If you said yes, you might want to seek medical attention, he could have dyslexia. Read our post here to learn more about dyslexia in toddlers. Here, we will help parents understand what dyslexia is and develop a plan to decide the future course of action.

Parents have the most important role to play in a child’s life, and if the child is dyslexic, it might become more challenging.

What Is Dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a learning disability, where the affected child finds it difficult to read and understand words, letters, and other symbols. Dyslexia does not affect the child’s general intelligence. It is a chronic condition. Your child might need your support and it is only your belief and help that can make him confident

Causes Of Dyslexia In Toddlers:

The causes of dyslexia are not known, but according to experts, some possible causes of dyslexia may include:

• Dyslexia is a genetic disorder, and hence genes might be one of the reasons for dyslexia. 40% of children whose siblings are dyslexic might have reading and spelling issues.

• It is a misconception that dyslexic kids are not bright, they are extremely intelligent, but their brain looks a bit different than normal brains. Brain anatomy might be one of the causes of dyslexia.

The causes of dyslexia are not known, but according to experts, some possible causes of dyslexia may include:

• Dyslexia is a genetic disorder, and hence genes might be one of the reasons for dyslexia. 40% of children whose siblings are dyslexic might have reading and spelling issues.

• It is a misconception that dyslexic kids are not bright, they are extremely intelligent, but their brain looks a bit different than normal brains. Brain anatomy might be one of the causes of dyslexia.

Signs Of Dyslexia In Toddlers:

The symptoms of learning and attention issues differ from one child to another. While a few kids might have reading and spelling troubles, the others might battle to read from left to right. Some typical dyslexia symptoms in toddlers include:

• Trouble with school work

• Poor handwriting

• Difficulty remembering numbers

• Cannot multi-task, might have trouble in following the set sequence of directions.

Diagnosing Dyslexia In Toddlers:

There is no single test for detecting dyslexia in toddlers. The doctor will consider and evaluate your child on various factors like:

• The speed of development, issues in education and medical history.
   
• The atmosphere in which the child is brought up, life at home and who all live in the family.
• The doctor might also want the parent or teacher to answer certain questions to be able to understand the condition better.

• An eye test, ear test, and brain test determines whether some other disorder causes the poor readability.

• A set of educational tests, an expert may analyze the quality of reading.

Treating Dyslexia In Toddlers:

Dyslexia is a lifelong condition, but with training techniques, your child can overcome the learning disability. Children who get help since kindergarten might have substantial improvement, which helps them succeed in primary school and beyond.

It is crucial to address the problem early so that the right line of treatment can help your toddler overcome the condition. Read aloud to him; make him listen to recorded books. When he is a little older, read stories together. Encourage him to read every day, and make the practice enjoyable.

Subscribe to our mailing list and LIKE US on Facebook to stay updated on the latest parenting tips!

Article written by Payal Morjaria

Now that you’re done with a major portion of parenting as a new mom, it’s time to move on to certain unexplored horizons. Till now, you probably had to worry about your baby’s diet, his diapers and his seasonal cold; but now, it’s time to help him learn to speak, understand and react.

The first year of your child is crucial when it comes to language development, and you need to be extremely motivated and committed during this period while helping your child hone the skills. It is believed that babies develop the foundation for language development as early as first 12 months, and the process keeps on going till around 3 years of age, where the child begins to understand and speak.

Language is the basis of your child’s ability to communicate with others, express his feelings and supports problem solving and thinking. Make sure you know everything about your child’s first step into developing language skills.

Stages Of Language Development In Children:

As your kid progresses into the third month, you will start noticing signs of interaction from his side, which is the first sign language development in your kid.

Here we have outlined the stages of language development in early childhood.

3 – 12 months:

During this period, your baby is more likely to laugh, coo and try to communicate using gestures. Remember that babbling is actually an important part of language development, and you need to encourage it. If you find that your baby’s babbles resemble a particular actual word, encourage him to speak that word often in order to master it.

12 – 18 months:

By this period, your baby will begin to try and speak out one-word utterances. It is during this period of time that you will find your baby attempting to speak and communicate a lot, and if you find your baby strangely quiet, you may need to visit your pediatrician.

18 months – 2 years:

As your baby approaches his second year, his vocabulary will have increased, and he may now be able to speak around 300 words, and will also try and speak short sentences. The language development at this stage varies in children; so if your baby is speaking a lot more than you expect him to, doesn’t worry- just give him some time.

2 – 3 years:

At this stage, your toddler will be able to speak longer, complex sentences and will start answering your questions easily. Most strangers will now be able to understand what your child speaks during this age, and he may also play and talk at the same time, multi-tasking.

3 – 5 years:

Your child is now a preschooler, and you can now expect him to speak longer, complex sentences. He will now be curious and may start asking you questions about different things. This is the right time to help him improve his grammar and vocabulary by encouraging him to read out simple sentences and words from a picture book.

5 – 6 years:

These are the early years at Primary School for your child and your kid will now understand a good number of words and how to put them together. He will now be able to start sentence construction better.

Tips On How To Promote Language Development In Children:

Now, that you understood the ideas of language development of a child, let us help you with the same. Here is a list of some of the best ways where you could encourage children language development.

 1. Treat Your Baby As Though He Can Talk:

Even if he just babbles or makes funny sounds, he is attempting to speak. It is a good sign.

 2. Follow Your Child’s Lead In Conversations:

If he himself starts with a conversation, allow him to speak out and explain himself, and reply him with a little pat on his back. A little appreciation matters a lot deal to your baby.

 3. Speaks Words:

If your kid successfully says a word and pronounces it correctly, repeat that word a few times again to help your child to understand it even better.

4. Encourage Bedtime Stories:

They help your kid understand things and create interest in pronouncing the words.

 5. Picture Book Trick:

It is now a good time to get some simple picture books for your kid and help him speak out and pronounce simple words like ball, tree, etc.

 6. Introduce New Words Occasionally:

Even if your kid doesn’t understand anything, it doesn’t matter. Eventually he will learn the right usage of the word that you’re trying to teach him.

7. Talk To Him About What Is Happening:

If you’re out at a park and find an event that excites your child, describe it to him.

 8. Explain The Daily Routine:

Teach him about activities such as breakfast, lunch, dinner and sleep time.

Warning Signs Of Childhood Developmental Delay:

If you’re noticing all the signs and symptoms of your kid carrying on with his development, that’s great. But what if your child is not developing as he should? Here are a few warning signs that may help you detect your kid’s development problems early.

1. Your kid doesn’t utter phrases like ‘mama’ or ‘dada’.

2. He doesn’t babble or try to talk.

3. He doesn’t point out to interesting things.

4. He doesn’t say single words.

5. He doesn’t use hand gestures like waving, shaking or point.

6. He does not communicate when he needs help with something.

7. He does not imitate actions.

8. He does not respond to simple directions.

9. He does not use pronouns or speaks in short phrase.

10. He has difficulty interacting with other kids or people.

11. He stutters frequently.

12. He does not use pronouns properly.

If your child is affected by developmental delays, don’t lose heart. There are a good number of therapies and options you could turn to handle language disorders.

Subscribe to our mailing list and LIKE US on Facebook to stay updated on the latest parenting tips!

Article written by Enozia Vakil

Every parent waits eagerly for their toddler’s first word. Not only is it cute, but it also gives your baby an ability to express his or her wants and needs. This is probably the best moment of any parent’s life, to hear their toddler speak for the first time.

While this is common, it is also true that there are many toddlers who face speech delay. If your toddler is still waiting to speak the first word, don’t panic yet.

Language And Speech Delay In Toddlers:

Though they may sound the same thing, in reality, speech and language delays are different from each other. Speech delay refers to the delay in producing sound by organs like the vocal cord, mouth tongue teeth etc., while language delay is the delay in using knowledge of language.

A toddler may be delayed in speech but not in language. For instance, a toddler may attempt to build up language but it would be difficult for him to understand due to speech delay.

Signs Of Speech Delay:

Beginning from 12 month if your toddler does not perform the following, it is something you should immediately check with your doctor:

1. 12 To 15 Months:

By this age, your toddler should start saying simple words like mama, papa.

Should be using gestures like:

• Pointing
• Waving
• Vocalizing

2. 18 To 24 Months:

By this age, your toddler should be able to point out few body parts like nose, teeth, eyes and so on.

Should be able to:

• Imitate action and sound.
• Speak at least 15 words, or 2 word sentence.

3. 19 To 24 Months:

By this age, your toddler should be able to learn new words each week.

Should be able to:

• Follow direction and commands
• Use spontaneous word
• Identify family members well

Most parents think that their children do not follow their instruction. Sometimes, this could also be a result of another valid reason, like hearing and vision inadequacy. Such things generally cause speech delay.

Reasons For Delayed Speech Development In Toddlers:

Speech and language delay is the most common developmental delay. There can be a number of reasons behind it:

• Hearing loss due to infection.
• Autism which leads to impairment in social activities.
• Learning disabilities.
• Exposure to different language at a time.
• Problem in the brain or central nervous system.
• Larynx problem.

Treatment:

If your doctor confirms that your child is suffering from developmental delay, you should visit a specialist who works with children.

Here is how most specialists will proceed with the treatment:

• Speech therapy is used by most speech pathologists.
• Treatment for ear infection or hearing test.
• Holistic Method for speech induction which includes rhythmic breathing techniques, myokinetic exercises etc.
• Therapies for children who have autism.
• Sign language.

How To Help A Child With Speech Delay?

If your child’s hearing is fine but still there is speech delay, here is what you can do to help:

1. Talk more with your child. Verbalize everything, example, mamma is cooking, as baby needs to eat food.
2. Ask questions to your toddlers. Encourage them to answer.
3. Read books aloud. Let your child hear it and pronounce.
4. Spend quality time together.
5. Make your child socialize more with other kids.
6. Never criticize your child’s speech.
7. Don’t lose patience. Let your child develop naturally.
8. If everything fails and you see no improvement, seek help from your pediatrician.

Effect On Children:

Speech and language delay can have the following effects on children:

• The child may tend to suffer from behavioral, social and emotional problems, both in childhood as well as adulthood.
• A gradual decline in learning
• Difficulty in reading and understanding
• Problems with bonding with peers
• Communication issues
• Lack of self-confidence and self-esteem.

While speech and language delay in children is something that can make any parent worry, it is also important to remember that all children reach developmental milestones at a different age and pace. Your child may not be speaking right now, but chances are, he will speak more than his friends in a few months’ time.

Do discuss the delays with your child’s doctor, but remember never to force your child to reach a milestone. In case the doctor confirms that there is a delay, talk about the various therapies that can be used and select what is best for your child.

Subscribe to our mailing list and LIKE US on Facebook to stay updated on the latest parenting tips!

Article written by Sudeshna Guhasarkar