Carrie Bickmore shares adorable video of her toddler’s first words and shows how to teach your child to talk
“I could listen to her little voice all day.”
The day that your baby’s babble turns into identifiable words is a huge landmark in their development. But what words will they say first?
Carrie Bickmore has shared a sweet video to Instagram of her 17-month-old daughter, Adelaide (nicknamed Addie) knowing her animal sounds.
When The Project host and mum-of-three asks her youngest “What noise does a cat make?”
Addie is quick to respond in a loud and clear voice, “Meow.”
Carrie captioned the clip and the milestone moment: “I could listen to her little voice all day.” Cute!
Babies will all learn to speak and get words out at their own pace, there is no set timeline, however most will begin to develop some language at around 11-14 months.
Using songs, games, like learning animal sounds as Carrie is doing, reading books and narrating life at home as clearly as possible with a simple vocabulary will set your little one up with a great understanding of words and what they mean.
Here’s some great ways to encourage your little one’s first words.
Point to objects: Pointing to an object you’re referring to, or holding it up to show her while you’re talking about it, can help her learn its name.
Mime an action: Pantomiming actions while you’re talking about them can help your toddler understand what verbs mean. Unlike nouns, verbs aren’t always present and touchable – a ‘jump’ is only here for the split second you’re doing it – so they’re harder to learn.
READ THIS NEXT: Matching Mum & Daughter Clothes: The 13 Best Shops To Browse
Gesture as you read: Gesturing toward pictures in a book can help your toddler understand how the words she’s hearing relate to things she’s seeing. Pointing to a character while you say its name, or pantomiming actions with your fingers as they happen, will help her understand the story and learn the words.
Embrace incy wincy: Sing songs to your baby that include gestures, whether they involve bus wheels, or knees and toes.
Act out a message: The next time you find yourself telling your little one something you’d really like her to remember – for example, not eating the dog’s biscuits – don’t merely rely on your words to get the message across. As you talk, push the bowl away with your hands and grimace. And maybe, just maybe, she won’t do the same thing tomorrow!
Carrie and her partner Chris Walker are also parents to Evie, four and Oliver, 12, her son from her first marriage to late husband, Greg Lange.
