Language acquisition | Early childhood development

Language acquisition

1st month of life: Here the baby can only make sighing sounds. 2nd month of life: In this month the baby starts to spontaneously utter vowels like “uhhh” or “ahhhh”. 6th month of life: From now on, the baby uses these vowels to respond to stimuli or speech.

9th – 13th month of life: Only now does the baby try to imitate adult speech sounds. The communication between child and parents is trained further and further. 15th month of life: Approximately from this point on, the baby utters the first, long-awaited word.

Usually these are words like “mommy”, “daddy” or “puppy dog”. It also reacts to very simple requests such as “come”, “give” or “take”. It also understands the meaning of “yes” and “no”.

Some objects and their names can also be assigned, such as “bottle” or “car”. From this time on, the baby starts to speak more and more. 2nd year of age: The vocabulary here is at least 20 words and combinations of 2 words can also be formed.

3rd – 5th year of life: From now on the child can reproduce its own first and last name. The use of singular and plural words is also learned during this time. At the age of 4, the child can already talk about experiences and has greatly expanded his vocabulary. By the age of 5, the child speaks almost without mistakes.

Socialization

The interaction between mother and child or the environment and the child develops gradually, just like the other levels of early child development. In the first month, the baby’s contact with the environment consists of smiling back. In the first four to six weeks of life, this leads to a social smile.

The baby then reacts to this by being looked at or spoken to in a friendly manner. In response, the baby smiles back. The joy is then usually expressed together with the kicking of the legs.

In the 3rd month of life, the baby not only smiles in response to others, but also spontaneously. He becomes more and more interested in everything that is happening around him. This is shown by curious looking around and attention to sounds.

Communication with the environment is increasingly achieved through sounds. By the fourth month at the latest, it becomes clear that the baby is now expressing its joy or dislike by changing its facial expressions. At this age, the baby already recognizes its caregivers and stretches out its arms to them.

This bond with the parents becomes stronger and stronger in the 5th month of life. When it feels alone, it starts to cry and seeks closeness to its caregivers. On the other hand, the reluctance towards strangers also becomes more and more concrete.

With half a year it is possible for babies to interpret and empathize with the feelings of other people. The emotional development of the child runs at full speed. In the seventh month of life, the baby understands the connection between an action performed and the subsequent result.

For example, if a rattle is shaken, a sound is produced. By the ninth month of life, most babies begin to be strangers to strangers. They then like to hide in their parents’ arms.

The baby can also express its likes and dislikes better and better. By the 15th month of life, the baby is able to use a spoon and participate more and more in daily food. At the age of two, children can wash their hands independently.

At the age of three, the child starts playing with other children. In the 4th year of life the popular “Why?” follow.

– questions with which the children want to understand their world better. By the 5th year of life at the latest, the children want to and can dress themselves independently. Many children want to pick out their own clothes at this time.

They should not be slowed down. All these things belong to the process of developing independence.The following topics may also be of interest to you: When will my child be allowed to eat bread/bread crust? and KITA or childminder – Which form of care is suitable for my child?