Encouraging Talk In Babies Aged 9-12 Months

Help your baby learn to identify parts of the body by talking about them when you bathe them and dress or undress them. For example, when you take off their socks, you could say, “Here’s your foot!” and count their toes. Or you could play a game and lift up their singlet and say with surprise, “There’s your tummy!”

Your baby is now using many different sounds and pitches of voice. They will be saying ‘ma-ma’ and ‘da-da’, respond to their name, and turn and look with interest at where new sounds are coming from.

At this age, baby wants to engage you in their play, to share what they are doing with you. This is a great opportunity for language development. For example they may look at a brightly coloured toy, such as a red ball they have in front of them, pause in their play and then look at you. They want a reaction. Look at your baby and describe the object. You could say, “That is a ball, that is a red ball, Mummy will give you the ball,” with emphasis on the word ‘ball’ in each sentence. This form of reinforcement helps your baby learn new words.