Speech Development in Youngsters

To help your infant or toddler to develop language skills, try these suggestions from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association:

• Encourage your infant to make consonant-vowel sounds such as ma, da and ba.

• When your child makes sounds, respond by speaking to your child and using eye contact.

• Imitate your infant's laughter and facial expressions.

• Encourage your infant to mimic your actions, such as clapping hands, throwing kisses and playing finger games such as pat-a-cake and peek-a-boo.