Baby Babbling and Communicating with Dad

Hi Everyone,

I'm back :) As you can see, I have a new look. All the credit goes to Eliana Tardio, a coworker and dear friend!! Thank you so much.

I am now linked to my new facebook page and twitter, so hopefully I will be able to reach families with the technology they feel comfortable with.

My goal is to bring more media to the blog and share with you all kinds of information concerning communication. ENJOY!!

Check out this video and see true communication between a little girl and her dad. Notice how Dad is commenting and encouraging turn taking. Listen to the child's infections and body language. I know it will put a smile on your face.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/sDocL7AfIRo

October 2011

I have so many ideas of fun things to do in October to help your child "pop" language :)

1. LEAVES:
If you live where the leaves are falling there are so many things that you can do. You can rake them (and get your child their own little rake) and then "one, two, three, go" you can jump in them!!! You can toss them around and focus on words like "up, down". You can find a bunch of dry leaves and "crunch, crunch, crunch" them up. You can get paper and glue out and stick the leaves to the paper. You can go on a walk and find all the different colors of leaves or just find the trees that have leaves that are not green. You can march through the leaves; you can crunch the leaves with your shoes, you can shuffle in the leaves; you can hide your feet in the leaves, or your hand or your whole body!!! You can make a path through the leaves and walk down the path, or hop or crawl.

2. PUMPKINS:
One of the best suggestions that I am going to share is one that I learned from another early interventionist. You take a pumpkin, you take some colorful golf tees and find your childs little hammers from the pounding toys they have and you pound the tees into the pumpkin. "bang, bang, bang"; "more tees"; "in and out". Your child will enjoy this process so much. You pound the tees in and then you can take them out and do it again.

Of course taking the seeds out of the pumpkin is fun to explore. If your child has sensory issues this could be a hard one. Let them use a spoon, that might help. But if you have an explorer, let them pull the seeds out with their hands and you can scoop out the insides and put them in a bowl to explore. "Squishy, slippery, stringy" are all fun words that would apply. If they put some in their mouth, please don't say "yuck", let them decide if they like the taste or not (but be careful about choking on the seeds if your child is small).

And of course you can carve the pumpkin and roast the seeds. You can talk about the facial body parts that you are carving "should we cut out the nose or an eye?" and if you use a real candle you can play with having them blow it out several times in a row...great for breath control and to encourage your child to request "more please".

FOOD: YUM!!!! OK, there are caramel apples and caramel dip. There is a new milkshake at McDonalds that is an autumn shake which I would assume might be spicey. Milkshakes are great for improving the muscle strength in your childs mouth. There is pumpkin pie (and dipping the electric toothbrush in this mixture could be a good taste treat, plus wake up the mouth.) There are cakes and cookies and pies with cinnamon and ginger and nutmeg. Let them try apple cider or warm apple juice and maybe even add some cinnamon.

And what about the Halloween candy!?!?!? Licorace and gummy worms are good for muscle development....bite and pull on the sides as well as in front. Pixie stixs powder is one of my favorites to wake up the mouth. Their are that fun dip candy where you dip a hard candy into a powder. Keep your mind open as to ways to use some of the candy to stimulate your childs mouth. Remember, I'm not saying all day, every day. But a couple pixie stixs are not going to hurt your childs health or teeth.

HALLOWEEN: Words that will come easily for your child would be "boo" for ghost; "pumpin" for pumpkin; "cany" for candy. With the trick or treating and costumes realize that small children cannot always tell what is real and what isn't, so be sensitive and aware if your child might be scared. If you want them to participate, maybe let them help you hand out candy, or just ride in a wagon while someone else goes to the doors of the houses.

ART: A child's foot, painted white on the bottom and then pressed on a piece of dark colored paper will look like a ghost. You can add the eyes and open mouth. Or paint both feet and let your child walk across some black paper and you will have many ghosts :)

Give your child some markers to decorate their pumpkin or let them paint a pumpkin. You could dress your pumpkin with a hat and a tie for fun....let your imagination go.

Enjoy this time of year, we are heading into the holiday time; school has started and our lives shift into a different rhythm. Look for the fun in every day and share it with your child.

September 2011

Here I am!!! Sorry it's been a bit since I posted.

September.....school has started, fall has arrived, the weather is changing and what can we do to stimulate some language ???

I hope that you stocked up on school supplies when they went on sale. Crayons and glue sticks and paper and 3 ring binders...yup, I have ideas for all of these.

1. With the 3 ring binder (and some page protectors) I want you to make a "book" of your child's favorite things. Pull out some old magazines and cut out pictures of things and people your child likes. Check the ads in the magazines, you will find pictures of food that children like ( fish crackers; mac and cheese; juice boxes; cookies.) You will also find ad's for children's TV shows (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, for example). You will find pictures of cars and trucks and motorcycles and trains, if your child is into vehicles. Or you could cut out pictures of faces with different expressions (crying, laughing, smiling, yawning, etc.) And don't forget to put some pictures of actions like walking or jumping or swinging. Once your have found some pictures that are meaningful to your child, pull out the glue sticks and have your child help you glue them to construction paper. While you are gluing you can model "push" or "go go" when you are rubbing the glue on. You can talk about "up and down" when you rub the glue on the top and bottom. Then place the picture on the paper and "boom boom " or "pat pat" the picture onto the paper. Encourage your child to pat or hammer with their hand the picture on the paper. Then slide the picture into the page protector, put the pages into the 3 ring binder and "ta da" you have a wonderful book your child can "read" to others. They will take pride in their book as well as want to talk about the pictures.

2. Paper. A simple piece of paper can become a wonderful language stimulation tool. You can crunch it and make it into a "ball" that you throw; kick; "go up"; "go down"; etc. You can throw it "in and out" or you can make a basket with a laundry basket. You can make it into a paper airplane and "one, two, three, go" you can throw it inside and out. You can use this activity to take turns and build anticipation. There is a fantastic video on YouTube of a dad that holds a piece of paper out to his baby boy and the child rips the paper and basically falls over laughing. It's a wonderful example of turn taking and reading your child. Trying something that simple can "pop" language. You entice your child by holding out the paper. The child pulls the paper, it rips and the sound makes everyone laugh. Before the child gets to try it again (and they will want to try) wait for them to indicate, in some way that they want another turn. It can be by looking or reaching their hand out to get the paper. It can be looking at the paper and laughing. However your child shows you they want a turn, you accept that and then continue the turn (plus model a word or phrase to go with that turn.)

3. Crayons. I know that they can be messy, so set up the area where you are going to let your child color before you let them loose. Think about putting a big piece of paper on the garage wall and let them color on that. Or tape a big piece on the floor or on the driveway and color out there. Be aware of the questions that you want to ask but your child can't answer; "what color is that? What did you draw?" Remember to keep modelling instead of quizzing, "you are coloring with blue, round and round and round. I like how you went up, up up, with the color." Describe what they are doing and feeling more than expecting it to "be" a picture.

With so much focus on school during September, I want to share some important information about your young child. If your child is 3 or under (and sometimes 5 and under) you need to focus less on things that are basically academic (like colors, numbers, letters, shapes) and focus more on relationships with family and peers. When a child is young, they are not supposed to be able to tell you what color something is, or what shape something is or be able to count and do the alphabet. A baby should not read, honest :) I know that there is the program out there to convince you that your baby should be reading. Here's the problem I have with that. Even if your baby starts to recognize a word and can label it, for example "dog", do they understand "dogness???" For example, have they touched a dog, heard a dog bark, smelled a dog, smelled a wet dog, had a dog lick them, touched their fur, heard their nails click on the floor??? Once they have interacted with a dog they "get" what a dog is all about and then they can connect the word "dog" with the object. It is meaningful to them. But saying "dog" when the word is flashed on a screen is not the same as understanding all about dogs. To me it's skipping a bunch of developmental steps for your child.

Our society is pushing academics, earlier and earlier but that is not developmentally appropriate. Young children learn from playing with toys, interacting with people, exploring nature, trying new foods and having fun. Our job as the adults in their lives is to expose them to different things and activities and then let them explore it their way and build on their interests instead of worrying about academics. When a child is ready, the academics come easily and it's fun. But pushing a child to quickly will cause frustration and even delay those skills from developing because it's just too hard.

Remember to relax and enjoy your child for who they are and what their interests are. Build on that and you can't go wrong.

July 2011

July is almost over!! I hope that you all enjoyed the 4th of July celebrations with the yummy foods to try, the parades with the bands and firetrucks and the "boom!!" of the fireworks. All wonderful language popping experiences.

I know that family gatherings are things that we do in the summer. Hmmm, how does your child like family gatherings? Let me picture what a family gathering looks like to we adults. There are people laughing and hugging; there are people being loud; there are older people in chairs that are sitting back and watching the family members interact. There are the generation under that, probably getting drinks and focusing on the food. There are the children of that group, the 20's and teens having fun playing with Frisbees; volleyball; badminton, skiing on the lake; throwing eachother in the water; throwing water balloons and having fun. There are the little children; some are running around interacting with others; some are sitting on the adults lap and some are crying and trying to get out of there.

So, let's look at this from the view of the under 3 child. They are in an environment that is totally unpredictable. Strange people will walk up to them and talk to them and even try to hold them. There are lots of noises that surprise the child. There are so many things to look at and hear. There are so many things that the child might want to explore...the food, the yard, the house, and maybe even some of the people. And the child might have not been sleeping well because they are travelling to get to this gathering or they are sleeping in a hotel or in the house and maybe in a bed that isn't familiar to them.

When your child acts up during a family gathering, think about what they are feeling but may not be able to tell you. (Remember, behavior is a form of communication, so if your child is acting up, they are communicating with you.) Let's problem solve what you can do to make this all easier.

• How to deal with the people that want to hold your child, or ask them "what's your name, how old are you" and then look at you and say "why isn't he talking!" If your child is not feeling comfortable, going to a stranger will probably not help. You can explain to the loving adult that your child needs a little bit more time to warm up and you will let them know when your child might want to be held. Or, you and the loving adult can go to a quiet place, away from the crowd and interact without putting pressure on the child. Slowly the loving adult can interact a little bit at a time, and perhaps win over your child. Please don't force your child to be held by another person if they don't feel secure.

• How to deal with a too tired child. I would try to keep your child's sleep schedule as typical as possible. Maybe have a baby monitor and pack and play in a quiet bedroom and have a fan running for white noise that might help your child have a nap when needed. Fans or other sources of white noise are wonderful for situations where there is unexpected noises. You might need to rock your child or swaddle them a bit in a blanket to help them get organized if they get overtired or upset. Calmly reassure them, sing quietly a favorite song and help them find some time to get organized. There is nothing wrong with lying down with them for a bit to help them fall asleep.

• How to deal with new foods when you have a "picky eater"? I would bring favorite foods with me so that you can help your child feel comfortable. This is not the time to try new foods if it is upsetting to your child. Try to avoid the comments that well meaning adults might say like "you are spoiling your child"; or " just make them eat it". You are the expert on your child and as hard as it is to disagree with YOUR parents or grandparents, you need to stick up for your child if they need that support. It will make for a happier child which will make for a happier you.

• What to do when your child is having a melt down? The first thing I would do is for you and the child to remove yourself from what is happening. Find a quiet spot to calmly reassure your child and help them through their stress. Another idea is to have a stroller ready to take your child for a walk. This will distract them from what has them upset as well as give you both some time to connect. Once your child and you are feeling calm and relaxed, then you can rejoin the group. Often times the thought is to scold a child or punish them for their behavior when they melt down. Once again, I would look at what the trigger was for your child and help them through it. Punishing and scolding will just escalate the meltdown. And you need to stay calm too (if you can) because your child will feed off of your stress.

Now let's think, just for a minute about the wonderful things that may happen at this family gathering. You might be able to get a break from being the primary caregiver for your child because your child loves hanging out with Grandma or Grandpa or auntie and uncle. Your child is engaging with the extended family, giving kisses or high fives and snuggling on the laps of your loved ones. Your child may love trying the new foods, especially if there are other children around their age that are eating new foods too. Children love to imitate other children. Your child might sleep much better on a trip because they are more active and the new things tire them out. Sometimes children with sensory concerns do better when everything is different and they appear more easy going. You might fall in love all over again with these special people in your life because of how they interact so well with your child and praise you for raising such a wonderful little person.

Talk to you soon!!

June 13,2011

I have to say "hi" to all the families that I met at the Family Cafe in Orlando. Thank you so much for coming to our presentation and generating such good questions. What a wonderful experience!!!

It's not officially summer, but it seems that the whole US is having summer weather. There are so many things that we families can do to stimulate language during the summer months.

I know that you are all spending more time outside. I hope that you are getting your child into a swing ("push/go/more/all done/stop/high") and going down slides "up, down, 1,2,3 go,". Be sure to go down with your child if they aren't ready to do this independently. If your child is too young or frightened by swinging, you can sit on the swing and place your child facing you where your arms are around them and they feel supported and safe. Swinging is a great activity to stimulate language and the nervous system. If your child is bothered by the motion of swinging, try swinging them in a blanket that two adults hold "more/stop/go/all done/whee". This is a very fun activity.

Let's think about foods and drinks: Has anyone tried the frozen strawberry/lemonade at McDonald's? I found it to be very sour....it would be a fantastic way to stimulate your child's mouth. Or, just make lemonade from scratch....include all the siblings too. Make sure you buy extra lemons so that the children can taste them and make funny faces.

Making Popsicles from applesauce is yummy (use cinnamon applesauce to make it more tasty). Just pour some in a Dixie size cup and put a plastic spoon in the cup and freeze...yum. It's also a tricky way to get more fruit into your child's diet. Freeze the smoothie's that you are already making for your child to pull up through straws. Popsicles encourage sucking/licking and exploring a new temperature.

Grilling out brings a whole new flavor to food. And don't forget all the different rubs and BBQ sauces that are available. You can use those flavorings on vegetables and potatoes too.

I know that you are already outside playing in puddles and in the grass, but now we can probably bring out the kiddy pools, buckets, squirt guns and sprinklers. PLEASE ALWAYS BE WITH YOUR CHILD WHEN THERE IS WATER AROUND. A CHILD CAN DROWN IN JUST A SMALL AMOUNT OF WATER (LIKE ABOUT AN INCH)!!! Kiddy pools are fun for exploring water and putting in different toys to explore. And don't be shy, join them in the pool and play with them. Follow what they are doing, comment on what they are doing, feeling or thinking and watch the communication flow. If you have a child size plastic slide, you can put it so that the child lands in the water "splash!". Let your child play with the hose, let them help you wash the car...get wet "uh oh" and just have fun. And setting up a sprinkler for them to jump over, in, put their hands in, etc. is another really fun experience. And YES, they will put the hose in their mouths, or explore the sprinkler with their mouths and definitely explore the water in the pool. I would encourage you not to get mad or immediately say "no". My experience is that it's not going to hurt them... :)

And don't forget lakes, rivers, ponds and the ocean. Salt water is a true sensory experience :) Find crabs; fish...notice the smells "yuck!!, play in the waves; notice the different sounds; talk about the boats...there is so much happening in a natural environment.

Here's a book that I really liked: Disability is Natural by Kathie Snow (OK, have I listed this already ?!?!?!?) If you have a child that has a developmental delay you must read this book. It really gives you another side of things to think about.

Speaking of books, make sure that you are using your library to get books for your child to explore. They usually have a pretty good selection of board books and exploring paper pages books are fun, you just need to save those for times you will share with them so that they don't get ripped. Also, check what other things your library offers, there are usually children's programs; some lend toys; and there are always movies to rent. Picture snuggling together, watching a movie, maybe with some very flavorful snacks and just have fun being together after a day outside, playing in the water.

Have a wonderful June!!