How to Improve Your Child's Language Skills

Early language development in a child helps him do well in school and communicate with peers successfully. Children are born with the ability to learn language on their own but with a little encouragement you can ensure better communication and understanding of the world around. Studies have revealed that parents play an important role in a child's language development; in fact children who are read to and spoken with regularly during early childhood are known to develop better vocabularies and better grammar than those who aren't.

So even if your child is attending nursery school, as a parent you must put in some extra effort to help your child with his language development. Here are some simple and quick tips how you can encourage language development and help your child communicate better:

Talk, talk and More Talk

Talk as much as you can with your child from a very young age. Describe every task that you do with your child – now we head towards the bathroom, open the tap and here comes the warm water. Some child talks are okay but use your normal language when speaking to your child. Introduce some complex words when your child grows up a bit. Encourage them to ask for an explanation when they don't understand a word or a sentence.

Read to Your Child

This is as important as talking to your child. Develop a reading routine. Start with simple board books and then move on to picture books and story books as your child grows. If you busy throughout the day, develop a night time reading routine. Prepare your child for bed and read a page or two every day. This will not only develop a love for books but will also help them expand their vocabularies. Once your child grows up, you can ask him to narrate a story that you have recently read to him. You can also ask him to create a story and narrate it to you. Offer help whenever required.

Discourage the Use of Television, Computers and Mobile Phones

Experts are of the opinion that children younger than 2 years should not watch TV and those above 2 years should watch TV for no more than two hours a day. Computers and mobile phones are also a no-no for children who are very young. Instead encourage your child to do creative activities such as reading books, pretend play, etc.

Treat Ear Problems Right Away

Children often fail to pick up words since they have ear infections or problems which lower their hearing powers and lead to language delays. If you have made all kinds of efforts only to find your child not responding; then you must see a doctor right away.

The more you talk to your child and encourage him to talk to you, the easier it will become for him to develop his language skills. Encourage your child to go out and interact with children of his age and even those who are older. The more they practice speech the better it will be for them.