“Baby, that was so nice, please, please say that twice!”
Once vocal play is established, add a DUPLICATED syllable that you have heard your child use in the past. When your child says “goo goo, ” respond by saying something similar such as “hi boo boo.” Playing with sounds makes language fun for your child. Before you continue, pause for a brief period of time and give your child a chance to vocalize so he gets a feel for the back and forth exchange of conversation. Expand your child’s repertoire of speech sounds by adding a new syllable or a syllable that you have heard your child use in the past. For example if your child’s says “ma” you can add a syllable to his existing repertoire and respond “maba.” Mixing sounds together to form a wide range of sound sequences is the next step in your child’s acquisition of language.
