Early progress
Researchers at the National Literacy Trust report that the more attention that's paid to infants' verbal and communication development, the greater chance the child has of developing strong literacy skills with age. Infant verbal development begins within the first few days of life. Parents and caregivers can play a big role on how those communication skills progress. The first signs of communication are pragmatic and consist of crying, smiling and blinking.
Mothers
Mothers usually are the predominant influence on infants and their verbal development. Because of the close bond between infants and mothers, mothers usually are the first to understand their baby's first attempts at speech. The kinds of responses she provides the child in turn influence the baby's determination to continue to communicate. Positive reinforcement is important to earliest infant verbal development. Mothers suffering from postpartum depression often can have a negative influence on their baby's verbal development if they don't respond positively to the baby's attempts at communication. A mother's willingness to teach the baby by pointing and repetition also influence the pace of development.
Interaction
Infants require continued verbal stimulation in order to progress. Researchers at the National Literacy Trust report that children often develop learning disabilities and speech problems if they haven't had enough stimulation in infancy. Language associated with certain activities such as baths and meals, provides association-learning opportunities. Verbal skills can be taught through talking and singing. Infants learn faster when talking is associated with actions.
Stages
While all babies are individual and grow at varying rates, there are typical stages that can be expected for infants to reach specific milestones, reports the Mayo Clinic. By the end of three months, most babies recognize certain voices, especially those in the family. They are startled by loud sounds and may smile or coo when they see certain people. At six months, infants usually respond to music and may begin babbling repetitive sounds. They can use vocal sounds to transmit pleasure or anger. In addition to saying a few words, babies can understand what "no" means by the time they turn 1. At 12 months, they will try to imitate words and can understand various instructions. By 18 months, infants should be able to point to objects when asked, repeat about a dozen words and recognize names of people and objects.
