by Emily McDowell

Created on: May 16, 2010

Your two month old baby is cooing, babbling and smiling as you play peek-a-boo with him. Ten minutes later he is bringing his hand to his mouth and furiously sucking on his fist. After a bottle, he won’t stop fussing until you change his diaper and lay him down for an afternoon nap.

All of these actions, from facial expressions of contentment to cries of displeasure, are a babies first ways to communicate. Crying will remain the primary means of communication for several months, and parents will soon learn to recognize the meanings of different cries. They will begin to distinguish between “I’m hungry,” “I’m tired,” “Change me,” and “I’m bored, play with me.”

Making sure that you respond to your newborns needs will help him learn that what he wants is important. It will also teach him that vocalization is a proper form of communication.

Talking back to your baby is also important. He will pick up on your tone, the proper pacing of words and even learn the basics of two-way conversation.

Besides the vocal sounds of crying, whining and cooing, what are some other ways that babies use to communicate? At about two months old, babies begin to mimic the facial expressions and sounds of mom and dad.

That’s why parents are encouraged to talk, sing, coo and babble to their baby – it helps them to learn the importance of speech even if they don’t understand what is being said.

Body movements and gestures are another form of communication for little ones. They will use nonverbal signals such as pointing to indicate what they want or something that has happened. They’ll turn their whole head or body to look at a person or object that is of interest.

There are some ways that you can help your baby develop communication skills at an earlier age than usual. You can read to him starting when he is a newborn.

Once he starts keeping his eyes open and focusing better, hold the book towards him and point to words while saying them. Or point to the pictures or drawings, naming them.

Reading to a baby at a young age is proven to aid in brain development. Another thing to do is bring objects toward your baby and tell him what they are.

If you really want to know what your baby is thinking and feeling, teach him some simple sign language. A baby will learn to sign his wants and needs before vocalizing them.

Although a babies first words will come at about one year of age, all babies communicate at different rates. Before then, a variety of sounds, body language and facial expressions will convey their reactions and feelings to the world around them.

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