Help! Advice needed!
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I think at this age it’s less about actually teaching them specific things and more just giving them lots of opportunities to soak it all in. Talk to him constantly, read together, describe everything (color, size, shape, etc). Bring him lots of different places and expose him to all sorts of things. No matter what you are doing, he’s learning. I’ve resorted to turning in Miss Rachel for 20 minutes or so while I empty the dishwasher; and my son will follow along. You’re doing great, mama, whatever you can manage to do!!
Narrate what you're doing! If baby babble talks, talk back, doesnt matter what you say, just make it a conversation! Read a ton! (We do baby books during the day and then I read actual books at night, like recently I've been doing about 5-10 pagss of Harry Potter a night) My daughter cant coherently say words, but the sounds she makes for words are consistent, so I KNOW thats what she means. Like "all done" is "ah don don don don" and "okay" is pretty close to "okay" and "dog" is "nng" and she shrugs for "I don't know" and will go grab things when I ask for them, without me pointing at them.
I follow a child development coach on IG. He has amazon lists of age appropriate items that aid with learning and development. https://www.amazon.com/shop/jamiemitchellmspt?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZb8nZe1o9Zmlf_t9AL48TLwGRx7HlRgnjDWry9nAV59fNL6WVq9lOcxu8_aem_Ghalm2nXssRV8E-dSmq8Xg
At this age my best advice in teaching is just talking and reading to him. What I mean by talking to him is just talk to him like you're having a conversation. Tell him what you are doing, explain step by step what you are doing. If he shows you an object tell him what it is. Say it multiple times. Like my son loves to play with blocks. When he shows me a block I first start by saying "what's that?" Then I tell him "that's a block. (Point to it) Block, -red- block, -yellow- block" he has blocks that are different shapes as well so I tell him the shapes. He has a toy that has a shape sorter and he is getting really good at putting the shapes in it. If you don't have a shape sorter I recommend one. It is great for eye, hand coordination. As far as reading, you can read ANYTHING, even a story that you like, it's just hearing you say the words that helps build the vocabulary. Hope this helps.
@Beth he watches mrs rachael all the time he won't watch anything else 😂
Books, flash cards, identify the things you are doing and interacting with My LO vocabulary has taken off and I’m sure it’s from reading together so frequently
I would say less screens and more interactions with you/grandparents/friends/family. Read to him, give him age appropriate toys that practice fine and gross motor, give him time outside and allow him to have sensory experiences outside of meal times.
We do tons of reading before bed and naps. When he’s sad or upset books comfort him. He sits with me and we read. He even brings me books when he wants 1:1 time. We talk to each other and we’ve been working on signing instead of pointing and or whining. The signing has helped a lot and has already stimulated more language development. Repeating again and again will work. Keep it up!
There is some evidence that emphasis on early academics can actually hinder the natural learning process and not be as effective as we hope. Right now, your little guy needs play-based opportunities where he can explore and experiment. Involve him in as much housework and normal daily activity as possible. Provide as much outside play and exploration as possible. Read everyday, sing everyday. I would encourage you to explore Montessori and Waldorf philosophies and activities. Foster independent play. There are a million accounts out there online talking about toddler activity morning boxes or other stuff like that. Also, just your presence with him, talking to him is enough!
Books books and more books. Mine can already say quite a few words and recognizes things that blow my mind and it’s all from a couple books in the morning and a couple in the evening. I’m a SAHM so when I’m cleaning or getting things done so is she, she wipes everything down with paper towel for me while I sweep and organizes the Tupperware while I do the dishes. Doesn’t take more than just a little reading and some singing while we work.