Speech Developmental Sequences 7-12 Months

Between 7 and 12 months of age, baby will begin to use expressive language as a tool to communicate, even more so than crying. Baby will experiment with inflection and using language to gain attention from parents. Baby may begin babbling with inflection similar to adult speech and they may seem very emphatic at times, as though they were having an actual conversation. He may begin to show understanding of what is being said to him and respond appropriately to requests or questions. He may even begin to respond to voices in a conversational manner. He may begin to respond to the reactions he gets from the sounds he makes or the things he does. During this age range, solid food is generally introduced. Problems in the area of swallowing/eating should be discussed with baby’s doctor and/or a Speech and Language Pathologist. Some ideas to help with his development during this crucial developmental phase are:

• Use inflection appropriately when speaking to baby
• Express excitement and happiness when communicating with baby
• Give baby easy words to use such as “uh-oh”, “oops”, “ta-da”, etc. and respond with excitement when they use it during play
• Give baby names for things she is asking for or things that relate to her
• Provide many opportunities for baby to demonstrate their knowledge by asking them questions such as “Where is daddy?”, “Come here”, “Can I have a kiss?”, etc.
• Talk baby through activities such as dressing, bathing, reading, etc.
• Respond to baby’s actions with surprise, delight or sadness
• Encourage independent play and don’t interrupt if baby is babbling happily to himself



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