Early on, babies begin to explore their mouths. Once they get the hang of bottle or breast feeding, their fingers begin to make their way to their mouths. Some babies may begin to suck on their fingers or thumb to soothe themselves. Although we hope this doesn’t turn into a habit we somehow have to help them break in the future, it is important to have the hand to mouth connection. They will also begin to place objects to their mouths when they begin to teethe. This is a good thing as long as it is an appropriate object! As parents, we should begin to make silly faces and sounds with them as early as possible. This will given them the opportunity to connect, begin to imitate and gain awareness of their mouths, and engage in the beginning of turn taking(social language). It feels silly at first as adults, but it teaches your baby so many early speech and language skills! Show your baby raspberries(blowing with your lips closed or when tongue is slightly protruded), moving your tongue around(clicking it, sticking it out, lalalala sound), popping/smacking your lips together(I like to call this the fishy sound), blowing, opening mouth wide to make “ahhhh” sound, and smiling to make an “eeee” sound. Your baby will probably get a kick out of this and laugh a lot at his silly parent/caregiver! As they get older, you can teach them using a mirror if you notice they are having difficulty imitating these movements or making sounds. This way they can watch you and themselves perform. Blowing bubbles is a great way to teach toddlers how to blow, which is important for awareness of their lips and tongue in order to make both an “o” and “w” sound. If they have difficulty with this movement, use a bubble blower that they can dip one end in the bubbles and blow through the other end. Having to blow through it shapes their lips in a rounded position and their tongue down and out of the way. Any type of instrument they have to blow through to make noise(the reinforcement for the child) will be a fun way to teach them. You can use horns, whistles, flutes/recorders, etc. Remember, they will never know they are actually learning when you make it silly and fun!
Words/sounds to include: ahhhhh, eeeee, lalalala, pop, blow, bubble, mouth, tongue, lips, teeth, etc.