Misunderstandings about children's learning to speak

Post by Speech Therapist Nguyen Thi Yen - Unit of Regenerative Medicine Clinic and Educational Psychology

“Teaching children to speak” is an exciting and emotional journey. Children learn and use language from the first day they are born, from the first eyes they see their parents, their first hum, until they can speak long sentences and even argue about topics. that the child wants. On that journey, parents have probably heard many "folk word of mouth" sentences about teaching children to speak. This article will share with parents some of the "word of mouth" misconceptions about children learning to speak.

Many parents think that the more children can't speak, the more they need to "teach" the child, they have to "speak" a lot, only going to the place for the child to understand and speak. Unfortunately, learning to speak is not quite the same as pouring a full glass of water, just add a lot of knowledge, the child will speak on his own. The essence of teaching to speak (or communicate) lies in how many opportunities you give your child to speak, and at the same time suggest, encourage, and praise his efforts to communicate.
The ability to hear - understand and verbalize the ability of children at each different age stage is different. For example, according to typical developmental milestones in children, a 1-year-old can say 1 single word and imitate 2 single words. Thus, even if parents talk more, explain more, with the ability of 1 year old children to listen, understand and imitate, children cannot say 4-5 words long sentences. On the other hand, when parents talk more, give more guidance, children tend to depend more and more on their parents' support or become confused because they do not know exactly what their parents' requirements for them are. . From there, children will become less confident, or unexpected behaviors will occur. Therefore, speaking moderately, in accordance with the child's ability to understand is the key to helping children speak more. Therefore, this word of mouth should be changed to, "Speak less so children can talk more".

Nowadays, there are many entertainment programs or educational programs for children. Many parents think that the programs are very attractive, eye-catching, children like to watch and watch a lot, they will like to imitate the characters in the program. From there, children will learn more knowledge and speak sooner. However, this is an inappropriate concept. Online educational and entertainment programs for children are only really effective when there are adults around, studying with them and supporting them when needed. It is only a supporting tool, not a substitute for parents in the period when children learn to speak.

Teaching children to speak with flashcards (picture cards) is also a fairly popular method today. However, speaking-communication is a natural process in everyday life. Children learn by observing and imitating adults' behavior in communication situations. When taught with flashcards, children will look and name the pictures in the cards. This does not mean that children can understand the meaning of this word in real life. Some children are taught with flashcards, they can read and name hundreds of pictures, but when parents ask for a specific object in the house, the child does not know how to get it. Picture cards can be a source of knowledge and awareness for children, but it will not be appropriate when parents use picture cards to teach children to speak and communicate.
Watch now: Fun activities to promote children's speaking skills

Many parents believe that children will receive the best intervention when they learn with a speech therapist in the intervention room. However, parents are the first and best teachers of their children. Right from birth, children have heard their parents say, watched their parents do, and they will imitate everything they hear and see from their parents. Some children will have little difficulty imitating, however, they constantly observe and learn from their parents every day through communication situations. The earlier parents are involved in the child's language intervention process, the more effective it will be. The best language intervention is the intervention in the closest natural situation to the child.

When children say a word, adults tend to ask the child to say more, over and over again. This, in general, will take away the child's natural motivation to communicate and make the child less and less talkative or lead to challenging behaviors. For example, when a parent gives a snack to a child and model "sandwich", the child looks at the food and says "bim", some parents will not immediately give the snack to the child but ask the child to repeat one or more even many times the word “bim” or forced to say the new word “bim bim” to the child. When the child is angry, crying, or abusive, the parents immediately give them snacks to comfort them. This action will reinforce the fact that crying will get the child what he wants, not the effort to talk to communicate. Communication always starts with interaction. Giving your child many opportunities and motivation to communicate, making learning to speak a new enjoyable experience is a good way to help children talk more.

In fact, using gestures or pictures will help children understand the meaning of words and communicate more easily. Children understand that each image will carry a certain meaning, from which they will learn how to use that image to communicate effectively. In life, it is easy to come across many supportive signals to help us communicate and live. For example, when seeing a red light, although no one speaks, all traffic vehicles stop; or when you go abroad, you may not be able to speak a foreign language, but you just need to look at the word WC or the picture of a boy or girl in front of the toilet, you can tell if you should use the toilet any. Thus, using gestures and images does not slow down the child's speech, but it will help them communicate more effectively.

Many parents think that as long as a child can speak, he or she will be able to communicate. However, speaking and communicating are two completely different aspects. Children can speak, name a lot of objects and toys, they can sing and imitate everything they hear and see on TV, on the phone; but when the mother asks "what are you playing" or "what do you want", the children cannot answer because they do not understand and do not know how to use what they have learned. Therefore, teaching children to speak is not simply teaching children how to pronounce, but it is teaching children to use words for specific situations to perform appropriate communication functions.

Bilingual teaching for children from an early age is a fairly common trend among young families today. In the family, there will be a division, such as: the father speaks English, the mother speaks Vietnamese with the child or vice versa or both parents speak English and Vietnamese alternately. Many people believe that children who do not know how to speak but teach a foreign language will make them "disordered" and thus slow to speak. However, scientific studies have shown that bilingualism does not slow children down. On the contrary, when learning bilingual, children's understanding and reflexes will be more sensitive. However, parents should still consider their children's interests, characteristics, needs, and communication motivations in advance to decide whether to teach bilingual children or not.
Hopefully the information in the above article has been able to help parents better understand their children's learning to speak and misconceptions in this regard to help their children learn to speak and communicate in the most effective way. If in the process of raising children encounter any difficulties, parents should contact Vinmec doctor for examination and support.