Child will develop the ability to speak and/ or sign in increasingly complete, complex, precise, and varied ways.
What educators might observe
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Sucks on fingers or pacifiers and moves head and mouth towards milk
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Laughs and chuckles
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Cries when hungry, upset, or in need of attention
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May repeat cooing sounds, such as “ooh” and “ah”
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Watches caregiver’s mouth closely as they are talking
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May sign “milk” by hand gesture approximating the opening and closing hand
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Babbles and may make “p,” “b,” and “m” sounds that can begin to seem like “papa,” “baba,” or “mama”
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Holds up arms to be lifted up or for a hug
Ways educators might support the child's development
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Talk to the baby
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Use the baby’s home language, if possible
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Imitate and repeat the baby’s vocalizations, making meaning of sounds like “ma-ma” and “da-da”
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Read and sing in home language/language varieties
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Tell the infant stories, especially about their day
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Repeat rhymes and songs from the infant’s culture and in-home language(s)
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Describe what you are doing during caregiving routines
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Narrate the baby’s feelings
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Listen for comfort sounds to discover the things that help the baby feel good and secure
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Respond to the baby’s cry as soon as possible; listen for the differences in the baby’s cries and sounds: is the baby crying because they are in pain, hungry, wet, or in need of attention?
Child will develop their ability to listen and understand complete, complex, precise, and varied language.
What educators might observe
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Responds to sounds in the environment (e.g., startles or cries when there is a siren or an unexpected sound)
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Leans intentionality towards a familiar person’s voice
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Makes frequent eye contact while listening, and gestures in response
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Turns and looks toward familiar sounds and/or words (e.g., when name is called)
Ways educators might support the child's development
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Talk to the baby
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Use the baby’s home language if possible
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Use rich descriptive vocabulary
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Narrate your actions throughout the day
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Name familiar people
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Pair known words with unfamiliar words (“Bye-bye, fire truck. Bye-bye ambulance.”)
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Sing to the baby
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Use songs with movements
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Sing during transitions to and from sleep
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Sing songs in the baby’s home language
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Do simple, gentle exercises with the baby, singing as you go; for example, holding the baby’s hands, gently lift up, then out, then down, singing “Up, Out, Down”
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Read to the baby
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Read starting a birth
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Tell a story in the home language based on the pictures
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Describe the baby’s actions with the book (“Turn the page, and let’s see what’s on the next page.”)
Child uses language to relate to others according to the social expectations of their family, community, and culture.
What educators might observe
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Looks at a caregiver as they are speaking
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Uses sounds and wholebody gestures to engage in interactions with educator
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Repeats and imitates cooing sounds
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Uses facial gestures to engage with adult (e.g., blinking eyes, sticking out tongue, clapping, covering face with hands)
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Makes sounds when educator is singing
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Waves bye-bye
Ways educators might support the child's development
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Talk with the baby’s family about how the baby expresses different needs, interests and feelings
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Practice recognizing the intention of the baby’s vocalization or gestures
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Respond to the baby when they communicate through facial expression and wholebody movements
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Talk to the infant, then pause and wait for a gesture or sound before saying something else
Child enjoys, attends to, understands, and makes meanings from spoken and written language of storytelling and books.
What educators might observe
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Smiles, babbles, and laughs when the educator reads, sings, or tells stories to them
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Touches, feels, manipulates, and tastes books
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Looks at books presented by the educator
Ways educators might support the child's development
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Talk, sing, and tell stories to babies throughout the day
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Look at books with babies and talk to them about the images in their home language
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Hold the baby and book at the same time; involve the baby in repeating sounds over and over, which promotes playfulness, enjoyment, and engagement
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Include a variety of books in the learning environment
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Cloth books with different textured pages that the child can safely chew on and manipulate
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Books that have interactive components like flaps and holes
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Books of songs
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Follow the baby’s lead; if they want to open and close the pages rather than reading sequentially, do so, talking about what they are doing
Child develops the ability to recognize and manipulate the different sounds in spoken language(s).
What educators might observe
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Listens, attends to, and reacts to speech sounds in the environment
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Babbles and makes sounds exploring different ways to vocalize (e.g., “ba-ba” and “eee”)
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Imitates sounds heard in familiar spoken language(s)
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Is more attuned to the speech sounds of their home language than those of other languages
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Reacts differently to an unfamiliar sound by gazing or attempting to recreate sound
Ways educators might support the child's development
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Create sounds rooted in playful interactions with the child; show a photo of an animal or an object from a book and make the appropriate sound (“cluck, cluck,” “pio, pio,” or “choo choo,” for example)
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When a sound is heard, mimic and identify it, overemphasizing the phonemes
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Recreate sounds and vocalizations playfully
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Include books, rhymes, and songs in the environment
Child uses materials and/ or language to make meaning for themselves and/or an audience.
The guidelines don’t define behaviours for this area at this age.
Child views, creates, and makes meaning of visual communication and multimedia documentation, which includes drawings, collections, photographs, videos and displays.
What educators might observe
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Tracks people or objects by moving their head or eyes
Ways educators might support the child's development
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Limit cell phone and TV access to meaningful moments such as video-chatting with a grandparent
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As the child lifts their head or follows with their eyes in response to sounds and voices, name the individual or object in the environment
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Alter the child’s position in relationship to their interest
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Place pictures and mirrors low on the wall or by the side of changing table so that the child can gaze at them as diaper changing and play occurs
