Infant communication
A newborn baby does not understand the words you say, but they understand your tone of voice, interpret your movements and seek knowledge from your face. Babies know a lot - and want to know more!
A newborn baby can use all its senses from the start. The sense of touch is fully developed, so being close to your baby through the skin, giving caresses and closeness, creates a huge sense of security for the baby. Together with the other senses, it strengthens the bond between you.
Here is the infant's communication
Hearing is well developed early on
Hearing is well developed at an early age, as early as 1 month. Babies even recognize their parents' voices and sounds from the fetal stage! Therefore, talking and singing to your baby from birth is a great way to strengthen the bond with your baby. Talking baby talk is not for nothing, as research has shown that babies prefer to listen to bright voices, so feel free to raise the pitch when talking to your baby.
Be close to your child with all senses
Meet their eyes, listen to their sounds and movements and you will get to know your child more and more. Language sounds and melodies are stored early, long before the child starts talking! And the ability to learn language is innate, although how language grows and develops depends on the environment.
Telling your child what is going to happen gives them a sense of security, so prepare them for events such as changing a diaper, bathing, sleeping or going out in the pram.
Smell and taste
The sense of smell and taste is also well developed from birth, with babies recognizing both the scent of their parents and the taste of breast milk early on. This contributes to security and a sense of belonging.
Vision is the least developed sense
Vision is the least developed sense, the newborn baby sees blurry at first but best at a distance of 20-30 cm. After about a month, your baby can follow your gaze and make eye contact. By smiling and talking to your baby, they will soon mirror your facial expressions and respond with a smile. Children prefer and find it easiest to see happy and bright colors, preferably with clear contrasts. By 2 months of age, babies can see all colors.
The child's language along with social skills
The child's language, along with social skills, starts to develop from about 2 months of age, when the child begins to make sounds and imitate. Faces are the most fascinating and eye contact is central to the child's world. Take advantage of moments when the child shows interest through eye contact and take the opportunity to name movements, facial expressions, body parts, yelps and sounds so that the child feels acknowledged. By repeating the same phrases and rhymes on these occasions, the child will soon recognize these as routines and eventually "respond" to them through sound or movement. Feel free to put your own words to favorite songs - it is the voice and language melody that the child listens to. Be clear so the child understands by adding body language as reinforcement, along with mimicry and emphasis. This way the child learns to recognize!
Around 6 months of age, the child can begin to distinguish between different sounds and tones of voice, and can respond to the words they recognize. The yelp is now becoming more nuanced and the child is trying out different sounds, tones and consonants. Keep talking about what you do together and the child will start to relate to and recognize the environment in a safe way. The child will also want to express what they want and like. Show and read books and continue with movement, rhymes and songs and the child will show more and more interest and develop their ability to communicate.
