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Language development: 3-12 months

By Raising Children Network
 
 

Between the ages of three months and one year, you can expect your child to coo and laugh, play with sounds, babble and begin to communicate with gestures.

 

Here are some of the things your baby might do as she develops language and learns to communicate in her first year:

  • coo and laugh
  • respond to you when you talk by making noises or becoming quiet
  • make eye contact with you
  • make a series of different sounds such as ‘aaieee’, ‘booo’, ‘ahh’
  • say ‘ah goo’ or another combination of vowels and consonants (at around three months)
  • babble, combine vowels and consonants such as ‘ga ga ga ga’, ‘ba ba ba ba’, ‘ma ma ma ma’, ‘da da da da’ (beginning at around four months)
  • laugh when you play with her
  • imitate some of the sounds and gestures that you make
  • respond when you say her name (at around five months)
  • play with making sounds – for example, she might try different sounds, pitches and volume
  • make longer sequences of sounds, some of which have the tone and rhythm of normal speech (at around eight months)
  • say ‘mama’ or ‘dada’, although she might not necessarily be talking about mum or dad (around nine months)
  • imitate sounds such as coughing, laughing, clicking, or making ‘raspberries’
  • enjoy games such as peekaboo and other action games
  • understand the word ‘no’, but won’t always do as you say (around 10 months)
  • use gestures to respond to or initiate a conversation
  • communicate with purpose, mainly to request, insist, refuse, reject or greet
  • ask for something by pointing or looking at a person and then at something she wants
  • say a few words with a clear meaning, such as ‘mama’ or ‘dada’, to refer to mum or dad (at around 12-14 months)
  • understand very simple instructions with verbal and visual cues – for example, handing you a toy when you say ‘ta’ and hold your hand out to her.
Children grow and develop at different rates. The information in this article is offered as a guide only. If you are at all concerned about your child's language development, speak with your doctor or child health nurse.
 
 
 
  • Last updated02-04-2009
  • Last reviewed23-05-2008
  • References

    Bates, E., Dale, P. S., & Thal, D. (1995). Individual differences and their implications for theories of language development. In P. Fletcher & B. MacWhinney (Eds.), Handbook of Child Language (pp. 96-151). Oxford: Basil Blackwell.

    Bavin, Edith L. (Ed.). (2009), The Cambridge Handbook of Child Language. Cambridge University Press.

    Fenson, L., Marchman, V. A., Thal, D. J., Dale, P. S., Reznick, J. S., & Bates, E. (2007). MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (2nd ed.). Baltimore: Paul H. Brookes.

    Flipsen, P., Jr. (2006). Measuring the intelligibility of conversational speech in children. Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics. 20, 4, 202-312.

    Owens, R. E. (2001). Language development: An introduction (5th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

    Reilly, S., Eadie, P., Bavin, E. L., Wake, M., Prior, M., Williams, J., Bretherton, L., Barrett, Y., & Ukoumunne, O. C. (2006). Growth of infant communication between 8 and 12 months: A population study. Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health, 42, 764-770.

    Roth, R. P., Speece, D. L., & Cooper, D. H. (2002). A longitudinal analysis of the connection between oral language and early reading. Journal of Educational Research, 95(5), 259-272.