What You Can Do Children constantly test words and watch you for
feedback to help them acquire language, so it's crucial to help
your child express herself. "Many studies have shown a strong
relationship between how much you talk to your kids and how fast
they develop language skills," says Elizabeth Bates, Ph.D., a
professor of cognitive science and psychology at the University
of California San Diego. Here's how to help: - Name the things
your child loves. If your toddler is playing with a truck, he'll
be more likely to learn the word truck than the word for the
stuffed giraffe you're waving in the distance, says Steven
Reznick, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill. - Have real conversations. "Even
when my daughter was just a year old, I would ask her about her
day," Dr. Bates recalls. "I would pause a little for the answer,
even though I wasn't really expecting one. Month by month, she
began to use words to respond to me." Speaking with, rather than
at, your c