By about 12 to 14 months, your baby will begin to recognize the names of things she sees or experiences each day. Those words become part of her receptive vocabulary. Receptive vocabulary describes words that a person recognizes when she sees or hears them. In this activity, you and your baby will explore a room of your home. You’ll introduce your baby to things around the house while you name the items, describe them and talk about them.
- your voice!
- a room in your home that has wall décor, housewares, and special items to show your baby
Step 1: While carrying your baby in your arms, walk to a room in your home that contains things that might interest your baby.
Step 2: As you find things to point out, you may ask, “What’s This?” and “What’s That?”
Step 3: Say the item’s name, describe it and say something about it. For example:
“This is my Peter Rabbit figurine. It’s very special to me because my Granddad gave it to me when I was a baby, just like you! See, little Peter Rabbit is in the garden, nibbling on a carrot. He has on a blue jacket and he has a fluffy white tail. I’m putting this back on the shelf, in its safe place.”
