Your baby understands more words than you'd think—'no,' their name, 'where's the dog?'—comprehension is racing ahead.
These activities build receptive vocabulary, encourage word-gesture combinations, and develop the comprehension skills that will soon blossom into expressive language.
Your baby may be pulling to stand on furniture. Make sure their environment is safe for exploration—they'll cruise before you know it.
The pincer grasp is developing! Offer small, safe foods like puffs or soft fruit pieces to practice picking up tiny objects.
Stranger awareness peaks around now, so don't force social situations. Let your baby warm up at their own pace—it's healthy development.
Fill a basket with safe textured objects and narrate what baby touches — smooth, bumpy, soft, crinkly — pairing sensory exploration with descriptive words.
Introduce simple signs for 'more,' 'all done,' and 'eat' during meals — giving your baby a way to communicate before words come along.
Point to pictures in a sturdy board book and name them with enthusiasm — building your baby's vocabulary long before they can say the words themselves.
Play peek-a-boo with favorite toys, naming each one as it appears — combining the thrill of surprise with vocabulary building.
Take your baby outside and describe everything you see, hear, and feel in simple sentences — turning an ordinary walk into a rich language bath.
Read through a board book of animals, making each animal sound with big expressions — your baby will be giggling and trying to copy the sounds in no time.