Perry Hall Parents
Telling Your Children to Use Their Words
The ability to communicate is one thing most adults take for granted.
"Use your words." I cannot begin to count the number of times this phrase has come out of my mouth since I became a parent. The ability to communicate is one thing most adults take for granted. I know I do. But for babies and toddlers, everything must be learned. Communication and language development can be a source of extreme frustration for babies and toddlers, not to mention their parents. Baby cries—you check her diaper, burp her and check to see if she’s in pain, only to finally realize she’s hungry. Then she’s calm. Next time, you go straight to feeding her, only to realize this cry means she’s soaked. Why can’t they just tell us what’s wrong? The same holds true for toddlers. They think you understand exactly what they want. He’s …
