Babies Are Capable of Complex Reasoning

The Following post comes to us from Magdalena’s new bilingual blog.

The attached article illustrates the significance of various studies that demonstrate the enormous reasoning capacity of infants less than a year old. Studies like these reaffirm how important it is to maintain continuous verbal communication with infants from the time they are born, while at the same time, further dispelling the belief that infants younger than a year old only have the mental capacity to respond to baby-talk, funny faces and tickling.

Interpersonal communication begins even before the infant recognizes the exact meaning of words. It is the repetition and body language accompanying the language that serves to demonstrate the meaning of the words being spoken. Letting a child know that it is time to change their diaper, and continuing to do so in a patient and loving manner while letting them know what you are doing, is an ideal way to use daily activities to demonstrate communication.

Formulating simple, logical questions and giving the child a moment to respond builds their ability to maintain a dialogue. Asking, for example, “Are you hungry? I cooked oatmeal. Would you like some?” While at the same time showing them the plate of oatmeal, or even responding to events taking place at that very moment such as, “ Oh! I dropped the spoon.” You might notice the child following the action with their eyes.

Closely observing and responding to their body language and demeanor allows us to have a two-way communication with the child as we would, by using words, with any other human being. Not paying close attention to their actions, the way they attempt to express their needs, means we have to rely solely on suspicions and guesses.

Read the full post at Magdalena S. Palencia’s Bilingual Blog…