Speech Before Words: Why to Start from Birth
Many parents quietly wonder, sometimes with a little embarrassment, whether talking to a newborn really serves any purpose. The baby does not understand the words, does not respond, and sleeps three-quarters of the time. And yet, developmental neuroscience research is clear: the first weeks and months of life are a period of exceptional brain plasticity. What a child hears during this time literally shapes the architecture of their brain.
The work of Patricia Kuhl, a researcher at the University of Washington and a specialist in children’s language development, has shown that an infant’s brain can process the sounds of all the world’s languages until around six months of age. After that, it gradually specializes in the sounds of their native language. Every vocal exchange, every story read aloud, and every commentary on daily life contributes to this early and irreplaceable calibration.
What Science Says About a Language-Rich Environment
The concept of a “language bath” refers to a child’s continuous and natural exposure to human speech from their earliest days. It does not involve structured learning sessions, but rather ordinary, lively speech addressed directly to the child during the course of everyday life.
A longitudinal study conducted by researchers Hart and Risley, published as early as 1995, established a statistically significant link between the number of words heard during the early years and later language abilities. Their data suggest that a gap of several million words can emerge between children by the age of three, depending on the richness of verbal exchanges in their family environment.
More recently, fMRI studies (functional magnetic resonance imaging) have confirmed that language-related brain regions become active in infants when they are exposed to human speech - and this happens well before they are able to produce a single word.
Child-Directed Speech: A Natural and Instinctive Form
“Baby Talk” Serves a Real Purpose
This spontaneous way adults modulate their voices when speaking to a very young child is sometimes called “motherese” or “parentese”: a higher pitch, slower pace, more pronounced intonation, and frequent repetition. Far from being merely anecdotal, this instinctive vocal adaptation serves a specific purpose. It attracts and maintains the infant’s attention, highlights the boundaries between words, and makes it easier to segment the stream of sounds.
The French National Authority for Health (HAS) and early childhood professionals also recommend that parents feel free to speak naturally and warmly with their child, without trying to artificially correct or simplify the way they speak. The authenticity of the relationship matters more than linguistic “performance.”
The Importance of Eye Contact and Turn-Taking
Talking to a baby is not only about producing sounds. It means engaging in a genuine communication process that includes eye contact, pauses, and waiting for a reaction - however slight. What is known as “turn-taking” begins very early: the parent speaks, the baby responds with a coo, a movement, or a facial expression, and the parent responds in turn. This alternation, even if asymmetrical, is the foundation of dialogue and connection.
Research in developmental psychology, particularly research from the Geneva School founded by Piaget, emphasizes that a child is not a passive recipient of language. They are an active participant in communication from their earliest days, and their responses - however subtle - deserve to be understood as such.
Incorporating Speech into Everyday Activities
There is no need for educational programs or dedicated time. There are many opportunities to talk to your child throughout each day, as long as you recognize them and make the most of them naturally.
During Personal Care
Diaper changes, baths, and getting dressed are moments of close physical contact that naturally lend themselves to verbal interaction. Naming body parts, describing what you are doing (“I’m putting your soft onesie on you”), and saying what will happen next (“We’re going to wash your hair now”): these little everyday stories create a reassuring framework and build vocabulary in a concrete, embodied way.
During Meals and Carrying
Whether breastfeeding or bottle-feeding, every feeding is an opportunity for closeness and conversation. Carrying your baby also leaves your hands free and encourages face-to-face interaction. Talking to your child during these moments is not artificial: it is a natural extension of the bond you are building.
Reading Aloud from the First Weeks
Reading aloud to a newborn may seem premature. Yet it is one of the practices most recommended by speech-language pathologists and pediatricians. Board books, nursery rhymes, and lullabies: all these forms of sound enrich a child’s language environment and create powerful emotional rituals. The connection between shared pleasure and speech is itself foundational to a child’s future relationship with reading.
To find out when to introduce your baby’s first books, see our article on when to start reading books to a baby.
Multiple Languages: Should You Worry About Early Bilingualism?
Many families in France live with two or more languages. The question of early bilingualism often comes with an underlying concern: could speaking several languages to a baby “mix them up” or delay their development?
Specialists’ answer is unequivocal: no. Children exposed to several languages from birth develop language skills that are just as strong as those of monolingual children, along with documented cognitive flexibility. What is sometimes described as a slight “delay” in the appearance of first words is statistically insignificant and resolves naturally.
The Académie Française itself, in a joint publication with scholarly pediatric societies, has recognized the benefits of early bilingualism when it is experienced naturally and affectionately, without pressure or hierarchy between languages.
When to Be Concerned and Who to Contact
Language development follows general stages, but every child progresses at their own pace. As a general guide, and according to milestones established by the French Society of Pediatrics, a child usually produces their first recognizable words around 12 months and begins combining two words around 18 to 24 months. But these milestones are averages, not absolute standards.
If you notice a complete absence of babbling around 9 months, no reaction to familiar voices, or a regression in language skills at any age, it is worth discussing this with your pediatrician or primary care doctor. A speech and language assessment can be prescribed from a very young age, and early intervention, if necessary, is always more effective than late intervention.
The Ameli.fr website offers reliable resources on the stages of child development, and your health record contains the official milestones validated by the HAS.
Speech as Care: A Philosophy for Everyday Life
In an era saturated with visual stimulation and screens, human speech - lively, embodied, and directed at the child - remains the most valuable and least expensive developmental tool we can offer a child. It requires neither technology nor material investment. It only requires presence, attention, and the belief that this little being, even though they cannot speak, hears you and responds in their own way.
This is exactly what slow parenting promotes: slowing down enough to name things, describe the world, and sing a lullaby without looking at your phone. These seemingly ordinary moments are foundational experiences for a child’s brain.
If you set up a floor play area to encourage these face-to-face interactions, the Treelys baby activity mat is designed to support these moments of closeness and sensory exploration during the first months. It provides a soft, secure setting for tummy time - precisely those moments when speech, eye contact, and touch naturally come together.
Our play mats are presented with their dimensions and uses on a dedicated page.
To explore other aspects of parenting, you can also read our article on infant crying or our guide to parental sleep.
