Stop worrying about it! Each child’s speech will develop at his or her own rate, just like every other area of their development. Ignore the fact that your neighbour’s little girl has a wider vocabulary than yours, children need to ‘save’ language in their heads before getting in there and speaking! As a general rule, they usually say their first word around 10 months old, often something that sounds like ‘mummy’ or ‘daddy’. Language is a triple intellectual process: neurological, emotional and motor skills are all closely linked and experts have long been asking themselves why children say ‘mummy’ and ‘daddy’ first. In several languages, the word for ‘mummy’ contains labial syllables which are easy for a baby to produce, but whatever the reason, you’ll be delighted to hear your little darling’s first word, especially if it’s ‘mummy’!
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