“How much should I talk to my baby each day?”

Parents ask:

“I know that talking to my baby is important for language development, but how much do I need to talk to them each day? Should I keep talking if my baby isn’t paying attention? Does it help them to listen to a conversation I’m having with someone else?” 

Lovevery experts answer:

All through the first year and beyond, you can do a lot to encourage your baby’s communication skills. While there’s no set amount of time that you should talk to them, research suggests that exposing your baby to many different words is important. Speaking to them fires up synapses in the part of their brain responsible for language development. When you do it frequently, you can strengthen their future language skills and overall learning ability. 

So, yes, it matters how many words your baby hears—but the quality of your interactions matters even more ❤️ Discussing what your baby sees, responding to their communication attempts, and having back-and-forth exchanges—known as “serve and return”—all enhance their understanding of language and encourage valuable communication skills. 

Here’s what experts want you to know about how to talk to your baby:

1. Narrate what you and your baby do, see, hear, and feel. 

Try simply describing your activities as you go about your day. For example, as you change their diaper, you could say, “Oooh, you are wet! Let’s wipe, wipe your skin.” Babies need to hear words over and over, so repetition is important. During feeding time, you could say, “You are so hungry. It’s time to eat! Mmmm, yummy milk!” Hearing words over and over during their everyday routines helps build their “receptive” vocabulary—the words they recognize and understand. 

2. Don’t feel pressured to talk to them non-stop.

It’s perfectly fine to have quiet moments with your baby. Some activities may give you more to talk about or you may feel less conversational at times. Quiet time gives your baby an opportunity to take in their surroundings and focus on things that interest them. For example, if they’re deeply engaged with the Crinkle Bag or Sensory Strands, it’s best to let them concentrate and explore without interrupting.

3. Read and sing to your baby.

Reading aloud to your baby is a great way to introduce new words and concepts while giving yourself a break from coming up with things to say. Don’t feel like you have to read every word on the page—even flipping through a book and talking about the pictures helps expose your baby to language. For example, you can point to a picture as you say the name of the animal and the sound effect: ”I see a cow, mooooo!” 

Lullabies and songs also introduce new vocabulary that you may not use in everyday conversation. Making up silly songs to narrate everyday activities is an alternative to talking that exposes your baby to words, rhymes, and language. Many babies are soothed by music and may react to certain familiar songs with smiles and vocalizations. 

4. Engage with your baby face to face whenever you can.

Your baby will learn how to mimic sounds and eventually form words by watching your mouth move as you speak. Make eye contact and use exaggerated facial expressions to get their attention and help them understand that words are connected to different emotions, like happiness, sadness, and surprise. For example, while holding your baby in your lap facing you, hold the Wooden Rattle and say, “Shake, shake, shake.” When your baby looks at the rattle, make an animated, excited face and shake the rattle again, repeating the words “Shake, shake, shake.”

5. Have back-and-forth “conversations.” 

Your baby learns more about communication from two-way exchanges than they do from simply hearing you talk. If they grunt, coo, or squeal, you can smile to let them know you’re listening. Then, imitate their sound and wait for them to make another. If they do, repeat it back to them again, perhaps adding another sound to the “conversation.” These back and forth exchanges set the stage for communication. 

Watch for signs that your baby has had enough, which may include averting their eyes, turning their head, or fussing—when you see these signs of fatigue, you can respond by saying, “You’re letting me know you’re all done talking for now. Let’s have a quiet cuddle.”

When you read their cues, respond to their vocalizations, and imitate their sounds, you help your baby understand that they are valued and that their communication has meaning. These early exchanges are an important part of how your baby bonds with you ❤️

5. Use gestures to add meaning to words.

When you say “up” while lifting your baby or a toy, they begin to associate the word “up” with the action of moving something upward. Pointing to an object also helps your baby understand what you’re talking about. As they get a little older, you may want to use baby signs to add more meaning to your spoken words. Some babies are ready to understand signs by around 6 months and may start signing back around 8 or 9 months with consistent exposure. The Lovevery book “My First Signs” (included with The Inspector Play Kit) can help you introduce your baby to basic signed words.

6. Speak to your baby in “parentese.”

Research shows that babies frequently exposed to parentese tend to start babbling and producing their first words earlier than those who aren’t. This high-pitched, exaggerated speaking style can grab your baby’s attention—and its short sentences, simple grammar, and repeated words help them grasp the structure and meaning of language.

7. You don’t always need your baby’s full attention when you talk to them. 

Even if your baby’s focus seems to be elsewhere, they can still absorb the sounds and rhythms of language. Because their brain is highly attuned to human voices, they can process spoken language when they appear distracted.

8. Hearing you talk to other people is good for your baby’s language skills, too.

Listening to you have a conversation exposes your baby to a broader range of words and concepts, which they’ll gradually begin to understand as they grow. Your tone, pitch, and language change depending on the person and situation, which helps your baby understand the nuances of communication. By hearing your conversations with others, your baby learns about the give-and-take of conversation, as well as the importance of nonverbal cues like facial expressions and gestures.

What to look for during this exciting time in your baby’s language development: 

From birth to 3 months: Your baby loves hearing the sound of your voice. They may smile, laugh, quiet down, or get excited when you talk or sing to them. Around 2 months, your baby may start gurgling or cooing with vowel sounds (“aaaaah,” “oooooh”). When they do, respond to them with a similar sound whenever you can, perhaps adding another sound to extend the “conversation.” 

Between 4 and 7 months: Your baby has started to understand that their vocalizations can have an impact on you and their other caregivers. They may babble and watch for your reaction. They’ll likely experiment with making new sounds or raising and lowering their pitch. Remember to imitate their sounds and babbles to reinforce these communication attempts. You can also make a funny sound or babble to see if they copy you.

Your baby’s understanding of words (their “receptive language”) develops long before their ability to say words (also called “expressive language”). That’s why it’s so important to talk, babble, coo, sing, and read to your child—even if they’re not saying anything back. Exposing them to language, speech, words, and conversation helps build the foundation for later communication.

Meet the Lovevery experts who answered this question:  

Carol Lettko, MA, CCC-SLP

Carol Lettko is a pediatric speech-language pathologist with more than 40 years of experience. She has worked in a variety of settings, including hospitals, clinics, preschools, students’ homes, and private practice. 

Gabrielle Felman, MSED, LCSW

Gabrielle Felman, founder of Felman Early Childhood Consulting, works with children from birth to age 7 to support social, emotional, and cognitive learning.

Sarah Piel, MSED

Sarah Piel is a certified special education teacher and child development expert. For more than 15 years, she has worked with children from birth to age 5 to support social, emotional, cognitive, and language learning.

Have a parenting question? 

Download the Lovevery App to get personalized answers to your questions about development, behavior, sleep, feeding, and more. Tap “Ask + Learn” to submit your question, and you’ll get a response from the Lovevery expert team within 72 hours. 

Learn more about the research

Huttenlocher, J. (1998). Language input and language growth. Preventive Medicine, 27(2), 195-199.

Mani, N., & Pätzold, W. (2016). Sixteen-month-old infants’ segment words from infant-and adult-directed speech. Language Learning and Development, 12(4), 499-508.