Is Something Wrong When a 5 Year Old Talks Like a Baby

It can be super abrasive when your five year old, or even six or vii year old child talks similar a baby. How can you reply to baby talk in an older child? Here's why kids sometimes resort to talking like a baby likewise as tips and ideas well-nigh how to handle it when your big child goes back to baby talk.

First – Why practise older kids regress to using infant talk?

Why does your half-dozen twelvemonth one-time (or even 10 year old) talk like a infant? Information technology could be a number of reasons, and mostly information technology's abrasive, but non a huge concern.

First off, rule out health problems:

If this is a regression in the sense that it's not that your child is choosing to talk like a baby, simply instead your child was speaking clearly a few months before simply their speach is becoming harder to understand, y'all may wish to check with your doctor to rule out a hearing upshot or some other cause.

If the baby talk is accompanied by other regression behavior like bed wetting or other signs of anxiety you also may wish to talk to a professional in case the baby talk is a sign of trauma or mental health issues.

Baby talk for attention:

Kids may use baby talk to go attending they need just are unskilled at asking for. Kids (and adults for that matter) don't e'er know how to say, "Hey, I'chiliad feeling kind of lonely lately and I'd certain like some extra fourth dimension with you." Instead some kids try using baby talk to exist 'cute and innocent' and garner the positive attention they associate with it.

While the babe talk itself might be annoying, the ask for attention is real. Y'all don't have to reinforce the baby talk past responding to it with praise and snuggles, simply await for other times when y'all can add in that extra hug or a few more than minutes to talk. Yous can detect many ideas for adding loving moments to your days in Becky Bailey's I Beloved Yous Rituals.

Baby talk during times of alter or transition

Sometimes kids start babe talk when they have a life alter going on – maybe a new sibling, the kickoff of a school twelvemonth, or even just a growth phase when they can sense that they're getting bigger and learning more skills for independence. It can be a way to 'touch base of operations' and cheque, "Am I still loved? Am I still allowed to exist little?"

If you feel like this is what's happening a few ideas to help the transition are:

• Talk most what's going on. For some children drawing a story about the events can really help (even stick figures are fine).
• Reminisce together, looking at photos, telling stories. This is particularly effective when the alter is the introduction of a new babe to the family. Older siblings savor hearing nigh what they were similar every bit a baby and hearing yous talk nigh how they were snuggled and cared for like their new sibling.
• Instead of asking for a "big kid voice" you can say, "We can talk almost this when y'all employ your 6 year one-time phonation." (or 7 twelvemonth old, 8 year one-time etc.)

Answering a Reader Question – How to Respond to Baby Talk in Older Child?

My son and his cousin are best friends (he's 7, she'due south viii). When they get together they become into this really annoying baby talk that they talk in. Information technology seems to fuel them being rude to others effectually them and they kind of go stuck in the infant talk mode once autonomously besides and will effort talking in that vocalism to u.s.a. as parents. Information technology drives us all nuts.

Is there anything I can exercise aside from but keep asking them to speak to me in a normal phonation?

Here are some answers about baby talk from Bounceback Parents – please add your own in the comments!

• Recognize when they apply their normal vox. In our family bated from asking for a normal vocalisation from the kids when they're talking to u.s.a., something that's been cardinal is to recognize when they ARE using that normal vocalism, especially when they use information technology without prompting, "Hey, thanks, your voice is so much easier for me to sympathize when you talk to me in this overnice normal tone." ~Alissa

• Decide what to make an consequence of. Kids using infant talk to play together? Not an issue. Being rude? Upshot. Make sure they know the divergence. All my kids are either going through or have been through the "playing babies" stage – its a existent favorite game around that historic period. Drives adults crazy but the kids love it. Describe attention to the fact that "real" babies are cute and affectionate, not rude. Every bit far as carrying it on subsequently goes, I'd endeavour, "you're in a shared room now, so employ proper voice. Y'all want to keep playing babies, I'1000 happy for yous to exercise that in your room." ~Sarah

• The more it gets a rising out of you the more than he'll exercise it. Be unaffected and firm in just responding to a respectful vocalization. Land your limit : "I tin can see you lot're having fun with that vocalism. When you use your normal voice I'm happy to talk with you." No shaming or threats. Then stick to it. He's old enough to just need the limit stated in one case. Any inkling that he is getting nether your skin and he has the ability; yous're back to square 1. Be unaffected and unconcerned, kind but firm in your limit. ~Shana

• Ignore the annoying behavior and praise the heck out of desired beliefs! ~Jessica

Join the Conversation

If you have experience or helpful ideas on what to do to keep yourself from going batty when your child talks in a babe voice, please leave your comments or links to ideas!

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