Why mealtime chats with your baby are important

Babbu say during a busy day, talking to your baby while they eat is a wonderful way to strengthen your bond and help them improve their communication skills.

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So, why chat with your baby at mealtimes? What do we talk about!

Everyday conversation with your baby strengthens their foundation for language development and learning. Talking to your little one allows them to make critical cognitive connections within their brain which begin to develop before they can thoroughly communicate.

Good topics include:

• "Oh, the sun is shining today"
• "I think we'll go to the park after you've finished your yoghurt"
• "I have a lot to do today. I wonder if we can do some things together"

By engaging your little one in open discussion as you think out loud, they are likely to:

• Feel more included
• Understand that mealtimes are a time to connect
• Improve their social and language development as they encounter social situations and learn how conversations are structured

Establish routines

But first and foremost, how can we prepare those little hands for food? It is critical to developing hygiene practices with your child.

• Tell them that keeping their bodies clean is very important to prevent them from feeling unwell.
• Before and after they eat, explain to your little one, Let's wash our hands to get rid of the germs. I'll turn the tap on, and we can do the soap together". As they do this, you can add descriptive words to explain what they are doing during the process, such as "Wash, was", "Rub-a-dub-dub" or" "Splash splash".
• Why not make up a song to make it more fun and engaging for your baby? They will love hearing you sing in a variety of pitches and tones.

Singing wonders for your little one's well-being and teaches them about rhythm and rhyme, supporting their literacy and mathematical development.

Food and emotions

Your little one may communicate with a combination of grunts and gestures, movements and actions. For example, they may point to a food item they want or knock it away if they do not want it. During mealtimes, your little one may have positive and negative emotional expressions, and understanding their needs around food takes time and patience.

You can help them connect by:

• Describing the taste of something and facial expressions. For example," "I can see you like the strawberry; you're smiling" or" " Maybe you are not so keen on that flavour at the moment; we could try it later instead."
• Trying to label their emotions. For example, you can say, "When your tummy is filled with food, you are happy"

Give them choice

If you can offer your baby a choice of different flavours, they may point to the one they want, which is their way of communicating. As they do this, respond to them and say:

• "You are pointing to the yoghurt. Would you like it?" 
• Or "Great choice. You chose the tomato. Tomatoes are red. Do you like red?"

This will help your little one understand that they have a choice in things that affect them whilst also supporting their personal and emotional development.

What am I eating?

Mealtimes provide fantastic opportunities to talk to your child about food and where it comes from. Whether it comes from the vegetable patch at home or food traditionally eaten in other countries, your little one will love to hear about all the different varieties of food.

You can talk about:

• Seasonal foods, such as pumpkin, which can lead to other conversations around Halloween and the Autumn season
• The growing process. E.g. if they have strawberries, let your baby know how and where they grow.
• Different cultures. Explaining what people eat in other countries will help them understand their environment and the world around them.
• The shape, weight and size of the foods. This is a great way to incorporate mathematical terms into your little one's learning.
• The colour of the foods. You could say" "Hmm, I wonder what the red fruit is. Can you tell me" By describing foods by their characteristics or colour, will help your little one make connections between names and objects Or, if your little one is ready for some more challenging questions, you could ask something such as: "Where is the red fruit? Can you point to the red fruit?" or "Can you find the fruit with seeds?".

Talking about the characteristics of food is an excellent technique to help them develop their literacy skills by expanding their word vocabulary and allowing them to create connections They are practising critical thinking and problem-solving abilities. At the same time they do this, they will learn how a conversation is structured, as they sit and listen while another person speaks, which are great skills to practise that will set them up for later in life.

What not eat with your little one?

Mealtimes are great for sitting down together to slow down after a busy day, without the usual distractions It is crucial that you role-model positive attitudes towards relationships with food so that your baby can enjoy the experience of food.

Hovering over a baby or engaging them constantly might be distracting or stressful, so when you eat with them, they can observe you and see how you eat too! You could do this as you pretend to try some of their food and say:

• "My turn, your turn"
• "Mmm, I love the crunchy carrot!"
• "Yum, apples are my favourite, so juicy!"

Learning to take turns is a vital part of their social development that they will encounter more and more of as they grow older.

Book suggestions

Reading to your little one is a wonderful way to introduce new words, build on their listening, memory, and vocabulary skills In addition to this, it also helps them with communication skills and introduces other concepts such as letters, colours and shapes in a fun and engaging way We have suggested two fantastic books based around food.

1. 'Baby Let's Eat!' by Amy Pixton is literally a book that your little one can sink their gums into It is indestructible and is designed to be washed, chewed, held, pulled and bent so that your little one can begin to 'read' in their own way Share this brightly coloured and beautifully illustrated book with your little one to explore the different varieties of foods and colour categories.
2. Lois Ehlert's 'Eating the Alphabet' board book is brilliant and colourful, and your little one is bound to enjoy it The book features various fruits and vegetables from throughout the world, and is incredibly appealing and interesting owing to the watercolour illustrations and easy-to-read text It includes a glossary with pronunciation, botanical facts, the origin and history of the specific plant, and occasional mythological references.