Sunday, March 21, 2010

Vocabulary Building

A conversation that recently took place in our house....

Mommy: My goodness Lily, your piggies are dishevelled.
Lily: (touches her hair, nods in agreement, runs to Mommy to have piggies fixed)
Piano Student: What's "dishevelled" mean?

In addition to an attentive piano student, several other people have commented about the way I talk to Lily. Several times I've been met with comments like the following: "Did she actually understand what you just said to her?" and "Do you always talk to your daughter like that?"

So, my question: how should I talk to Lily? I talk to her just like I would talk to anyone else, and she seems to understand me just fine. I'm careful not to use and words that I wouldn't want her to repeat and I try to avoid using any sarcasm when I talk to her, but I don't otherwise alter my vocabulary or style of speech when I'm talking to Lily. Am I going to end up with a daughter with a well-rounded vocabulary or a kid who is incapable of talking to children her own age because she doesn't know the words to use?

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Go for it! She'll be fine, and smart like her mommy. ;-)

Angie said...

I think you're right on Gina, talk how you would normally talk. It is great for vocabulary building and those little ones they totally get it. Brilliant, that's what she'll be ;-)

By the way, fun blog! Thanks for friending me on fb...glad to reconnect.