Language acquisition process in babies between 0-24 months and examples of activities supporting language development

Language is the most important and effective tool used for communication. The language adventure of babies begins in the womb and continues rapidly after birth. Babies become receptive from the moment they are born in terms of language development. After a certain period of time, they can distinguish human voices, even their mother's voice, from other voices. There are also differences in the crying sounds of babies over time. As the needs differentiate, crying sounds are shaped accordingly. Although the baby's crying has a meaning for the person who meets his/her needs, the baby does not yet use crying to attract attention. In this period, crying is more of an instinctive response to internal situations such as hunger, cold or distress. In the ongoing process, there is an inversely proportional decrease in crying behavior with the baby's language development. Although there is a close relationship between language development and the brain, it is expected that by the age of 3 years, when approximately 70% of brain development is achieved, the acquisition of a distinctly meaningful language is expected to occur. In the first 3 months after birth, language development occurs at the sound level, between 3-9 months at the word level, between 9-18 months at the sentence level, and between 18-36 months at the meaning level. While this sequence in language acquisition remains the same, the speed of this development can be affected by various factors such as physiological and genetic characteristics, gender, cognitive and neurological development, social environment and interaction, level of verbal communication between family and child, socioeconomic and sociocultural characteristics. The aim of this study is to observe how the language development process of infants between 0-24 months progresses and to provide suggestions for activities to support infants' language development during these months. The data of the study were obtained from the diaries and observation notes kept by a mother for her infant between 0-24 months. The diaries and observations were analyzed by considering the possibilities of qualitative research, and the results obtained about language development in the months between 0-24 months were compared with the information in the literature. The results show the language development in the months between 0-24 months and also reveal how the child should be supported in the language acquisition process. As a result of the study, it was seen that the language acquisition processes in the literature were mostly compatible with the development of the infant, some features showed differences, and the infants responded positively to the activities prepared for them.