Do You See What I See?
When two people both look at something and are aware that they each share an interest in the object or event it is called joint attention. This is one of the earliest social and cognitive skills that your child will develop, usually around 9-12 months. Joint attention enables your child to share what they are interested in with you and also allows you, as the parent, to share items, events, and a sense of understanding with your child.
For example, while playing on the floor with your child, you look at and point to a toy truck, which causes your child to look at the truck, too. This type of activity encourages your baby to develop social skills and communication skills that will allow him or her to play with others and to better share their interests.
Why is Joint Attention Important?
Joint attention is very important in developing your child’s ability to interact and communicate with the world around them. It has been shown to be associated with a range of positive outcomes including longer attention spans and more advanced language and social skills (Van Hecke, et al., 2007).
According to the Center for Speech, Language, and Occupational Therapy:
Joint attention is a necessary precursor skill for language and social-cognitive development. It is important for the development social referencing, language acquisition and learning through modeling behaviors of others around you and other, later-emerging, skills, such as more complex expressive language, symbolic play, and theory of mind.
In other words, joint attention prepares your baby to develop speaking and hearing skills as well as improved attention spans and a greater ability to connect with other people.
Ways to Encourage Joint Attention
- When taking a walk outside, point and verbally encourage your child to look at various objects. For example, say, “Look at the tree” or “See the doggy?” while pointing to the tree or dog.
- Play “catch” with your child. Sit on the floor with your child in front of you and roll a ball to them and say, “Catch!” Once your child has the ball, ask him or her to roll it back to you while gesturing with your hands.
- Play with moving or noisy toys that will draw your child’s attention. For example, blow bubbles or play with a kazoo and describe the motion or the sound of the object.
Take care to notice if your child is looking at you while you’re playing with or pointing to something. Does your child vocalize or use sounds to get you to give them the toy or object? Does your child share your gaze on an object or event?
As with all developmental activities, honing your child’s joint attention skills may take some time. Be patient and mindful but if you have concerns, be sure to speak with your pediatrician.
MaryFrances Gonzalez is the director of TeachSpeech LLC and a certified speech language pathologist. Using a holistic approach through playful learning, she helps children build a strong foundation for learning one word at a time. If you have any questions about your child’s speech or language skills, contact us today to set up a free next steps call!