Tuesday, July 30, 2013

"Baby's First Words" Books


You have probably seen those big board books for babies and toddlers... the ones that say "Baby's First 100 Words" or "Baby's First 1,000 Words" or "My First 1,000 Words in French," and so forth.  We have some such book, and it has the words under bright photos of things that are supposedly early words spoken by children.  They typically are full of things like farm animals and pets, basic household furniture, some fruits and vegetables, basic vehicles like cars, trains, and airplanes, articles of clothing, and sometimes basic actions like skip, smile, jump...

BORING!
(y'all should detect my sarcasm in this post... I am not calling babies who enjoy these books, including my own, boring, nor am I suggesting the things pictured in these books are unimportant words to know... just a disclaimer, you know...)

I'd like to suggest that someone invent the "Eclectic Baby's First 1,000 Words" book.  You know, for those babies whose vocabularies develop in atypical ways.  For instance...

Instead of "pizza," how about...


t-bone?

Instead of "car," how about...

Volvo?

Instead of "dance," how about...

arabesque?



Others to consider...

bucket truck?
(instead of the standard old "dump truck" and "airplane" - maybe there could even be distinctions between "tree service bucket truck with 60 foot boom" and "utility service bucket truck," for the baby who must adhere to precise details)


tabernacle?  genuflect?  priest?
(these would appear in the "Catholic Baby's First 1,000 Words" version)


weed wacker?  lawnmower?  chainsaw?
(much more advanced than a simple "hammer")


Chick-fil-A?
(rather than generic "restaurant," although it could be seen as marketing to children within the book)

iPad?
(important to include if daddy has one for work so toddlers will learn to stop calling it "Daddy's pad")

La Leche League meeting?
(this could go in the "Breastfed Baby's First 1,000 Words" version in place of the "bottle" picture)



Pope(s)?
(Lucy can id Benedict by name easily; still working on Francis)


hummus and pita?  beets?  figs?  shrimp?
(for the baby with a mature palate)

Lucy's word book would be interesting, huh?  Of course, other young toddlers have given me other ideas of additions to the Eclectic Baby's First Words book...

Caroline contributed the words "lemur" and "apparently" as a young two year old.  But I don't know how to show a picture of "apparently," so that one won't make the final edit unless somebody can figure it out for me.

My brother Tim contributed "barracuda" as a one year old.  This is a really fun word for a toddler to say, trust me.  Or try it out by asking a one or two year old to say it.

I do think I would also add an image of a duck upside-down in the water, looking for food, with the label "duck bottom."  Why?  Because Lucy recently pointed to a drawing in a book of a duck's rear end sticking out of the water and said, "Lemon."  Gotta clear up these little misconceptions.

 What are some atypical first words that you would add to a Baby's First Words book, based on toddlers you've known?

1 comment:

Carrie said...

Ruby definitely got "iPad" down quickly and now uses it for any tablet device as her siblings have kindles.
She also calls all drinks coffee (coppee)
But other than that she's a fountain of sayings like "oh man"