Peek-a-Boo Talk
Parent covers their face with a sheet of paper and only reveals it when baby makes a sound. The agent coaches the parent to observe babbling, vocal turn-taking, and tonal variety as baby learns that their voice has power to make things happen. This activity builds expressive language and communicative intent.
Opens a guided voice session in TogetherTime.
What you'll need
Parent and baby facing each other at close range. Parent has a sheet of paper or light cloth to cover face. Baby should be alert and in a social mood.
How it works
- 1~30s
Cover your face with the paper and say in a playful voice, 'Where am I? If you want to see me, you have to talk to me!' Now wait. Listen for any sound from your child — it could be a coo, a babble, a squeal, or even a little grunt. The moment your child makes any sound, whip the paper away with a big 'You found me!' Tell me what happened.
Watch for: Baby produces a vocalization in response to the prompt — any sound counts.
- 2~40s
Let's try it again, but this time pay attention to the back-and-forth rhythm. Cover your face and wait for your child to vocalize. When they does, reveal yourself and say something like, 'There you are! You called me!' Then cover up again. Does your child start to anticipate the pattern? Does they vocalize more quickly the second or third time? Tell me about the rhythm.
Watch for: Baby begins to engage in a back-and-forth vocal exchange, showing proto-conversational turn-taking.
- 3~35s
For this last round, listen carefully to the specific sounds your child is making. Can you hear any consonant sounds mixed in — like 'ba,' 'da,' 'ma,' or 'ga'? Or is it mostly vowel sounds like 'aah' and 'ooh'? Does your child change the pitch or volume of their babbling? Play a few more rounds and really tune in to the sound quality. What kinds of sounds are you hearing?
Watch for: Baby produces consonant-vowel combinations and varied tonal patterns in babbling.