Normal Auditory Development

by Ellen Goldman, M.S., CCC-A

What is normal auditory development?

Hearing or auditory behaviors grow and change along with your baby's other skills-as your baby matures, you'll see different kinds of responses to sound. The development of eye and motor coordination is closely linked to the development of auditory skills. If motor skills are lagging, your baby's auditory development will also be delayed.

What behaviors are usual for babies with normal hearing?

The information below tells how babies use their hearing as they grow. If your baby doesn't have good head control, or is lagging in development, you may not see the response to sound expected for your baby's age. Keep in mind your baby's developmental age-your baby's functional age, according to the level of developmental skills-when you use this guide.

Newborn: startle reflex. From birth to 4 weeks, baby will jump or startle to a sudden, loud sound. Eyes may widen or blink, and arms and legs may fling out. A sleeping baby may move or begin to waken. Your voice will soothe and comfort your newborn.

3-6 months: searching response. Baby will turn eyes and head to look for an interesting sound, or when you call baby's name. Should enjoy music and noise-making toys. Begins to coo and gurgle, and to repeat sounds (such as ooh, aah, and ba-ba).

6-10 months: localization. Baby will look up or turn toward an interesting sound or toward you when you call baby's name. Will respond to familiar voices and familiar sounds such as the telephone ringing or dog barking. Should make many different babbling sounds, even when alone. Understands common words such as no and bye-bye.

10-15 months: responds to speech. Before starting to talk, baby spends many months learning to understand when you say simple things. Plays with own voice-enjoying the sound and feel of it-while learning to make the sounds used in talking. Should imitate simple words and sounds, and may use a few single words meaningfully.

15-18 months: direct localization. Can directly localize-identify the source of-all sounds. By 1 1/2 years, a baby who hears normally should respond correctly to simple speech by pointing to body parts and following other simple directions. Should use three or four words in addition to ma-ma and da-da.

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