XP: When do they start comprehending and listening?

gymnst1013

(I posted this on my BMB as well bu thought you ladies might have more answers since a lot of you have older LOs.)

I swear I feel like N will never pay a lick of attention to me.  He never listens to anything I ask him to do (get your hand out of your diaper, sit still while I comb your hair, don't stand in the tub, etc.).  And I know he's young and I shouldn't expect him to understand and listen to me but I find myself getting angry when he squirms all over the place while I'm reading his bedtime books and he won't listen to me to stay put.  Yep, I'm getting angry at a 10 month old for not following instructions 

When does following directions kick in?

amberleeb

My DD is almost 16 months and she understands what I say most of the time.  Not that she listens all the time but I know she understands because if I say don't or no she will wag her little finger and shake her head (LOL).  I would say buy 13-14 months she really caught on to what I was saying most of the time.  I say lets go upstair and she walks over to the steps.  

I would say just keep repeating and he will catch on pretty soon, not that he will listen but he will understand  

BeccaLandes

you are kind of a ways away.  soon he will understand you, and you will know he understands, and he will choose to do whatever the h*ll he wants.  that's kind of worse.

i do think 10 months is too young for him to understand what you're saying. some kids are verbal early on, but mine weren't.  i think it will just take time and patience. 

gymnst1013

amberleeb:

My DD is almost 16 months and she understands what I say most of the time.  Not that she listens all the time but I know she understands because if I say don't or no she will wag her little finger and shake her head (LOL).  I would say buy 13-14 months she really caught on to what I was saying most of the time.  I say lets go upstair and she walks over to the steps.  

I would say just keep repeating and he will catch on pretty soon, not that he will listen but he will understand  

Haha - thanks!!

gymnst1013

BeccaLandes:

you are kind of a ways away.  soon he will understand you, and you will know he understands, and he will choose to do whatever the h*ll he wants.  that's kind of worse.

i do think 10 months is too young for him to understand what you're saying. some kids are verbal early on, but mine weren't.  i think it will just take time and patience. 

Thanks - it's good to have a frame of reference.  I guess I'm just expecting too much and need to adjust my expectations.

ladychicago

Ha!  Comprehending and listing are SO two different things!   The first thing we ever knew she understood was petting the dog, and that was around 10 months old.   We would ask her to go pet Gracie, and she would crawl over there and pat Gracie on the back.   But that was it for a while.   I would say that I knew DD understood more things starting at 12-15 months.   By 15 months, she definitely understood, especially when I said things/asked her to do things as part of our daily routine (bring me your shoes, it is time for breakfast go to your high hair, come here).   But soon after, she proved she understood by starting to do what we asked her to do, then stopping, laughing, and running away.   Hence starting time-outs at 18 months when we knew she understood but deliberately defied us.  

My patience is tested every single day....10 months is just the beginning!   But also just the beginning of getting to know the unique little people that they are.   Good luck!  

gymnst1013

ladychicago:

Ha!  Comprehending and listing are SO two different things!   The first thing we ever knew she understood was petting the dog, and that was around 10 months old.   We would ask her to go pet Gracie, and she would crawl over there and pat Gracie on the back.   But that was it for a while.   I would say that I knew DD understood more things starting at 12-15 months.   By 15 months, she definitely understood, especially when I said things/asked her to do things as part of our daily routine (bring me your shoes, it is time for breakfast go to your high hair, come here).   But soon after, she proved she understood by starting to do what we asked her to do, then stopping, laughing, and running away.   Hence starting time-outs at 18 months when we knew she understood but deliberately defied us.  

My patience is tested every single day....10 months is just the beginning!   But also just the beginning of getting to know the unique little people that they are.   Good luck!  

I am definitely in for a wild ride, it sounds like

AuburnBride06

DS has been following really simple directions since he turned a year. For the last maybe 3 months, since he was 15 months, he's been following mltistep directions and listening well. Now if he does something he is not supposed to do, all I have to do is look at him and he will usually stop. Especially if he picks something up he's not supposed to. 

Ali212

Over the last 2 months or so, I've really noticed how much my younger daughter (14 months) understands.  How much she chooses to listen to what I say is a completely different story.  If she likes what I'm saying, she'll listen.  If she doesn't, she won't.  But that's toddlerhood!  I have an older daughter (4 years) and I don't recall the exact timing with her when she was younger but am assuming it was similar.  It's really cool when you realize they are understanding so much (even if they can't communicate back yet really) but then you realize they are already showing attitude and not responding if they don't like what you say

superned

Are you doing any signing with him?  Teaching DD some basic signs was a great way for us to connect and understand each other.  The first sign we taught her was "milk" and she started signing it back to be at about 7.5 months, so I knew that she understood me.

By the time she was a year she knew about 15 signs (and 3-5 words) and was able to communicate a lot to us, so I knew she understood a lot of what we were saying.

Whether or not she complies with what we want her to do is a totally different story, but I find that the more she's able to communicate to me (first with signs and now with words), the less frustrated she gets and the more easy going she is.

brideinOC

Comprehending: early, hearing: always, listening: never. 

gymnst1013

superned:

Are you doing any signing with him?  Teaching DD some basic signs was a great way for us to connect and understand each other.  The first sign we taught her was "milk" and she started signing it back to be at about 7.5 months, so I knew that she understood me.

By the time she was a year she knew about 15 signs (and 3-5 words) and was able to communicate a lot to us, so I knew she understood a lot of what we were saying.

Whether or not she complies with what we want her to do is a totally different story, but I find that the more she's able to communicate to me (first with signs and now with words), the less frustrated she gets and the more easy going she is.

I am doing a little bit of signing but should probably do more.  I've done milk and more so far and I know for sure he at least understands milk.  He starts cracking up and dives for my boob whenever I sign it to him but he has not signed anything back yet.  I'll start incorporating more signs though.

And yeah, I figured the listening was going to be iffy   Ah well, I'll take what I can get and work on the rest.

alchris

Comprehending:  Elena has been comprehending for a month or two now; I'm sure she could before that, but it wasn't obvious like it is now.  Kira didn't seem to comprehend anything until 21-22 months, and then she got it all at once.

Listening:  They hear perfectly (too well at times with Kira!), and they'll start listening when they go to college if I'm lucky. ;-)

Best wishes!

LVBlvd

Both my 16 month old boys can understand most simple things I tell them.  Like, who wants to take a bath?"  And they head to the bathroom.

"Sit down on your bottom!"  They smile, act like they are sitting down, then pop right back up.

"Who wants to go outside?"  And they walk to the door and bang on it.

Now, listening?  Sheesh.  I'm thrilled with my 3 year old listens to half the things I say.