Dog in the Gap: BONUS EDITION

My month-old's expressive language skills are at an age-appropriate minimum. But his receptive language skills are not bad! The other day, my husband and I were talking about how it was time to feed the dog, and our toddler, without instruction, went and grabbed the dog bowl and walked it over to where the food is. Honig encourages parents and caregivers to work on cultivating these receptive skills, largely by asking questions. She said toddlers can benefit from being asked questions with one-word answers.

Emotion questions are doubly effective, because they teach them how to label, and ultimately understand, their feelings. Parents should also be asking open-ended questions that push young children to think critically and creatively, which communicates that their opinion matters. Ask toddlers whether they can figure out how to get around a puddle in a park or what they can do with a pile of blocks or with a handful of clay.

Many will respond through their bodies, even if they don't have the words.

As to the right timing for all these stages, Honig says, it depends. In , education researchers Betty Hart and Todd R. Risley coined the term " word gap " based on their findings that low-income children hear, on average, 30 million fewer words by the age of 3 than their wealthier counterparts. As a result, their language skills tended to be less-developed, and they were less likely to succeed in school. Their findings have been both critiqued and confirmed over the years, and many nonprofits and government initiatives were set up to increase the number of words children heard in their early years.

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Though both this study and many of the interventions inspired by it are important, the conversation around the word gap is often misleading. The takeaway is that, when it comes to talking to young children, it's the volume that matters. Dear kids, sorry for 'just checking' my phone. Like Honig, she said that the key is to make talking to your young children feel like a conversation as much as possible.

It is really important to human species; think about it is as human glue. This matters for building brain area, whereas the number of words don't.

Hirsh-Pasek said parents shouldn't feel as though they have to narrate their lives for their children. It's perfectly acceptable to, say, push a small child in a cart down an aisle in a supermarket and not speak out loud the name of a single item on the shelf. However, as that worry recedes another one should replace it: The more we are constantly looking down at our cell phone, the more we turn off, the more they get detached from conversation," she said.

Hirsh-Pasek encourages parents to put their devices away as much as possible during the evening or on weekends. Not only will they be better suited to participate in conversations, they'll be more likely to start one themselves. As crazy as it is to compare talking to a young child to talking to a dog, I think my early puppy days might have actually taught me a thing or two on how to communicate with bipeds.

After looking at the research and speaking with experts, I see that the best way to tell if you are communicating productively with a baby is to ask yourself: Am I enjoying this? Get CNN Health's weekly newsletter. Chances are, if you are feeling a connection, immersed in one moment shared by two, then your baby is probably feeling the same. You need to prepare them for the long journey and let them get used to their carrier. It should be a transition," he told CNN in a interview. For example, flying from Los Angeles to Spain is 14 hours.

Before you buy a pet crate, check out the International Air Transport Association's list of pet carrier requirements , which most airlines adhere to. When it's time to fly, your pet should either be checked in as cargo or stowed in a cage under the seat in front of you, depending on its size. Cargo has risks, says Block.

Potential hazards include poor ventilation and extreme temperatures. Taking your animal in the cabin? Bear in mind the size restrictions for animals. Some airlines also have limits to the number of animals allowed per cabin. Each airline has its own regulations and procedure, which Block advises familiarizing yourself with before the flight.

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The Humane Society advises that you should be vocal about your animal and its needs -- whether it's with you in the cabin or in the hold. She also voices her concern over an recent incident in which a dog was mistakenly shipped to Japan instead of Kansas. Rules for so-called assistance and emotional support animals which recently made the headlines when a woman attempted to bring her " emotional support peacock " on board a flight are slightly different. However, she stresses there are no universal rules -- and passengers should still check with the airline before traveling.

Block and her team at the Humane Society are currently advocating against animals being placed in the overhead locker, which caused recent dog death on a United Airlines flight. But Block is hopeful for the future, describing the incident as a potential "watershed moment. In an ideal world, commercial air travel would be introduced specifically for animals, catering for their needs. Ultimately, Block says as much care should be taken with animals traveling as humans. So we really have to make sure that it's safe for our animals.

If you do have to leave your dog behind, don't worry about separation anxiety. Millan says that with proper training your pet can handle the time apart -- even if you can't. But it's also an issue that needs to be worked out if you're traveling with your dog, as there will be times you want to leave it in the hotel room without having to worry about it barking and clawing at the door or chewing things up when you're out.

That's not realistic for the dog, which doesn't understand. In Mexico, a dog is not allowed in the intimate space. We don't have a living room.

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The human goes to work, the dog doesn't know how to separate from them. It's easy to rehabilitate, but you have to understand the concept of proximity for training to work. Tell them when they can be near you, then tell them to go away," suggests Millan as a method of lessening your dog's attachment to you.