I'm 20 w/ a 2yr old who only says a few words. Help?

Question

I have a 2 yr old and will be 3 in 2 mos. and he only has like a 6 word vocabulary, I'm kind of worried that he is way behind because a friend of mine, her son and mine were born 27 days apart, but you can hold a conservation with her son. And sometimes my little boy whines I don't know what he wants since he really can't communicate. The advice that I got was to put him in daycare w/ kids his age, then he will start communcating better. He was also born a preemie, could this have something to do with it?

Answer 1

You should get his hearing checked. Yes, kids develop differently, and he'll eventually catch up, but you do need to know if it really is his hearing.

Answer 2

I wouldn't worry about it. My son will be two shortly and he can only a few things also. Most boys won't really have much of a vocabulary till they're about 2 1/2-3. Some will speak sooner, but not many. My oldest son was 3 before he started talking in full sentences. My best advice for ya is to do what I do with my son. He'll whine cause he wants something, and if I know what it is, I'll say it, and he doesn't get it till he says what he want. Since I've started that he'll say "juice, toast, milk, water" he's entering the parroting stage so really emphasize and point out things so he'll start associating the word with the item.

Answer 3

They say for preemies you need to subtract how early they were from the birth age. So if your 12 mo. old child was born 2 months early, they would be on a 10 mo. old development scale. So first, don't conpare you child to a full term of the same age. Second, boys are sometimes more slow to talk. Do you try to encourage words? Have you had him evaluated? Have you ever considered teaching him some basic words in sign language to give him another way to "say" words? He just might not care to talk. Some kids do that. But if you give him other options, like signing, it might help him open up more and communicate. Its gotta be frustrating for the little guy, you not being able to understand him. But I'm not sure daycare would help. It might make him more introverted and stop using the 6 words he does say.

Answer 4

Get off Yahoo and call your pediatrician. Honestly, language and hearing problems cannot be diagnosed over the internet. If you doctor says everything's fine, then I would check a baby signs book out of your library. We've been signing with our daughter since she was six months old (though the book reccomends starting around 10 months or a year), and she has a fairly strong vocabulary. Another thing to keep in mind is what words your son uses verses what words this other toddler uses. Sometimes toddlers have similar vocabularies, they just use different words (I have to remind myself this A LOT). He's old enough to tell him "use your words" when he whines. Identify EVERYTHING. "Do you want your cup?" "Look at Bobby, playing with the bike." "Here's a hammer, like Daddy." Compliment your son by clapping and cheering when he uses ANY words. Talk to your pediatrician. She'll know if he's on track.

Answer 5

Preemies can have delayed speech problems. I have a preemie boy, and I've read probably every book about possible disorders later in life. Even though people say that preemies 'catch up' at 2 years, they are completely wrong. Usually that only means that they catch up with their height and weight. Did you ever have someone come to your house for early intervention? It's a free program - they check on your preemie's development and progress.
Anyway - what does your pediatrician think? Some preemies have something wrong with their vocal cords, which makes it more difficult to speak. It sounds like he needs some evaluation done - try to find someone through your pediatrician.

Answer 6

Hey, don't worry about it. Einstein didn't talk until he was like 3 or 4. Anyway, I have a friend who had a kid who is three and he only says a few words. She has the same problem with her boy when it comes to communication and this makes it hard to discipline him sometimes. I think every child is different. Some talk early some talk late. If you are worried that he may have autism or something like that, you can always take him to the doctor. But I might wait a little longer, who knows, he might just wake up one day and be talking in sentences. One thing is sure, when he does start talking, you'll be wishing for the good old days when he couldn't! ;)

Answer 7

My daughter was born at 25 weeks. You need to correct your son's age by the amount of weeks he was premature to measure milestones. You will read and hear a lot about preemies "typically" catching up by the age of two, but I can tell you from belonging to support groups for parents of preemies; most do not catch up completely by the age of two.

My advice to you would be to contact your Early Intervention office and have your son evaluated. The evaluation and services are free. My daughter had Speech Therapy for 7 months. At 18 months old actual (14 months corrected) she was only babbling "mama" and "dada", both without meaning. She had been doing that for months without progress. So they will ask you about the rate of his progress as well.

You should also consider having your son seen by a Developmental Pediatrician to see where he's at with his milestones. And of course, have his hearing checked too; even if he did pass his hearing test upon discharge from the NICU.

GOOD LUCK with your son.

Answer 8

You would know if there were something wrong with your child. I have a 3 year old and he is now holding a conversation, it took him awhile. At first he would stutter and I freaked out and did all this research, it is typical in boys 3-4 to do that. Their little minds are going a million miles a minute and their tiny mouths are trying to keep up, just play by ear, give him time. Do you give him time to talk I mean like get down to his level and take the time. Nick Jr and Noggin show cartoons that really grab childrens attention and get their brains working, it's stimulates mine. Don't worry you would know if it were medical issue, just be patient

Answer 9

You can contact your local "early intervention" system - they work through public schools (your doctor/pediatrician should know who they are). They will do an evaluation and then work with your child for free. It's common for boys to develop vocabularly later than girls, BTW. Children learn at their own pace (they don't read books, remember). My son was in the same boat at age 3, but at 3.5 started talking in sentences.

It's possible that there is a physical problem, but that's unlikely. Often children who don't eat solid foods for a long time or can't handle rough textures (meat, nuggets, etc.) have poor musculature and need help. That's when a therapist of speech pathologist would come in handy.

Answer 10

I was worried about my son at about 2 and a half, he wasn't talking much either. I asked my doctor she said lets give it a little more time. He's 8 now and never shuts up!!!!!! He zoomed in talkativeness around 3ys and hasnt' stopped! He was put in a daycare with mostly girls tho... lol Preemie could have something to do with it but i would still give it a bit more time and not worry too much. Just keep talking to him and eventually he will respond with words:)

Answer 11

I have a 3 yr old who was the same way at 2 yr old. He had his hearing checked and was fine. We had him evaluated by a speech therapist. They worked with him for his speech delay for about 6 mos. They taught us both some sign language to help him communicate more. We encouraged him a lot when he did express himself. Also, we had his 4 yrs old brother help him talk by talking to him and giving him the opportunity to answer back. He now talks in sentences for long periods of time. The signing was a great tool for us to help us understand him more.