Should I be concerned about my soon to be 3 year old's speaking skills?

Question

My son will be 3 years old on July 27th and has yet to speak clearly like other 2-3 years that I come across. I thought it had to do with him being the only child in the household and not being in day care. I put him in daycare for about a month and took him out of it because it was a bad experience. The doctors were concerned that he wasn't speaking in 2-word sentences and speaking more clearly. They even thought that he needed to go to a speech therapist but I'm very stubborn and I thought eventually he will start talking when he's ready. I'm going to bring this up when he goes to his 3 year check up. I just wanted to see if there were any other mothers out there that are having this problem as well.

Thanks in advance.

I appreciate everyone's answers to my question. I forgot to add that he is advanced with everything else. He knows when to tell me that he wants juice and understands when I tell him to do something. He says a few 2-word sentences just not as many as other people think he should say. I communicate with my son daily and understands everything I say to him. He's just taking his time speaking more clearly for other's to understand him. He imitates everything we do as well.

Answer 1

Yahoo Answers is not the right place to find out what is best for your child.... if your doctor is asking you to have him evaluated, have him evaluated. Each child is different and there are many children who begin speaking in complete sentences rather than starting off slowly. If there is a problem don't let your pride get in the way of your child's help options.

Answer 2

Hi...I never had this problem, but i used to take care of a little boy who did, he didnt talk at all but a grunt until the age of 3 1/2 and his parents put him in a speach class. With in a month he was talking and by 6 months he was nearly at a 4 year olds level....Can he communicate good, let u know what he needs? Do others understand him and what he needs? These r the questions u need to ask your self. If he cant do these, then yes i would definitly put him in classes and u have to look at that as the real fact, it is what is best for your son, not what u want to except. This isnt something u can be stubborn about, the doctors r concerned so should u be. I dont mean to be hard on u, but it is your childs welfare here...i hope this helps u in your decision and good luck with your little guy

Answer 3

Yes you should be concerned. Apparently your doctors told you to be concerned and put him in speech therapy, which answers your question. Other mothers have this problem as well, but they usually get their children the help they need. You should get him in a program as soon as possible for many reasons.
1) Myelination of the brain (when the brain grows and forms connections) only happens for the first three years. This means that the sooner you get him help, the better it will work
2) If he is in an Early Intervention program before he turns three he is much more likely to qualify for financial assistance in a year or two. This means that instead of you paying hundreds of dollars a week to get him the help he needs, the state will pay all or part of it.
3) He probably has a good reason for this developmental delay - like partial hearing impairment. He could have other issues that have not been recognized yet.

Please discuss these concerns with his pediatrician right away.

Answer 4

My son had the same problem and was tested for a speech delay which he, in fact, did have. Each state has a FREE screening test and provide therapy if they qualify. Everything seems to be happening at the same time and in the same way for your son as it did with mine. It definitely looks like your son may need a little help. My son is now 6 1/2 and going into first grade. His speech therapy started when he was 2 1/2 (closer to 3) and, even though he is still in therapy, no one can tell he ever had a problem! It took a little time but early intervention has worked!! Your doctor should know where to refer him to have him screened. If you are dead set against having him evaluated they have some great (but expensive) DVDs you can buy from http://babybumblebee.com/store/main_store. You may also want to check your local library. These DVDs have been very helpful and have gotten great reviews!

Answer 5

Yes, you should be VERY concerned. If he is only using 2 word utterances, he is a year behind the average 3 year-old (36mos). As several of the other answerers said, the sooner the right intervention begins, the better. There care many reasons for speech and language delays; a carefully rendered diagnosis from a speech pathologist will steer your child onto the right path. Many parents don't realize speech and language delays can be harbingers of specific learning disabilities, such as dyslexia. Get him in ASAP. You don't need to wait for the pediatrician to tell you this.

Answer 6

I have had two kids who weren't speaking at three, both were disabled and needed speech therapy to start. I understand your concern, but the younger they are when they start, the faster they learn and the less it impacts their life. At least get an evaluation and see what the therapist says. As a parent you do have complete control and parent's rights over therapy, but it is very abnormal for a three year old to not be using two words together.

I wish you the best of luck. There are some things you can do at home to start speech, maybe that would be a good compromise for the next few weeks. If you want to email me privately, i can give some suggestions.

Answer 7

My cousin went to a speech therapist for different problems, and my nephew goes for a speech delay (he was born with vocal cord abnormalities and couldn't speak until he had surgery but surgery isn't safe until they are three)

I really think you need to understand what happens in speech therapy the therapist listens to the child a lot, and then they play games that specifically help with speech. Some are even group sessions with other children.

There is nothing traumatic at all about speech therapy, most kids enjoy it. What is the worst that happens he goes and has a good time and didn't really need it? There are no risks or side effects to speech therapy. Sure he *may* outgrow it without help, but he may not and the sooner you start therapy the less time it takes to fix the problem.

If you don't like what happens in therapy you can always go to a different therapist or quit but you really have nothing to loose by trying.

Answer 8

I am a speech pathologist with more than 25 yrs of experince and also mom of 3. Please, get this child an developmental evaluation. Yes, "babying" him may have contributed but he seems ot have several developmental problems not just speech, but also fine and gross motor delays. . It is hard for the pediatrician to notice such problems since they see the child for just a few minutes, and focus on health issues, and have to rely on parents' report about development. So if mom says that everything is Ok, the doctor is unlikely to go further. At the age of 3 your nephew can get a free developmental evaluation in the school district where he lives. It is a right of every child from 3 to 21. It is a federal law., But only parents can request it. By 3 year the average child * Has a word for almost everything. * Uses two- or three- words to talk about and ask for things. * Uses k, g, f, t, d, and n sounds. * Speech is understood by familiar listeners most of the time. * Often asks for or directs attention to objects by naming them.

Answer 9

My youngest son wasn't making any environmental sounds at 14 months.I was concerned.At 16 months old he started with a wonder full speech therapist using sign language , reading 5 x a day 10 minutes each time pointing and clear saying the words and By18 months old he could say woof woof, I cry. He was going to be able to speak.We wanted him to communicate and all the word work paid off. After 1&1/2 years of weekly speech therapist visits he was at a 1st grade speech and vocabulary level when he was3 years old. Don't wait it will be harder for him to get caught up.Beside is it not wonderfull to hear your child say" I love you very much mom"or "please read to me".Speech also is very important in preread skills

Answer 10

my oldest was the same way. by the age of 3, he could barely say 50 words and certainly couldn't put 2 of them together. his dr suggested speech therapy at his 2 year check up. i just figured he was a late bloomer and he'd start talking when he wanted to. i listened to many other 2-3 year olds and couldn't believe how well they spoke.
i got my son tested in december and was on a waiting list until may (a month after his 3rd b-day). getting him to a speech therapist was the best thing i ever did. i'm just so sorry i didn't do it sooner. he's been going once a week for over a year and is now speaking wonderfully!!!! we just need to work on announciation. he loves his therapist and she really helps me teach him at home. i told her the first day that i didn't want her to teach him how to talk, i wanted her to teach me how to teach him.
i strongley suggest getting him tested. you can also do things at home to encourage him to talk:
start by narrating everything you do, i mean EVERYTHING you do. from brushing your hair, washing the dishes and cooking. it sounds so silly, but it really works.
read to him. a few of our favorits are Jamberry, Goodnight Moon and anything by Eric Carle. talk about the pictures and start asking him questions. you'll probably have to give him the words to use, but make him repeat what you say.
you can also try basic sign language. my son knows more sign than i do. it's still a form of communication, just to get him rolling. my son still signs "please" everytime he says the word.
sorry about the novel, but i hope it helps

good luck