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As children grow from infancy to toddlerhood, early childhood, and so on, parents are often keenly aware of what their child "should" be doing at any given age. One of the milestones that frequently causes parents great anxiety is the development of speech. Those initial babblings that sound like words are celebrated, but later, some parents wonder if their child’s ability to talk is delayed. This article outlines important aspects of speech development.

Before entering into a discussion about milestones of speech development, it is important to note the following:

There is great variation in the onset of expressive language. Children generally understand far more (this is their "receptive speech") than they are able to articulate themselves ("expressive language").


Girls seem to develop the ability to communicate earlier than boys.


Language can develop smoothly and continuously, or in jumps and spurts.


Because the development of speech varies, it is important not to compare your child’s language development to other children’s language development.


If you suspect your child is having a delay in either receptive or expressive language, discuss your concerns with your family physician or pediatrician. He/she may evaluate the child, or refer you to professionals who specialize in speech and language evaluation.

Milestones in Speech Development
At 7 days of age, an infant can distinguish her mother’s voice from another woman’s voice.

At 2 weeks of age, an infant can distinguish her father’s voice from another man’s voice.

At 3 months, an infant can make vowel sounds.

At 6 to 8 months, the infant has added a few consonant sounds to the vowel sounds, and may say "dada" or "mama," but does not yet attach them to individuals.

At a year, the infant will attach "mama" or "dada" to the right person. The infant can respond to one-step commands ("Give it to me.")

At 15 months, the infant continues to string vowel and consonant sounds together (gibberish) but may imbed real words within the gibberish. The infant may be able to say as many as ten different words.

At 18 months, a toddler can say nouns (ball, cup), names of special people, and a few action words/phrases. The infant adds gestures to her speech, and may be able to follow a two-step command ("Go to the bedroom and get the toy.")

At 2 years of age, the child can combine words, forming simple sentences like "Daddy go."

At 3 years of age, the child can use sentences two- to four-words long, follow simple instructions, and often repeat words he/she overhears in conversations.

At 4 years of age, the child can understand most sentences, understands physical relationships (on, in, under), uses sentences that are four- or five-words long, can say his/her name, age, and sex, and uses pronouns. Strangers can understand the child’s spoken language.

2007-11-10 23:03:42 · answer #1 · answered by Debi 4 · 1 0

No, my eight month old does this thing when she greets people that sounds like HEY THERE. She did it to one of the guys at work and it was understandable enough for him to ask if she just said hey there? I believe children start communicating verbally much sooner than we think, its not always understandable.

2007-11-11 01:31:37 · answer #2 · answered by gypsy g 7 · 0 0

All babies develop different motor and language skills at different months. If your son is otherwise healthy his lack of words is nothing to be worried about. Have your doctor check his hearing... or if you clap your hands behind him and he responds, you have little to worry about.

2007-11-10 22:59:04 · answer #3 · answered by Miss Sally Anne 7 · 0 0

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