Pre-School ChildrenREALIZING YOUR CHILD is not communicating like their peers can be frightening. Silver Linings Speech & Language offers comprehensive evaluation and treatment services for children of all ages. With an estimated 1,460,583 speech and language disordered children living in the United States, the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) recommends parents closely monitor their children’s communication skills. If your child is not speaking by his/her first birthday and/or their speech is unclear, ASHA reports there may be cause for concern.
|
|
Who Should Be Evaluated?
In the meantime, talk to your child about what you're doing and where you're going. Sing songs and read together. Teach your child to imitate actions, such as clapping, and to say animal sounds. Practice counting. Show your child that you're pleased when he or she speaks. Listen to your child's sounds and repeat them back to him or her. Some affectionate "baby talk" to your child is OK, but remember that your child learns to speak by imitating you. These steps can encourage your child's speech and language development.
Although speech and language skills can vary widely from one child to another there are specific guidelines regarding typical development and when it may be time to get some help for your child.
Developmental Milestones
The way your child plays, speaks, acts, and moves (e.g. crawling, walking, etc.) are all indications of how your child is developing.
Skills such as taking a first step, smiling for the first time, and waving are called developmental milestones.
Milestones are generalized guidelines that indicate what most children are doing by a certain age. It is important to remember, howeevr, that not every child is the same, and children reach milestones at different ages.
Talk with your child’s doctor at every visit about the milestones your child has reached and what to expect next.
By Three Months:
By three months, your child might...
- begin smiling at people;
- make cooing and gurgling sounds;
- seem to recognize your voice;
- turn his or her head toward sounds;
- try looking at you and following things with his or her eyes;
- quiet or smile when spoken to.
By Six Months:
By six months, your child might...
- make gurgling sounds when playing with you or left alone;
- babble and make a variety of sounds;
- use his or her voice to express pleasure and displeasure;
- respond to changes in the tone of your voice;
- look around at things nearby and try to get things that are out of reach;
- pay attention to music.
By 12 Months:
By his or her first birthday, your child might....
- cry when you leave;
- try to imitate speech sounds or make sounds to attention;
- use simple gestures, like shaking head “no” or waving “bye-bye;"
- say simple words, such as "mama" and "uh-oh;"
- respond to simple instructions, such as "look there" or "pick that up;"
- recognize words for common items, such as "book."
By 18 Months:
By 18 months, your child might....
- recognize names of people, objects and body parts;
- follow simple directions;
- say as many as 10 words;
- hand things to others as play;
- point to show someone what he or she wants.
By 2 Years:
By his or her second birthday, your child might....
- follow two-step instructions, such as "eat your food and drink your milk;"
- say sentences with 2 to 4 words;
- repeat words overheard in conversation;
- begin to sort shapes and colors;
- complete sentences and rhymes in familiar books;
- speak approximately 50 or more words;
- speak well enough to be understood at least half the time by you.
By 3 Years:
By his or her third birthday, your child might....
- follow instructions with 2 or 3 steps;
- show a wide range of emotions;
- understands words like “in,” “on,” and “under;”
- talk well enough for strangers to understand most of the time;
- carry on a conversation using 2 to 3 sentences;
- play make-believe with dolls, animals, and people.