Speech --is this normal??

[chloechloe]

My friend that has a baby the same age as DD told me her son speaks 75+ words clearly and is learning more all the time. DD is saying 7-10 words and most are not clear. Should I panic??? What does this mean???


ETA : DD and the other boy are both ONE year!

[Jodi AKA BostonTeacher]

Children progress at different times. I wouldn't be able to tell you if the amount of words your child speaks is 'normal' without knowing her age. Also, does she have a history of ear infections? That can delay speech and proper pronunciation. Lastly, not to discount your friend, but is she the type to "embellish?"

[MamaBear]

How old is your DD? My DS is 20 months and only says a couple of words. He babbles ALL the time. I'm not too worried about it yet because his ped isn't too concerned. I have also talked to alot of mommy friends. Alot of them said that their children didn't really say much until they turned 2 and all of a sudden there was a language explosion. What does your ped say?

I had the same thoughts that you did when I saw this little boy talking up a storm. He was at least a couple of months younger than DS. I have to admit that I began to think that maybe something was wrong with DS. But I also know that there is a huge range as to what is considered normal for milestones. Some kids are so focused on motor skills that speech takes a backseat for awhile and vice versa. If you are really concerned, talk to your ped. They will be able to help put your mind at ease. HTH!

[carolc]

"They" (meaning speech and child development experts) say that a child should have 50 words by two. If he or she does not, there still may not be cause for concern, depending on whether there are other developmental issues and how well the child understands and communicates through other means, such as sign or gestures or shaking/nodding the head. Your child, chloechloe, is very, very normal for 12 months, by the way. You have no cause for concern. :)

The rate of language acquisition varies enormously from child to child.

[Winter Biscuit]

I agree that your child sounds normal. My daughter is/was the opposite - she was speaking quite well and had a pretty extensive vocabulary at a young age. Her daycare teachers always tell me that they can't believe how "advanced" she is compared to some of the other kids the same age - she can tell them very clearly what she wants while some of the other toddlers just yell, grunt and point and can't communicate what it is that they want. I personally think my DD is abnormal for hitting the communication milestones so early! (But not abnormal in a bad way - it just happened faster than I expected :) )

I have plenty of friends whose children never said much until they were 2, and like a PP said, then there was suddenly a language explosion and they were learning several new words a day. I have one niece who turns 2 on October 10, and she doesn't say much at all. I have another niece who just turned 1 in August, and she says NOTHING at all, not even simple words like bye-bye, mama, dada, etc.

Try not to worry. It's hard not to compare your child to other children the same age, but just keep in mind that your child will start talking when she's ready. Try to enjoy the semi-silence while you can - once they start talking, they never shut up :)

[Renrel]

Ditto the above. Some kids speak early and alot others take their time and speak late. I spend alot of time in my son's daycare center and the vocabulary and pronouncation is all over the place, even for kids with birthdays in the same month.

If you really feel in your gut something is wrong than talk to your ped and insist on an early intervention evaluations. We all worry needlessly and usually we know it is needless and we just need reassurance. But that gut feeling that something is wrong should not be ignored.

I am told my BIL did not speak till he was 3 and he his now a board certified doc and I am sure you have heard that Einstein also did not speak until 3. Each child develops at their own pace. At a certain point a lack of speach may raise concern, but that does not mean something is wrong, just that it is a good idea to check things out, like hearing to make sure the child is just developing at his/her own pace and not dealing with an obstical. Early intervention makes a big difference in helping kids who do have some sort of obstical in their way. Without knowing your child's age it is impossible to say if you should be asking for an evalutation.

In the mean time something to do to encourage speach are,

1) have the tv off when he is awake. It is hard for children to distinquish sounds and concentrate on your voice if there is alot of background noice. Try to have at least some time each day when it is very quiet and all he has to do is listen to you.
2) Talk to him alot, all the time. Discribe everything to him. When he makes a sound that seem close to a word assume it is the word and respond to it appropriately.
3) Try sign language, kids who learn sign tend to speak sooner not later.
4) Try to make him say a word to get what he wants. Don't push him to hysterics but make him wait just abit as you ask for the word rather then the grunt or pointing or whatever.

[linda_loo]

At 22 months, my oldest had only about 7-10 words and had a speech evaluation. She was still considered to be in the range of "normal" and not eligible for any therapy. In time, she learned more words. She's now 41 months old and She Never Shuts Up.

;)

[jay&erinn]

carolc's right. By age two most kids should have 50 words and begin putting 2 words together to form short sentences. There's a wide range of normal. If a child had 20 words, but comprehended beautifully at age two, I'd probably hold off on a speech eval for another 6 months to see if they'd catch up. Before age 2, the best messure is comprehension. If they can follow (when they feel like it) simple instructions/directions (ie, it's time to go. Go get your shoes.), and developing a few new words occasionally they're probably just fine.
My DD only had about 20 words at 22 months. She just turned 2 and probably has over 500 and is forming 2-4 word sentences. You will definately see a language explosion and wonder why you ever worried.

[lady1297]

My son is 14 months old and has a limited vocabulary. The number of words he REGULARLY says is, oh, about, 1. We've heard other words, most appropriatly used, but he only says "dada" regularly and appropriately. But he babbles non-stop. I think he's developing his motor skills more than his verbal right now, so I'm anything but worried...each child is different.

[bluhimmy]

....but I just wanted to chime in and say that my husband barely spoke *at all* until he was 3 (or so his parents tell me). In the years since, he has scored a perfect score on one part of his SAT, he's graduated with two undergraduate degrees (in divergent fields) and some ridiculously high G.P.A. from M.I.T. and then gone on to Stanford for grad school, where he also excelled. (And yes, he makes me sick, too. :D).

In other words, I'll bet your ped says it's normal....and even if s/he doesn't, I still think it's normal. :) (By the way, one of my brothers supposedly didn't speak more than two or three words before he was two. NOW, we cannot get him to SHUT UP (and he's 48)!!!!).

DH was the same according to MIL. He didn't talk till 3 or so. And once he did open his mouth, it was full on words and sentences. Prior to that, DH did a lot of grunting and pointing. He just felt there was no need to say anything since everyone understood his needs.

DS is almost 14 months now, and he has about 4 words. The rests are just babble.

[phart]

DS babbled a ton. Still does at 23 months. His first word wasn't spoken until he was 18 months and even now he doesn't have a ton but is picking more up each day. He seemed to focus on the physical first.

[mommycal]

I dont' recall where I read this but isn't it common for males to speak later than females? And males like Phart mentioned, seem to focus on the physical aspects before the females do. We all develop at our own pace.

[Renrel]

Yes, boys to tend to talk later than girls. They also toilet train later, but that is another thread.

[tinkerbelljenny]

DS is 2 years and 2 months and he doesn't say much.
Prior to that, DH did a lot of grunting and pointing. He just felt there was no need to say anything since everyone understood his needs.

I think this is like my son. He will do sign language or point and show me what he wants but if you ask him to say what he wants he justs get frustrated. I started taking him to see a Early Intervention Specialist and he was evaluated. I am not too worried right now because many of my nephews didn't start talking until after they turned 3. Once he is close to 3 and he hasn't improved then I will worry.

[flyerwife]

Don't be concerned. Children really do all speak at different times! My son never had alot of words up until he turned 3. We discussed taking him for hearing and speech testing, but decided to wait and so far all is turning out well. Talk to you ped. they will evaluate other aspects of the childs personality and go from there. If they see other signs they are worried about they might try intervention first. Otherwise, they might wait to see how things progress.

And yes, girls do talk before boys!

[jenji]

not a mom, but after 6 months of teaching 1 year olds in Bible school at church, I can say there is SOOOO much variation between children at that age. we had one or two children that only knew a handful of words and wouldn't use them hardly ever and some who knew 30-40 words and were excited about using them and one girl who would speak very matter-of-factly in short, but complete sentences. another not far behind. none of the children (now almost 3) have speech or other problems, they just progressed at different rates