Does my 18-month-old need speech therapy? A speech therapist's advice

At 18 months, a child often:

• Uses many gestures to communicate, such as waving and clapping

• Understands simple directions

• Can identify a couple of body parts

• Says at least 10 words (including signs) and, on average, about 50 words

 An 18-month-old who has fewer than 10 words, referred to as a late talker, is often a good candidate for speech therapy. Every child develops on their own timeline; however, it's important to take into consideration all aspects of their development. At Speech Language Play NYC, before working with a family, we have a conversation about the child's overall development to get a better sense of their strengths and areas of growth.

Speech therapy at 18 months is helpful because it:

• Allows a child to start working toward a goal of producing at least 50 words by 24 months with the support of a speech therapist

• Helps to reduce frustrations that may come with not being able to effectively communicate with others

• Allows parents and caregivers to learn strategies to support their child's language development

A speech therapy evaluation or initial speech therapy session will allow a speech therapist to gather more information about:

• All the ways a child is communicating (e.g., gestures, signs, words)

• What words are they currently using

• How much they understand

• If they are developing as an Analytic Language Processor or a Gestalt Language Processor

• The best next steps to support the child

What does a speech therapy session with an 18-month-old look like?

• It's play- based! We incorporate a child's interests, use developmentally appropriate toys, activities, and materials, and incorporate movement and other sensory activities

• Parents and caregivers are encouraged to participate in the sessions to learn strategies

In general, if an 18-month-old is saying fewer than 10 words, we encourage the family to start speech therapy. An initial consultation will allow us to gather more information about your child's development and give you personalized guidance. At Speech Language Play NYC, we offer group sessions for late talkers, called Mae Mae and Me, and one-on-one speech therapy sessions.