Speech and Language Milestones- A Guide for Parents

Speech and Language Milestones: A Guide for Parents

Understanding the typical speech and language milestones for your child can help you track progress and determine when it's time to seek support in the form of a speech therapist, occupational therapist, or even a physical therapist. The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) provides valuable insights into these milestones, offering a guide for parents to support their child's communication development. In this comprehensive post, we will walk you through the speech and language milestones from birth to five years old, offering insights and tips for fostering your child's linguistic abilities.

Birth to 3 Months: Laying the Foundation

In the first three months, we will begin establishing the foundations for communication. This is a pre-language stage for your baby! He or she will typically respond to familiar voices, make cooing sounds, and startle at loud noises. Your baby may even begin to turn towards voices. Parents can engage their newborns by talking to them, singing, and maintaining eye contact. When talking with your baby, it's helpful to narrate what you're doing as you do it. "It's time for mommy to wash up these dirty dishes - yuck! I have to get all the food off of these with nice hot water and put them in the big loud dishwasher. Scrub, scrub, scrub... clean these dishes up! We need them nice and clean before dinner time!" etc. It might feel silly at first, but this will start to become more natural over time!

4 to 6 Months: Babbling Exploration

As babies reach 4 to 6 months, they start to babble with a variety of sounds. Babbling emerges as consonant-vowel combinations, such as "ba-ba" or "ma-ma." They may begin to giggle and laugh, and show interest in toys that make noise. Parents are encouraged to imitate their baby's sounds and engage in simple games like peek-a-boo to stimulate communication. This back-and-forth interaction strengthens the baby's connection between sound and response.

7 to 12 Months: Sounds & First Words

Between 7 to 12 months, your baby will become more expressive. They will begin to use longer strings of sounds, and look to loved ones when they feel upset. Around 10-12 months, they may say simple words like "mama" or "dada" and respond to simple requests. It's important to encourage gestures like waving and pointing, fostering both verbal and nonverbal communication. Use exaggerated sounds and expressions with your baby, creating a playful and interactive environment!

12 to 18 Months: Vocabulary Expansion and Simple Sentences

Your toddler will experience a rapid increase in vocabulary during this stage, and their attempts at forming simple sentences become much more apparent! They will start adding more words to their repertoire, and their comprehension of simple instructions improves. Engage in activities that involve naming objects, pointing, and identifying body parts. Around 16-18 months, children may say about 10-15 words, and on average children this age have about 50 words. When a child has about 50 words, they then begin combining two words to form simple sentences like "more juice" or "big truck." Encourage this by expanding on their sentences during conversation and introducing new words ("Yes, that is a big truck! It is a big, loud, garbage truck coming to take away our stinky garbage!"). 

18-24 Months: Language Explosion 

Between 18 to 24 months, your child will experience a language explosion! They will begin expressing themselves more clearly and with a broader vocabulary. By 24 months, children have at least 50 words and on average, are producing about 150 or more words. Encourage this development by providing a rich language environment and acknowledging their efforts.

Some great ways to provide a language-rich environment to your child include reading to them regularly, engaging in conversation and meaningful discussions with them, and creating a language-rich play environment for them. Curious about more strategies for providing a rich language environment for your child? Read this post! 

2 to 3 Years: Refining My Skills

Between 2 to 3 years, children refine their language skills. They can use pronouns, understand prepositions, and enjoy longer conversations. It's beneficial to engage in meaningful conversations with your child, ask open-ended questions, and allow them to express themselves.

In terms of speech and language milestones, children typically begin to use a variety of consonant sounds around 2 years old, although their articulation might not be entirely accurate. Commonly, sounds like /p/, /b/, /m/, /t/, /d/, and /n/ are among the first to appear. By age two, children usually have a repertoire of vowel sounds, including long and short vowels. However, certain vowel substitutions or simplifications may still be present. As your child starts combining words into short phrases and sentences, their use of consonants and vowels becomes more apparent. Some sounds may still be pronounced incorrectly, and it's common for children to simplify words or omit certain sounds.

3 to 4 Years: Mastering Grammar and Rich Vocabulary

Preschoolers aged 3 to 4 years continue to develop more advanced language skills. They can tell simple stories, use more complex sentences, and follow multi-step instructions. Parents can enhance language development by introducing new vocabulary through activities like reading and exploring. Encouraging storytelling and imaginative play can enhance a child's language development and support them in meeting speech and language milestones.

By age three, most children can produce a wider range of consonant sounds, including those like /k/, /g/, /f/, and /v/. However, some distortion or substitution of sounds may persist. As vocabulary expands, your child may begin to use more complex words and phrases. Children become more adept at discriminating between different speech sounds; while reading a story, you can begin to talk about rhyming words, and sounds that words start with ("Look at the farm! Farm starts with the sound Fff").

4 to 5 Years: Preparing for School and Building Literacy Skills

By the age of 4 to 5 years, children are better equipped to express themselves clearly. They can engage in imaginative play, tell elaborate stories, and use more precise language. Children develop the ability to tell elaborate stories, connect events, and express their thoughts coherently. Encourage this by asking open-ended questions and allowing them to share their experiences; encourage creativity through activities that involve storytelling and role-playing. Your child will become more adept at using language for social interactions, telling stories, and engaging in conversations with peers and adults. 

Articulation (Speech Sounds) Mastery! Around age four, many children exhibit clear articulation, accurately pronouncing a majority of sounds. However, some may still struggle with more challenging sounds like /r/, /l/, /th/, and blends (e.g., "tr" or "spl"). 

If you're concerned about your child's current speech and language milestones, reach out to us here for a free 15-minute consultation!