Danny is 18 months old. He laughs, cries, smiles and enjoys silly games like peek-a-boo with his parents. He has always been a very quiet baby but sometimes he makes babbling sounds like “bababa” and “mamama.”
He has not said any words yet and his mom wonders if this is normal. Her neighbour tells her, “don’t worry, he’ll talk when he’s ready” but mom is still worried…
When it comes to speech and language development, what should parents expect to see and when?
An 18 month old, like Danny, should be able to say at least 18 words and he should understand more words than he can speak. He should also be able to point to show you something. For example, he should be able to understand and point when asked, “Where’s your belly button?” Danny’s parents should consider taking him to a speech language pathologist who can help identify and treat children with speech and language delays.
A good rule of thumb for parents or caregivers to consider when understanding typical speech and language development is that one year old children should be able to say one word at a time and two year old children should say at least two words together.
Hearing loss can interfere with a child’s speech and language development, so parents should also be on the look out for hearing problems. At three months old a child should startle to loud sounds and, by six months, they should turn to where a sound is coming from. If parents notice any signs that a child may not be hearing well they should talk to an audiologist or other health professional.
There are some simple things that parents and caregivers can do to promote communication development. Try following your child’s lead: get face-to-face and down to your child’s level, observe your child’s body language in order to discover what he/she is interested in, wait for your child to do or say something (be patient – it can be 10 or 15 seconds), listen to your child’s message without interrupting and then respond in a playful way.
Communication development starts at birth so it’s never too early to help your child build their skills. Daily life activities like diaper changing, bed time, bath time, and meal time are perfect times to talk with your child. Use the same words and phrases each time you go through a routine until your child is very familiar with them, and then start adding new and interesting words.
When it comes to communication development you are your child’s best teaching toy: have fun together, listen and talk.
The following resources offer more information on speech and language development in children:
• Check Your Child’s Communication;
• Best Chance: You and Your Baby’s Development 0-6 months;
• Best Chance: You and Your Toddler’s Development 6-36 Months.
To find out about speech and language services in Interior Health, visit www.interiorhealth.ca/YourHealth/InfantsChildren/Pages/SpeechLanguage.aspx
-Authors Kirsten Barnard and Jennifer Amy are Interior Health speech and language pathology students.
