Learn about your child’s speech development milestones: Excerpts from a live chat with Speech therapist, Merzia – Part III

Q. Doc, but I am a bit anxious about my daughter she is going in normal pace or lacking behind as you suggested that I need to see specialist after 18 months.

A. Don’t worry. Stimulate her language at home and wait till 18 months. She will pick up words. In case she doesn’t, you can see a speech therapist to help the process. As of now, your daughter does not seem to be lagging behind.

Q. Which books do you suggest for ages 3 and 4 years? Any at all or is there a good series of books which are written based on speech research?

A. Books by Eric Carle and Julia Donaldson are very good.

Q. Can you give a chart of how many words a baby should start speaking age wise from infants to preschoolers?

A. 1. By 12-15 months, your child should be cooing, babbling, and using words like mama, dada etc without attaching meaning to the words.

2. 18-24 months, they should be saying one or more true words, usually nouns, like “ball”. They should also be able to follow 1 step directions such as “please give me the ball”.

3. Between 2-3 years, they should have a vocabulary of about 75 words and be able to combine two-three word sentences, e.g. daddy big, baby crying. and follow 2- step directions like please pick up the toy and put it in the box.

Q. My son is 15 months old and he is able to say Dada, Nana, Papa, (doesn’t say Mama even though he knows the word), Bye bye, There… is this good enough?

A. I think your child is doing fine. There is a big difference between the language development of boys and girls until age 

Q. My daughter is of 2.5 years old. She is going  to her play school since July 2015. In the beginning, she couldn’t speak properly. But after her admission, she learnt too many things in her school and obviously her speaking power also improved. But when we ask about the activities at her school – what she ate, she can’t give appropriate answers. She thinks but can’t speak. She can’t speak sentences in proper manner. Please advise how to help her grasp everything and how to improve her speaking power.
Can she answer in words? Is that she’s not saying sentences or that she doesn’t remember what she did?
Q. (Continued) She says a single word. If I ask – what meals you get in your school or, what did you eat? She simply replies, KHANA KHAYA. Doesn’t say the name of her meals.

A.  That’s fine, nothing to worry. All kids have different personalities some like to talk a lot and some will just say a little. As long as you are sure she has understood the question and responded, then it is fine. You can help her by asking follow up questions like “what did you eat – sandwich? idli? banana?”
if you give her more verbal choices- she may start to expand her sentences.

Q. By what age latest is clarity of words expected in a toddler? I mean, correct diction (not full sentences but just clarity)

A. A child should be completely clear by age 4. By age 3, he/she  should be  saying p,b,m,h,n,t,d,k and g clearly.

Also read more about: Live chat with Speech therapist, Merzia – Part I, Part II

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