Baby speaking milestones

Birth to One Year

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Three to Four Years | Four to Five Years | Learning Two Languages |
What should I do if I think my child has a problem?

Children develop at their own rate. Your child might not have all skills until the end of the age range.

What should my child be able to do?

What can I do to help?

• Check if your child can hear. See if she turns to noises or looks at you when you talk. Pay attention to ear problems and infections, and see your doctor.
• Respond to your child. Look at him when he makes noises. Talk to him. Imitate the sounds he makes.
• Laugh when she does. Imitate the faces she makes.
• Teach your baby to imitate actions, like peek-a-boo, clapping, blowing kisses, and waving bye-bye. This teaches him how to take turns. We take turns when we talk.
• Talk about what you do during the day. Say things like “Mommy is washing your hair”; “You are eating peas”; and “Oh, these peas are good!”
• Talk about where you go, what you do there, and who and what you see. Say things like, “We are going to Grandma’s house. Grandma has a dog. You can pet the dog.”
• Teach animal sounds, like “A cow says ‘moo.’”
• Read to your child every day.
• Talk to your child in the language you are most comfortable using.

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Speech and Language Developmental Milestones

How do speech and language develop?

The first 3 years of life, when the brain is developing and maturing, is the most intensive period for acquiring speech and language skills. These skills develop best in a world that is rich with sounds, sights, and consistent exposure to the speech and language of others.

There appear to be critical periods for speech and language development in infants and young children when the brain is best able to absorb language. If these critical periods are allowed to pass without exposure to language, it will be more difficult to learn.

What are the milestones for speech and language development?

The first signs of communication occur when an infant learns that a cry will bring food, comfort, and companionship. Newborns also begin to recognize important sounds in their environment, such as the voice of their mother or primary caretaker. As they grow, babies begin to sort out the speech sounds that compose the words of their language. By 6 months of age, most babies recognize the basic sounds of their native language.

Children vary in their development of speech and language skills. However, they follow a natural progression or timetable for mastering the skills of language. A checklist of milestones for the normal development of speech and language skills in children from birth to 5 years of age is included below. These milestones help doctors and other health professionals determine if a child is on track or if he or she may need extra help. Sometimes a delay may be caused by hearing loss, while other times it may be due to a speech or language disorder.

What is the difference between a speech disorder and a language disorder?

Children who have trouble understanding what others say (receptive language) or difficulty sharing their thoughts (expressive language) may have a language disorder. Developmental language disorder (DLD) is a language disorder that delays the mastery of language skills. Some children with DLD may not begin to talk until their third or fourth year.

Children who have trouble producing speech sounds correctly or who hesitate or stutter when talking may have a speech disorder. Apraxia of speech is a speech disorder that makes it difficult to put sounds and syllables together in the correct order to form words.

What should I do if my child’s speech or language appears to be delayed?

Talk to your child’s doctor if you have any concerns. Your doctor may refer you to a speech-language pathologist, who is a health professional trained to evaluate and treat people with speech or language disorders. The speech-language pathologist will talk to you about your child’s communication and general development. He or she will also use special spoken tests to evaluate your child. A hearing test is often included in the evaluation because a hearing problem can affect speech and language development. Depending on the result of the evaluation, the speech-language pathologist may suggest activities you can do at home to stimulate your child’s development. They might also recommend group or individual therapy or suggest further evaluation by an audiologist (a health care professional trained to identify and measure hearing loss), or a developmental psychologist (a health care professional with special expertise in the psychological development of infants and children).

What research is being conducted on developmental speech and language problems?

The National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) sponsors a broad range of research to better understand the development of speech and language disorders, improve diagnostic capabilities, and fine-tune more effective treatments. An ongoing area of study is the search for better ways to diagnose and differentiate among the various types of speech delay. A large study following approximately 4,000 children is gathering data as the children grow to establish reliable signs and symptoms for specific speech disorders, which can then be used to develop accurate diagnostic tests. Additional genetic studies are looking for matches between different genetic variations and specific speech deficits.

Researchers sponsored by the NIDCD have discovered one genetic variant, in particular, that is linked to developmental language disorder (DLD), a disorder that delays children’s use of words and slows their mastery of language skills throughout their school years. The finding is the first to tie the presence of a distinct genetic mutation to any kind of inherited language impairment. Further research is exploring the role this genetic variant may also play in dyslexia, autism, and speech-sound disorders.

A long-term study looking at how deafness impacts the brain is exploring how the brain “rewires” itself to accommodate deafness. So far, the research has shown that adults who are deaf react faster and more accurately than hearing adults when they observe objects in motion. This ongoing research continues to explore the concept of “brain plasticity”—the ways in which the brain is influenced by health conditions or life experiences—and how it can be used to develop learning strategies that encourage healthy language and speech development in early childhood.

A recent workshop convened by the NIDCD drew together a group of experts to explore issues related to a subgroup of children with autism spectrum disorders who do not have functional verbal language by the age of 5. Because these children are so different from one another, with no set of defining characteristics or patterns of cognitive strengths or weaknesses, development of standard assessment tests or effective treatments has been difficult. The workshop featured a series of presentations to familiarize participants with the challenges facing these children and helped them to identify a number of research gaps and opportunities that could be addressed in future research studies.

What are voice, speech, and language?

Voice, speech, and language are the tools we use to communicate with each other.

Voice is the sound we make as air from our lungs is pushed between vocal folds in our larynx, causing them to vibrate.

Speech is talking, which is one way to express language. It involves the precisely coordinated muscle actions of the tongue, lips, jaw, and vocal tract to produce the recognizable sounds that make up language.

Language is a set of shared rules that allow people to express their ideas in a meaningful way. Language may be expressed verbally or by writing, signing, or making other gestures, such as eye blinking or mouth movements.

Your baby’s hearing and communicative development checklist

Birth to 3 Months

Reacts to loud sounds

YES NO

Calms down or smiles when spoken to

YES NO

Recognizes your voice and calms down if crying

YES NO

When feeding, starts or stops sucking in response to sound

YES NO

Coos and makes pleasure sounds

YES NO

Has a special way of crying for different needs

YES NO

Smiles when he or she sees you

YES NO

4 to 6 Months

Follows sounds with his or her eyes

YES NO

Responds to changes in the tone of your voice

YES NO

Notices toys that make sounds

YES NO

Pays attention to music

YES NO

Babbles in a speech-like way and uses many different sounds, including sounds that begin with p, b, and m

YES NO

Laughs

YES NO

Babbles when excited or unhappy

YES NO

Makes gurgling sounds when alone or playing
with you

YES NO

7 Months to 1 Year

Enjoys playing peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake

YES NO

Turns and looks in the direction of sounds

YES NO

Listens when spoken to

YES NO

Understands words for common items such as “cup,” “shoe,” or “juice”

YES NO

Responds to requests (“Come here”)

YES NO

Babbles using long and short groups of sounds (“tata, upup, bibibi”)

YES NO

Babbles to get and keep attention

YES NO

Communicates using gestures such as waving or holding up arms

YES NO

Imitates different speech sounds

YES NO

Has one or two words (“Hi,” “dog,” “Dada,” or “Mama”) by first birthday

YES NO

1 to 2 Years

Knows a few parts of the body and can point to them when asked

YES NO

Follows simple commands (“Roll the ball”) and understands simple questions (“Where’s your shoe?”)

YES NO

Enjoys simple stories, songs, and rhymes

YES NO

Points to pictures, when named, in books

YES NO

Acquires new words on a regular basis

YES NO

Uses some one- or two-word questions (“Where kitty?” or “Go bye-bye?”)

YES NO

Puts two words together (“More cookie”)

YES NO

Uses many different consonant sounds at the beginning of words

YES NO

2 to 3 Years

Has a word for almost everything

YES NO

Uses two- or three-word phrases to talk about and ask for things

YES NO

Uses k, g, f, t, d, and n sounds

YES NO

Speaks in a way that is understood by family members and friends

YES NO

Names objects to ask for them or to direct attention to them

YES NO

3 to 4 Years

Hears you when you call from another room

YES NO

Hears the television or radio at the same sound level as other
family members

YES NO

Answers simple “Who?” “What?” “Where?” and “Why?” questions

YES NO

Talks about activities at daycare, preschool, or friends’ homes

YES NO

Uses sentences with four or more words

YES NO

Speaks easily without having to repeat syllables or words

YES NO

4 to 5 Years

Pays attention to a short story and answers simple questions about it

YES NO

Hears and understands most of what is said at home and in school

YES NO

Uses sentences that give many details

YES NO

Tells stories that stay on topic

YES NO

Communicates easily with other children and adults

YES NO

Says most sounds correctly except for a few (l, s, r, v, z, ch, sh, and th)

YES NO

Uses rhyming words

YES NO

Names some letters and numbers

YES NO

Uses adult grammar

YES NO

This checklist is based upon How Does Your Child Hear and Talk?, courtesy of the American Speech–Language–Hearing Association.

Where can I find additional information about speech and language developmental milestones?

The NIDCD maintains a directory of organizations that provide information on the normal and disordered processes of hearing, balance, taste, smell, voice, speech, and language.

Use the following keywords to help you find organizations that can answer questions and provide information on speech and language development:

• Early identification of hearing loss in children
• Language
• Speech-language pathologists

NIDCD Information Clearinghouse
1 Communication Avenue
Bethesda, MD 20892-3456
Toll-free voice: (800) 241-1044
Toll-free TTY: (800) 241-1055
Email: [email protected]

Early speech development of young children

"... in the community, under guidance, with the help of a child can always do more and solve the most difficult problems than on their own." A.V. Zaporozhets, a well-known Russian psychologist.

I want to draw the attention of parents to a very important period in the development of the baby, which we call "pre-speech". It is during this period that the baby is preparing for further speech development, which is not yet noticeable, but is already very actively taking place. From my many years of experience, I know that many mothers pay little attention to the cooing and babbling of the baby, many do not even know what it is and how they differ.

But the first symptoms of trouble can manifest themselves precisely during this period, when the child's nervous system is still very plastic and pliable to therapeutic effects. You should also not make preliminary diagnoses, because we are adults too, very different. Someone is talkative, someone is called a "silent person", one cannot live without communication, and the other likes to be alone. And our children are ours and, of course, they look like us. Along with the norm, I give examples that, in combination with other symptoms, should alert parents.

Often there is nothing serious behind these symptoms, only a slight correction is needed. Mothers with perfectly healthy children come to see me, who had features of babbling and cooing. Yes, not everyone who had deviations in pre-speech development later developed problems with speech and reading, very often everything returned to normal. But all children with speech difficulties necessarily had violations of early speech and pre-speech development.

Stages of pre-speech development

• The first year of life is called the period of pre-speech development, during which preparation for mastering speech takes place. From the very first day of life, the child is preparing for speech. From the moment of birth, there are voice reactions - screaming and crying. With these signals, the baby reports that he is ill, he is hungry, sick. A healthy newborn makes separate sounds, intermediate between "a" and "e".
• Pay attention if the baby sobs on sigh, with a characteristic nasal tint, or there is a piercing, painful, continuous cry, which is commonly called "brain". If these symptoms do not go away, you should consult a specialist.
• Gradually, the child learns to listen to his speech and the speech of others. From the 1st month, the baby calms down when he hears a lullaby. An increased interest in human speech in the form of a concentration reaction appears at 4-5 weeks. When an adult leans over a child, gently talks to him, he stops crying and moving, “listens”. At 5-8 weeks, in response to the speech of an adult, the child smiles, from 8 weeks - a real smile, by 9-12 weeks laughter appears. Starting from 6-8 weeks, in response to an attempt by an adult to make contact, the baby utters separate sounds - cooing (initial cooing). True humming or melodious humming appears on the 2-3rd month. The child, being in a calm state, makes long vowel sounds.
• With certain pathologies of the nervous system, the child may not show interest in the speech of an adult, not respond to surrounding objects. In children in such cases, negative reactions usually predominate (monotonous crying, prolonged crying on one tone), a smile is extremely rare, and there is no cooing.
• By 5-6 months, the nature of the sounds becomes more complicated. Combinations appear: “baaa, maaa”, “taaa, paaa”. Observing the child, it can be noted that at the moment of pronouncing sounds, he slows down his vocal movements, as if listening and imitating himself, pronounces sounds in the form of chains. By about the 5th month of life, sound and syllabic pronunciation begin to acquire some semblance of words. By 5-6 months, the cooing gradually turns into clear and distinct speech sounds, babble appears. The first babble consists of short chains of syllables: ba-ba-ba, ma-ma-ma. Parents sometimes take such babble chains for meaningful speech, but these, of course, are not words yet.
• Children with a lack of cooing, low expressiveness of speech, and a lack of imitation deserve special observation. A child with initial signs of early childhood autism may be clearly non-contact, passive, orienting reactions will be reduced or, conversely, physical activity, anxiety, negative emotional reactions to new objects (crying, screaming) will prevail.
• By 9 months babbling is enriched with new sounds, intonations, develops into long rows of syllables. Babble becomes a constant response to the adult's voice appeal and accompanies various actions with objects and toys. AT 9months, the child demonstrates understanding of the speech addressed to him, reacts to his name, perceives some simple verbal instructions and responds to them with an action: “open your mouth”, “give a pen”, press your cheek to the mother at the request “kiss mom”, raise your head and eyes to the lamp to the question “where is the light?”, they are looking for a toy hidden in front of their eyes, at the word “no” they stop reaching for any object, or stop pulling it into their mouth, etc. Children 9-10 months old are characterized by active babbling, consisting of 4-5 syllables or more. The child repeats new syllables after the adult, which he himself has not previously pronounced, copies the intonation well, accompanying it with expressive facial expressions and gestures. By 9-10 months he pronounces separate words consisting of the same paired syllables (mom, dad).
• A child of 11-12 months is increasingly paying attention to the face of the speaker, begins to nod his head as a sign of affirmation and shake it as a sign of denial. The syllables included in the babbling become components of the words: ma-ma-ma - “mother”. The kid begins to designate certain objects with sound combinations, for example: a car - “beep”, etc. At the same time, children of this age usually show a new interest - looking at picture books. Recognizing familiar objects in pictures or showing them at the request of an adult, children designate them with babble words.
• By the year, the dictionary usually reaches 8-10, and sometimes more "words" (baba, kitty, mu, be, etc.) that have a specific meaning. By the age of 1, the child understands and follows 5-10 simple instructions: “bring this and that”, “close the door”, “give me a cup”, etc. Thus, in the first year of life, the child’s speech apparatus is being prepared for the pronunciation of sounds. At the same time, there is an active process of developing speech understanding.

What to do for a mother

"Infecting" the baby with positive emotions, the mother stimulates his interest in the outside world, and since the satisfaction of this interest is associated with the expenditure of physiological resources, she stimulates in a certain direction both metabolic processes and differentiation of tissues in the body of her baby . On the contrary, by conveying negative emotions to an infant, we suppress not only his interest in the outside world, but also certain biological processes in his body. It is not better when the adults around the child "infect" him with too strong affective emotions.

These energy-intensive emotions drain the child's nervous system and can lead to somatic illnesses. The adult's mechanical fulfillment of routine moments, his indifferent, indifferent attitude towards a small child excludes the possibility of any kind of emotional contact at all. With such an adult, the child does not have the need to communicate, and therefore the cognitive experience does not develop and the necessary communicative and cognitive means are not formed. There is a threat of mental retardation and a disorder in the further interaction of the child with an adult. The child's brain develops incorrectly or is delayed, in the absence or deficiency of external stimuli.

And vice versa: interest in an adult, curiosity about the outside world and communicative-cognitive activity are caused and supported, as we have seen, by positive emotions emanating from an adult. Therefore, we can repeat once again that for infancy, the emotional communication of a child with an adult is not a luxury, but a prime necessity, a condition for the formation of his psyche according to a human social type. Depriving the infant of the emotional attention of an adult leads at this early age primarily to abnormal development of the child's personality.

If parents have noticed trouble, and this is not one symptom, but several (lack of babbling, cooing, change in voice, behavior), then you should contact a specialist. And then, along with speech therapy correction (massage, articulatory gymnastics, stimulation of voice reactions), drug treatment, physiotherapy, etc. are prescribed.

How to stimulate speech development specialists, the better the results will be: the reserve capabilities of the brain are especially high at an early age, during the period when speech is actively developing.

At the stage of pre-speech development (1-3 months) it is necessary to encourage motor and communication functions, develop and reinforce the child's need to communicate with adults, strengthen the ability to fix the gaze and follow a moving object. Gradually move on to active stimulation of fine motor skills. In the absence of cooing at this stage, violation of voice reactions, the doctor may prescribe, along with the use of drug therapy, speech therapy correction (facial massage, breathing and articulation exercises). At the 3rd stage of pre-speech development (3-6 months), the baby manipulates toys, pulls them into his mouth, rolls over and crawls to an object that interests him, throws toys and follows their movement. In cases where there is a delay in pre-speech skills, it is advisable to conduct their purposeful stimulation. For example, create situations that cause a child to laugh, coo, as imitation reactions. If necessary, speech therapy correction may consist of active speech therapy massage, activities aimed at the development of babbling. At the 4th stage (6-9months) and the 5th stage (9-12 months), the possibilities of speech therapy assistance are expanding.

Along with active massage and gymnastics, tongue movements, chewing movements, and lip movements begin to be stimulated. Stimulate the ability to recognize the intonation coloring of addressed speech. Babble and initial syllable formation are stimulated with the help of appropriate imitative or imitative games (“Okay”, “Goodbye”, “Geese flew - sat down on their heads ..”, etc.) The effectiveness of speech therapy correction of pre-speech disorders cannot be carried out without active stimulation of mental development. After 6 months, the child is stimulated with purposeful actions with various objects, stimulation of repeated actions, object-effective communication with adults. From the second half of a child's life, they are taught to handle objects and manipulate them.

Sound pronunciation

• The pronunciation side of a child's speech can be judged only when he has accumulated a significant vocabulary. The time and order of the appearance of sounds in different children is not the same. In the third year of life, the child has the right to incorrect sound pronunciation. So, whistling sounds (S, Z, Z ', C), hissing (Sh, Zh, Ch, Shch) and sonorous (R, R ', L) he usually skips or replaces (S-S '; Z-S ' , V; C-T'; W-S', T'; W-S', D'; Ch-T'; SH-T'; R-L'; R'-L'; L-L')
• If any violations of the pronunciation side of speech are found in infants, it requires timely corrective measures, additional examinations by other specialists. The prospects for mental development, the success of teaching children with disabilities in neuropsychic development, their school and social adaptation depend on the early detection of disorders in cognitive activity. But often speech therapists in the clinic advise you to wait a bit - "don't come before 5 years." This can be explained by the fact that classes with a baby require a special individual approach, and not every specialist has the necessary knowledge, experience, and most importantly, the desire to work with young children. But a good speech therapist won't brush off anxious parents.
• In the absence of active speech in a 1.5-3-year-old child, it is necessary to arrange an appointment with competent specialists: a neurologist, psychologist, speech therapist, otorhinolaryngologist, and conduct a series of diagnostic studies. Parents should be alarmed by speech delays not only when the child does not have speech at two years old, but also in cases where development is delayed or there is a complete absence of cooing and babble. Observations of specialists and objective data from medical studies will clarify the nature of the violation, the degree of its complexity, suggest possible causes of occurrence and organize adequate assistance to the child.
• At any age, speech disorders limit cognitive activity and the possibility of social adaptation of a person. Consultations of competent specialists and remedial classes with speech pathologists will help to distinguish speech disorders from other disorders (mental retardation, mental retardation, hearing impairment, autism spectrum disorders), and make a more accurate diagnosis. Early correction, conducting systematic speech therapy classes, which in essence are a well-organized game, can completely compensate for a speech defect.
• The importance of speech development at an early age is great: speech, along with intelligence, is an important indicator of the development of the baby, and its violations are evidence of ill health in the mental sphere. Speech reflects the success (or failure) of mastering the native language, the main social acquisition of the child during this period.
• The speech of a young child reflects the development and lays the foundations for future higher mental functions: memory, attention, thinking, and hence all further education of the child, and ultimately his social adaptation and success. That is why in correctional and developmental work with young children, special attention is paid to the stimulation (formation) of speech activity.

About the organization of classes

The development of a child's speech occurs at every moment of his life. Everyday situations, including getting ready for bed, washing, eating take place almost in the same conditions. This helps to enrich the vocabulary of children and consolidate speech skills. Appeal to children on various occasions forms their need for communication. At the same time, it is necessary to actively use play and everyday situations that are pleasant for the child. For example, when washing or bathing a child, you can sing a composed song on the go, drawing the baby’s attention to the parts of the body and the face that it sings about with a gentle touch:0004

• Where, where, where, where, where, where are our pens? (2 times)
• Here they are, here they are, here are our pens. (2 times)
• Where, where, where, where, where, where are our legs? (2 times)
• Here they are, here they are, here are our legs. (2 times)
• Where, where, where, where, where, where is our tummy? (2 times)
• Here it is, here it is, here is our tummy. (2 times)
• Where, where, where, where, where, where are our eyes? (2 times)
• Here they are, here they are, here are our eyes. (2 times)
• Where, where, where, where, where, where are our cheeks? (2 times)
• Here they are, here they are, here are our cheeks. (2 times)

The gentle voice of the mother, pleasant stroking movements will stimulate the child's independent vocal reactions.

Just communication with the baby in everyday life is not enough for his development. It is necessary to use speech in subject and game activities. It is also desirable to conduct specially organized classes (games-classes). It is important to bear in mind that at an early age all the tasks that are given to the child should be offered as an entertaining and interesting game. Only against a positive emotional background does the baby himself want to pronounce a new word, repeat the combination of sounds or phrases he heard.

When learning new words, always use the toy or object first and then the picture. If a child easily recognizes and names familiar objects and toys, one should gradually move on to working with subject and plot pictures.

Speech therapist, neurodefectologist Elena Gennadievna Timoshchenko, author of the series of lectures of the Territory of Health "Early development of speech and intelligence of a child".

The development of a child's speech: key stages - Logoprofy.ru

The first words of a child are music for parents. But how can you tell if your child's speech and speech development is on the right track?

While every child learns to speak at their own pace, common milestones can serve as a guideline for normal speech and language development. These milestones help doctors and other healthcare professionals determine when a child may need extra help.

Language development by the end of 3 months

By the end of three months, your baby may:

• Smile when you appear
• Make growling sounds
• Smile when you talk to him
• Show that I recognized your voice
• Cry differently in different situations

Language development by the end of 6 months

By the end of six months, your baby may:

• Make sounds when playing with you or when alone
• babble
• Use voice to express pleasure and displeasure
• Move gaze towards sounds
• Notice changes in the tone of your voice
• Please note that some toys make sounds
• Pay attention to music

Language development by the end of 12 months

By the end of 12 months, your child may:

• Try to imitate speech sounds
• Say a few words such as "dada", "mama" and "uh"
• Understand simple instructions such as "Come here"
• Turn around and look in the direction of sounds

Language development by the end of 18 months

By the end of 18 months, your child may:

• Recognize names of familiar people, objects and body parts
• Follow simple directions with gestures
• Speak up to 10 words

Development of speech by the end of 24 months

By the end of 24 months, your baby may:

• Use simple phrases such as "more milk"
• Ask one- or two-word questions such as "Goodbye?"
• Follow simple commands and understand simple questions
• Speak about 50 or more words
• Speak well enough to be understood at least half the time by you or other key caregivers

When to Talk to Your Child's Doctor

Talk to your child's doctor if your child has failed most speech and language milestones for his or her age, or if you are concerned about your child's development.

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