Speech & Language Milestones

  By age one
  • Recognizes name
  • Says 2-3 words besides "mama" and "dada"
  • Imitates familiar words
  • Understands simple instructions
  • Recognizes words as symbols for objects: Car - points to garage, cat - meows
Between one and two
  • Understands "no"
  • Uses 10 to 20 words, including names
  • Combines two words such as "daddy bye-bye"
  • Waves good-bye and plays pat-a-cake
  • Makes the "sounds" of familiar animals
  • Gives a toy when asked
  • Uses words such as "more" to make wants known
  • Points to his or her toes, eyes, and nose
  • Brings object from another room when asked
Between two and three
  • Identifies body parts
  • Carries on 'conversation' with self and dolls
  • Asks "what's that?" And "where's my?"
  • Uses 2-word negative phrases such as "no want".
  • Forms some plurals by adding "s"; book, books
  • Has a 450 word vocabulary
  • Gives first name, holds up fingers to tell age
  • Combines nouns and verbs "mommy go"
  • Understands simple time concepts: "last night", "tomorrow"
  • Refers to self as "me" rather than by name
  • Tries to get adult attention: "watch me"
  • Likes to hear same story repeated
  • May say "no" when means "yes"
  • Talks to other children as well as adults
  • Solves problems by talking instead of hitting or crying
  • Answers "where" questions
  • Names common pictures and things
  • Uses short sentences like "me want more" or "me want cookie"
  • Matches 3-4 colors, knows big and little

Identify the Signs
 Signs of a Language Disorder
  • Doesn't smile or interact with others (birth–3 months)
  • Doesn't babble (4–7 months)
  • Makes few sounds (7–12 months)
  • Does not use gestures (e.g., waving, pointing) (7–12 months)
  • Doesn't understand what others say (7 months–2 years)
  • Says only a few words (12–18 months)
  • Doesn't put words together to make sentences (1½–3 years)
  • Has trouble playing and talking with other children (2–3 years)
  • Has problems with early reading and writing skills—for example, may not show an interest in books or drawing (2½–3 years) 
 Signs of a Speech Sound Disorder
  • Says p, b, m, h, and w incorrectly in words (1–2 years)
  • Says k, g, f, t, d, and n incorrectly in words (2–3 years)
  • Produces speech that is unclear, even to familiar people (2–3 years)
 Signs of Stuttering (Disfluency)
  • Struggles to say sounds or words (2½–3 years)
  • Repeats first sounds of words—"b-b-b-ball" for "ball" (2½–3 years)
  • Pauses a lot while talking (2½–3 years)
  • Stretches sounds out—"f-f-f-f-farm" for "farm" (2½–3 years)

Feeding & Swallowing Disorders
What are some signs or symptoms of feeding and swallowing disorders in children?Children with feeding and swallowing problems have a wide variety of symptoms. Not all signs and    symptoms are present in every child.
The following are signs and symptoms of feeding and swallowing problems in very young    children:
  • arching or stiffening of the body during feeding
  • irritability or lack of alertness during feeding
  • refusing food or liquid
  • failure to accept different textures of food (e.g., only pureed foods or crunchy cereals)
  • long feeding times (e.g., more than 30 minutes)
  • difficulty chewing
  • difficulty breast feeding
  • coughing or gagging during meals
  • excessive drooling or food/liquid coming out of the mouth or nose
  • difficulty coordinating breathing with eating and drinking
  • increased stuffiness during meals
  • gurgly, hoarse, or breathy voice quality
  • frequent spitting up or vomiting
  • recurring pneumonia or respiratory infections
  • less than normal weight gain or growth