Are you worried that your toddler (between 18 months to 3 years) isn’t talking yet or using as many words as their playmates?
A 24-month-old toddler with typically developing language will be using 200 – 300 words and be using two-word phrases. However, some toddlers at that age may only be using 10 or 50 words – or none at all. There are many reasons for why some children aren’t talking as much as other children, which is explained in more detail on our blog here.
Here is a breakdown of how many words children with typically developing language are using:
- By 12 months a child says 2 – 6 words other than Mum or Dad.
- By 15 months a child says 10 different words.
- By 18 months toddlers with typically developing language use 50 different words.
- By 24 months a child with typically developing language says 200 – 300 words.
- By 30 months a toddler says 450 words.
- By 36 months a child with typically developing language uses 1,000 different words.
**LinguiSystems Guide to Communication Milestones cites sources as Child Development Institute at www.childdevelopmentinfo.com. Nicolosi, Harryman, Kresheck (2006). Owens (1996).
How many words should your child be saying?
Sarah talks about typical language development in toddlers and has some great tips on how you can help your child’s language development at home.
What to look out for in late talkers
Toddlers who are struggling with talking can usually understand what’s being said to them, but they aren’t using words themselves. It’s not necessarily that they are “lazy” or don’t want to talk, it’s just that they don’t actually know how to talk.
If your child doesn’t seem to be talking much compared to other children (or their siblings when they were that age), you should arrange an assessment with Kids Chatter.
Why your child might have this problem
Late talking could be happening for a number of reasons:
- Hearing difficulties as a result of frequent ear infections or “glue ear”.
- Limited interaction and exposure to language at home (you may give them what they want before they ask to avoid possible tantrums, so they never get to use their words).
- Older siblings doing the talking for them.
- Disability or Autism.
Why it’s important to seek help with late talking sooner rather than later
Communication is a vital skill, and unless the problem is corrected they may continue to have trouble communicating throughout their life. They may not be able to ask or answer questions, make requests, or even have a conversation with people.
Once they reach school age, they are at a much bigger risk of having literacy difficulties as well, as language and literacy are very closely related.
You may think they’ll just grow out of it or perhaps you know someone whose child started talking late and now has a fantastic vocabulary. Although it does happen to some children, they are the exception, not the rule. We have to find out why a child isn’t talking because there may be an underlying problem that will prevent your child from developing language like other children would. Even if your child does develop language skills later on, it may not be age appropriate and come school age, it will affect their academic results.
How we help your child talk
At Kids Chatter, we can give both you and your child the tools and techniques to help them develop their language. We won’t just teach them new words, we’ll teach them how to communicate. Communication includes spoken words so that they can answer and ask questions, request things, and have a conversation, but it also includes the foundations of communication such as using gestures (waving hello, requesting an item by pointing etc.), taking turns, imitating gestures, using sounds and words and giving them a reason and motivation to talk.
When you bring their language up to speed they’ll have much better communication skills, which will help them not only at home and at school, but throughout their lives. It can also lower the frustration levels of both you and your child, which will reduce the number of tantrums.
If you feel that your toddler isn’t talking as much as they should be, please call us today to discuss what’s happening for your child on 0432 735 044.
