Helping kids to talk

[meow]

I'd actually keep up the "baby talk" to be honest. If I had my time over I would have worried more about my son's speech and I wish I'd "dumbed down" my talking earlier to help him. He's 3.5 and I'm being told to talk to him in one and two word sentences when possible. I should have been doing that 2 years ago! I'd say things like "Drink! Here it is". Offer lots of clear one word names for things. Then you can add the descriptors like you're doing. "Cup. Blue cup", "Apple. Yummy apple" etc. If she is pointing and using joint attention (look at you, look at the item etc) then I wouldn't stress though.

[Epacris]

When I say “baby-talk” I mean that cutesy sort of voice with occasional mispronounced letters. I have noticed my mother sometimes speaking to my kids with that sort of voice and it drives me wild, I hate it, and it’s not recommended for language development. By all means use simple, clear, short sentences.

This website has some good tips: Language development: an amazing journey | Raising Children Network

[Miss.September]

Books are awesome too - get some rhyming books like Hairy Maclary or Mr McGee. Once she's familiar with the story, leave off the second rhyming word (ie - Out of the gate and off for a walk went Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy - leaving off the "dairy" for her to say). We found this works a treat!

[HotI]

We read lots, and go to rhyme time as well as lots of singing in the car. At the moment if i waited for her to complete the sentence, she would just look at me amusingly. She will sing to songs but its generally just her language. Might get more of the rhyming books out.

She has some words, but that link from Epacris said by 18 months kids use about 50 words, she definitely wouldn't have that many.

I have a MCHN appt at 18 months and will see what she thinks. i get along pretty well with her.

ETA- a few people think she is just going to have an explosion of words (DH, my MUm) cos she understands things, just isn't verbalising in a way that we understand

[Epacris]

Yeah, I think my DS1 had about 10 words at 2 years. I remember mentioning it to our GP at a check-up but he wasn’t concerned, there is so much variation.

But like meow’s experience, it can sometimes be hard to know what is normal variation and what is indicative of a potential problem.

[~Hestia~]

Your DD sounds a lot like my Moo, the intellect is there but he just doesn't verbalise it. He says maybe a couple of dozen single words and a few little sentences (like "where is it?" and "see you soon") at 2 years old. But I know he understands me and he knows so much more than he actually says. Just yesterday I said something to DH about not having a gold coin for the trolley...up pipes Moo in the back seat with "gold, gold, gold!" Then he wouldn't say it when prompted but today he said it again with a cheeky look on his face so I feel like he just doesn't feel the need to say things ITMS.

We read heaps, he loves books so we read all through the day. We go to Hey Dee Ho music once a week and I'm always talking to him. I elaborate on general things like instead of truck I say green truck etc. I've always done this with him but he's still not a huge talker. It was worrying me but I've kinda relaxed now that I can see how much knowledge he really has!

[ElleJay]

DS is 2 next month and he's not really saying much either. He used to be such a chatterbox and now not so much. I'm not overly concerned, but DH is. Only just recently he's been just coming out with 'Mumumumum' and 'Dadadadad' (of course, when DH isn't around ) and 'Nanananana' and lastely 'No no no no' (of course) but other than that, he's not a big speaker. All I've been doing is repeating words to him and sentences and he seems to be understanding them, but not being vocal

[HotI]

Is late talking more common in boys? Seems to be more Mums of DSs than DDs replying.

[deletedit]

Is late talking more common in boys? Seems to be more Mums of DSs than DDs replying.

I have 3 kids - 2 girls and a boy.

From my experience I can say that girls with brown eyes talk extremely early, boys with blue eyes talk late, and girls with green eyes are very grumpy

[Jellyfish]

Is late talking more common in boys? Seems to be more Mums of DSs than DDs replying.

There is my DD but she does have a speech condition so not sure where that fits in. I wouldn't consider 17 months late for talking though, I think right around 2 is very common

[~ Zarava Flutterby ~]

Oh HotI i don't know if your DH told you but she said GIRLS and was trying to say AVA while she was here the other day.
I think every child is different although the MCHN did tell me later speach is more common in boys but having a look around i think it's suggested that most 18mth old will have roughly a dozen words.
After having your DD and mine together the other day i'd almost give anything that mine spoke a little less

[deletedit]

Miss 3's first word was 'cat' when she was maybe 9 or 10 months and words just flowed after that. She really really liked the cat.

Master 1 is also utterly obsessed with the cat but when he sees her he just gets excited and starts giggling. Actually a lot of things get him excited and make him giggle, he's just one of those babies. We keep pointing to ourselves and him and saying people's names and now he thinks that's hilarious and goes around poking everyone in the chest giggling, and then Miss 3 starts poking everyone yelling "POKE POKE POKE" and ... well, its not hard to see why he doesn't talk ...

The cat is almost 6, still doesn't talk, and is not very impressed with small children.

[Trillian]

I'd actually keep up the "baby talk" to be honest. If I had my time over I would have worried more about my son's speech and I wish I'd "dumbed down" my talking earlier to help him. He's 3.5 and I'm being told to talk to him in one and two word sentences when possible. I should have been doing that 2 years ago! I'd say things like "Drink! Here it is". Offer lots of clear one word names for things. Then you can add the descriptors like you're doing. "Cup. Blue cup", "Apple. Yummy apple" etc. If she is pointing and using joint attention (look at you, look at the item etc) then I wouldn't stress though.

My DD2 had speech therapy and her speechie couldn't stress enough how important it was to NOT talk the way they did or talk like a baby to them. Speaking to them in short sentences is fine if they have a problem with comprehension etc, but if they say 'dink' for 'drink' always say 'drink'.

HotI, just keep talking to her all the time. Use words as much as you can. If she tends to point things out to you that she wants, always say what it is and not just give it to her kwim? And reading is wonderful for helping them pick up words as well. So you are doing all the things that will help her eventually gain words. She is still only little and at her age I wouldn't be overly worried unless there were other things as well, like not understanding you or not being able to follow simple instructions etc. If she had trouble in those areas, then I would be alert (not alarmed about it) but as it stands, it sounds like the only thing you're worried about is her lack of words, but give her time and they will come

[meow]

My DD2 had speech therapy and her speechie couldn't stress enough how important it was to NOT talk the way they did or talk like a baby to them. Speaking to them in short sentences is fine if they have a problem with comprehension etc, but if they say 'dink' for 'drink' always say 'drink'.

Good point- my son has trouble with comprehension so that's why we've had to go back and shorten the sentences. It took us a while to realise he had a speech issue at all as he learns in scripts so he says really long sentences but he doesn't understand the individual words. He was actually saying over 100 words at 18 months so we didn't realise there were problems then.

In my experience, the children not talking at that age generally end up talking- I'd be looking more for her social communication skills which you've already said sound good HotI as you said she points.

[Phteven]

Trillian pretty much said what I was going to say so you can read her post twice and the second time pretend it is me.

[deletedit]

Ergh, I have a non-talker too and we've already declined a speechie appointment. He doesn't have a single word, not mum, nothing. He's about 15 months.

He points for things he wants, he scratches at the door to get in or out, comes up to me whining when he's poopy or hungry or thirsty. Poopy is easy to tell, hungry and thirsty are harder to pick, the easy way is to offer him an empty cup and if he lunges at it, he's thirsty. He seems to understand virtually everything but Will. Not. Talk.

HOWEVER he chatters away to his 3yo big sister in what sounds like whale song, lots of squeaks and whistles. The pair of them make exactly the same noises and he copies perfectly all the silly noises she makes. But he will NOT copy us, only her. And she won't talk properly to him. Drives me bonkers that he's so keen on copying her and won't copy us. You hear stories about twins that make up their own language, watching these two its not hard to see how it happens.

[JLeigh29]

Ladies, it's nice to know DS isn't the only 'not so great talker'! He says ma-ma, dada, bub-ba (for his name) and has ooooooodles of noises (for animals, vehicles plus clicks his tongue, smacks his lips etc for other stuff) plus a few sounds (e.g mmmmm is more/milk/yum and lalala means music or singing) but words, not so much! At mum's group, most of the others say 'hi' and 'bye' and there's a few who say quite a few words. DS understands more than most of the others though and does a lot of gesturing to communicate, but just doesn't verbalise. It doesn't 'worry' me as such, but I often wish he'd hurry up and talk! And if one more person says that one day his language will just 'explode' and he'll suddenly get it, I'll scream!!
I think it's all normal, but I'd also like to know DS was on the advanced end of 'normal' rather than the other end, iykwim...

[Sunny Love]

Trillian and Kuaraiza have hit the nail really hard on its head in their post. Major rep points to them!
Im finding that our high frequency words are what DD is really picking up on right now (for example: please, ta, car, juice, Chevy (DS' name) Axel (doggies name), mum, dad, nan, bubby...)
Just keep talking to her
xx