Worried again

[Antheia]

I am worried about Lily's speech and understanding...again! I have always knows she was on the slower side. She did pick up a bit when she was going to child care but we had to pull her out since we got the mortgage and cant afford to take her anymore.

Anyway i am not sure what a 3yr, 3mth old is suppose to be saying but i know that she is behind, im just not sure how far behind.

She has finally stopped babbling but she will still only mostly say 2 word sentances. She can say 3, 4 and even 5 word sentances but it is rare. She will say most words if i say it first and she repeats it but if i ask her to say it again she won't.

She can count to 5 in order.

She can't answer me when i ask her WHY she has done something. I know she does not understand this question as she will think for a sec and usually say 'can't talk' which means she doesnt know what to say/doesn't know what i mean.

She can name most animals and their sounds. She knows all colours and shapes.

It is just her talking in sentances that i am worried about and her not unstanding questions.

She never says I, a, the, and etc when talking. If she wants me to do something or give her something etc she will either just show me it and grunt/whinge at me or she will just say what it is. IE, if she wants me to change her top, she'll give it to me or will say shirt or just whinge at me flagging it in my face. This doesn't seem like 3yo normal behaviour to me.

Should i be worried?

[tiggerandpooh]

Antheia, when she was going to Child care, did any of the carers express concern about her speech? have you considered getting refered to a speech therapist? have you had her hearing tested? These are probably all questions you have answered before, so I apologise in advance if you have. just some options to explore if you haven't already.

I have a friend whose 3 year old didn't really start talking until he started kindy, and now is in prep and is very articulate. on an aside enstein apparently didnt start speaking until he was four

[MantaRay]

I am certainly no expert on this, but it doesn't sound to me like you have anything to worry about. I have met other 3 year olds who are the same. And Jack is very articulate for his age, but he can't answer the "why" question either just yet (he's about 2 months younger than Lily).

With the asking for things, I have found Tom to be slower at learning words and sentences than Jack was, but I have had real success with telling him the words when he grunts etc. So when he gives his "I want water" cry, I look at him and ask "would you like some water Tom?". Then I get it for him while saying over and over "water please mummy" etc. He is still not able to say the sentences so well, but he is definitely using more words and less grunts. It is definitely a patience and persistence thing, and with two kids it's really hard, but I think it could make a big difference for Lily.

GL, I am sure you'll get there. But as always, is you are worried, go and get some medical advice. You can't put a price on peace of mind!

[MistyFying]

If I were you I'd get a referral and get it checkout out by a speech therapist. If there is a delay in speech or language, early intervention is very important, otherwise they fall further behind. And if the speechie says there's no evident delay, at least you have peace of mind in that area.

[Antheia]

Apparently the free speech therapist has a very long waiting list here so i havent even bothered.

The teachers at her childcare were concerned at first but they said she had come a long way. But i feel she is going backwards if anythere now that she has left.

I'm concerned for Charlie as well as he doesnt say a word except buba, mumma and dadda. Doesn't even babble. But that is probaby normal for a 17mth old? Please say yes, lol

[Visitor9]

I think I have spoken about Eliza to you Antheia, she was delayed doing what Charlie is doing at 2 and we went and spent a few hundred on a ST. I'm not sure whether it made all the difference or whether it was just her time to finally "get it".
But to tell you the difference that 6 months can make is amazing she was delayed and now counts to 20, knows all her colours and can hold a conversation on the phone. Like MistyFlying I would recommend someone seeing her but it isnt intense and ongoing on a frequent scale at this point..Eliza wouldnt even speak at her appointment it is a professional giving you home work to work on, or even to get a diagnosis to go to the public system. We were told that here they dont see them till 4yr to diagnois a speech delay in the public system.
Alot of Eliza's friends have similar speech to Lilly, but once a GP told me his son didnt speak till 4 and he didnt bother with intervention.
Good Luck