How can I tell if my child is behind on language development? This is a question a lot of parents ask themselves when their child is growing up. Each child is different, so there is no definite ‘normal’ language development in young children. If you are worried about your child’s language development, keep in mind these age-related milestones:

Age One Milestones:

• Respond to others verbally or with facial expressions
• Attentive to others talking
• Babbling
• Can use simple words, “mom,” “dad,” “uh-oh”
• Attempts to mimic others speech
• Follow simple commands
• Pointing
• Recognizing faces, objects, etc.
• Respond to verbal questions
• Repeat words they have heard

 Age Three-Four Milestones:

• Can understand when things are similar or different
• Speaks clearly for strangers to understand
• Can tell stories
• Can string together a sentence of five to six words

 

Children learn at their own pace, but if you are worried that your child is falling behind on any of these milestones, you may want to seek assistance from one of our professionals to help your child develop and improve their language skills.