3205 Randall Parkway Suite 201 Wilmington, NC 28403 Phone: 910.343.5885
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Speech and Language Milestones What should my child be able to do? Hearing and Understanding Talking Birth-3 Months o   Startles to loud sounds. o   Quiets or smiles when spoken to. o   Seems to recognize your voice and quiets if crying. o   Increases or decreases sucking behavior in response to sound. Birth-3 Months o   Makes pleasure sounds (cooing, going). o   Cries differently for different needs. o   Smiles when sees you. 4-6 Months o   Moves Eyes in direction of sounds. o   Responds to changes in tone of your voice. o   Notices toys that make sounds. o   Pays attention to music.   4-6 Months o   Babbling sounds more speech-like with many different sounds, including p, b, and m. o   Chuckles and giggles. o   Vocalizes excitement and displeasure o   Makes gurgling sounds when left alone and when playing with you. 7 Months-1 Year o   Enjoys games like peek-o-boo and pat-a-cake. o   Turns and looks in direction of sounds. o   Listens when spoken to. o   Recognizes words for common items like “cup”, “shoe”, “book”, or “juice”. o   Begins to responds to requests (e.g. “Come here”, or “Want more?”). 7 Months-1 Year o   Babbling has both long and short groups of sounds such as “tata upup bibibibi.” o   Uses speech or non-crying sounds to get and keep attention. o   Uses gestures to communication (waving, holding arms to be picked up) o   Imitates different speech sounds. o   Has one or two words (hi, dog, dada, mama) around first birthday although sounds may not be clear. One to Two Years o   Points to a few body parts when asked. o   Follows simple commands and understands simple questions (“Roll the ball”, “Kiss the baby”, Where’s your shoe?”). o   Listens to simple stories, songs, and rhymes. o   Points to pictures in a book when named. One to Two Years o   Says more words every month. o   Uses some one- or two- word questions (“Where kitty?”, “Go bye-bye?”, “What’s that?”). o   Puts two words together (“more cookie”, “no juice”, “mommy book”). o   Uses many different consonant sounds at the beginning of words. Two to Three Years o   Understands differences in meaning (“go-stop”,     “in-on”, “big-little”, “up-down”). o   Follows two requests (“Get the book and put it on the table”). o   Listens to and enjoys hearing stories for longer periods of time. Two to Three Years o   Has a word for almost everything. o   Uses two- or three- words to talk about and ask for things. o   Uses k, g, f, t, d, and n sounds. o   Speech is understood by familiar listeners most of the time. o   Often asks for or directs attention to objects by naming them. Three to Four Years o   Hears you when you call from another room. o   Hears television or radio at the same loudness level as other family members. o   Answers simple, “who?”, “what?”, “where?”, “why?” questions. Three to Four Years o   Talks about activities at school or at friends’ homes. o   People outside family usually understand child’s speech. o   Uses a lot of sentences that have 4 or more words. o   Usually talks easily without repeating syllables or words. Four to Five Years o   Pays attention to a short story and answers simple questions about them. o   Hears and understands most of what is said at home and in school. Four to Five Years o   Uses sentences that give lots of details (“The biggest peach is mine”). o   Tells stories that stick to topic. o   Communicates easily with other children and adults o   Says most sounds correctly except a few like l,s,r,v,z,ch,sh,th. o   Says rhyming words. o   Names some letters and numbers. o   Uses the same grammar as the rest of the family. This information is available from the website: American Speech-Language Hearing Association.
3205 Randall Parkway Suite 201; Wilmington, NC 28403 Phone: 910.343.5885 | 910.679.8075 | Fax: 910.343.5886