Stages of Speech and Language Development
For more information contact:
The Speech & Language Therapists
Mary Fisher 0161 342 5415
Fran Thomas 0161 342 5413
Lesley Anne Wallace 0161 342 5429
Stages of Speech and Language Development
Up to 3 months
Listening & Attention
- Startled by loud noises
- Turns towards a familiar sound
Understanding
- Recognises parent’s voice
- Often calmed by familiar friendly voice, e.g. parent’s
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Frequently cries especially when uncomfortable - Makes vocal sounds, e.g. cooing, gurgling
Social Skills
- Gazes at faces and copies facial movement, e.g. sticking out tongue!
- Makes eye contact for fairly long periods
3 - 6 months
Listening & Attention
- Watches face when someone talks
Understanding
- Shows excitement at sound of approaching voices
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Makes vocal noises to get attention
- Makes sounds back when talked to
- Laughs during play
- Babbles to self
Social Skills
- Senses different emotions in parent’s voice and may respond differently, e.g. smile, quieten, laugh
- Cries in different ways to express different needs
6 - 12 months
Listening & Attention
- Locates sources of voice with accuracy
- Focuses on different sounds, e.g. doorbell, clock
Understanding
- Understands frequently used words such as ’all gone’, ’no’
- Stops and looks when hears own name
- Understands simple instructions when supported by gestures and context
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Uses speech sounds (babbling) to communicate with adults; says sounds like ’ba-ba, no-no, go-go
- Stops babbling when hears familiar adult voice
- Uses gestures such as waving and pointing to help communicate
Social Skills
- Enjoys action rhymes and songs
- Tries to copy adult speech and lip movements
- Takes ‘ turns’ in conversation (using babble).
12 - 15 months
Listening & Attention
- Attends to music and singing
- Enjoys sound - making toys / objects
Understanding
- Understands single words in context, e.g. cup, milk, daddy
- Understands more words than they can say
- Understands simple instructions, e.g. ‘kiss mummy’, ‘stop’
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Says around 10 single words, although these may not be clear
- Reaches or points to something they want whilst making speech sounds
Social Skills
- Likes being with familiar adults
- Likes watching adults for short periods of time.
15 - 18 months
Listening & Attention
- Listens and responds to simple information / instructions e.g. ’Ben, put on shoes’, ’Mohammed, give to daddy’
Understanding
- Understands a wide range of single words and some two-word phrases, e.g. ‘give me’, ‘shoe on’
- Recognises and points to objects/pictures in books if asked
- Gives names familiar objects to adults, e.g. coat, apple,
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Still babbles but uses at least 20 single words correctly, although may not be clear
- Copies gestures and words from adults
- Constant babbling and single words used during play
- Uses intonation, pitch and changing volume when ‘talking’
Social Skills
- Simple pretend play, but plays alone
- Although becoming independent likes to be near familiar adult
18 - 2 years
Listening & Attention
- Focuses on an activity of their own choice but finds it difficult to be directed by an adult
- Use of child’s name beginning to help them to attend to what an adult says, e.g. ‘Sarah, eat sandwiches’
Understanding
- Understanding of single words develops rapidly during this stage: anything between 200—500 words are known
- Understands more simple instructions, ’Get your bricks’
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Uses up to 50 words
- Begins to put two or three words together
- Frequently asks questions, e.g. the names of people / objects
- Uses speech sounds p,b,m,w
Social Skills
- ‘Pretend’ play developing with toys, e.g. feeding a doll
- Becomes frustrated when unable to make self understood
- Follows adult body language e.g. pointing, gesture
2 - 3 years
Listening & Attention
- Beginning to listen to talk with interest, but easily distract.
- Listens to talk addressed to him/her, but finds it difficult if prompts are not provided, e.g. use of name, stop and listen
Understanding
- Developing understanding of simple concepts including In / on / under , big / little
- Understands phrases like ’put teddy in the box’
- Understands simple ’who’ and ‘what’ and ‘where’ questions but not why.
- Understands simple story when supported with pictures
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Uses 300 words including descriptive language
- Links four to five words together
- Uses pronouns (me, him, she) plurals & prepositions (in, on, under)
- Has problems with speech sounds: l / r / w / y , f / th, s / sh / ch / dz / j
Social Skills
- Holds a conversation but jumps from topic to topic
- Interested on other’s play and will join in
- Expresses emotions towards adults and peers using words, not just actions
3- 4 years
Listening & Attention
- Enjoys listening to stories
- Still finds it difficult to attend to more than one thing at a time, has to switch attention between speaker and task
Understanding
- Understands questions or instructions with two parts, e.g. ‘get your jumper’ and ‘stand by the door’
- Understands ‘why’ questions
- Aware of time in relation to past, present and future, e.g. Today is sunny and yesterday was rainy.
Speech Sounds & Talk
- Uses sentences of four to six words
- Uses future and past tense (ed)
- May continue to have problems with irregular words, ‘runned’ for ‘ran, ‘swimmed’ for ‘swam’
- Able to recall and enjoys telling long stories /singing songs
- Has problems saying r, j, ch and sh
Social Skills
- Understands turn-taking and sharing with adults / peers
4 - 5 years
Listening & Attention
- Attention is now more flexible -the child can understand spoken instructions related to a task without stopping the activity to look at the speaker
Understanding
- Able to follow simple story without pictures
- Understands instructions containing sequencing words; ‘first...after….last’
- Understand adjectives: soft, hard, smooth, etc
- Aware of more complex humour, laughs at jokes
Speech Sounds
- Uses well formed sentences e.g. ‘I played with Ben at lunch & Talk time’ but there may still be some grammatical errors
- Easily understood with only a few immaturities in sounds, e.g. ‘th’, ‘r’ & 3 consonant
- Frequently asks the meaning of unfamiliar words
Social Skills
- Chooses own friends and generally co-operative with peers
- Able to plan construction and make believe play activities