Speech and Language Pathology in School Settings - Development of Speech and Language

Development of Speech and Language

Every child develops at a different rate, but most go through the same stages. Listed below are the average ages of some important language and comprehension milestones as developed by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Please note that like with any developmental timeline, these stages may be quite varied and perhaps met in a different order. A child who accomplishes these milestones differently may not necessarily have a developmental delay or speech disorder (and a child who hits these stages early is not necessarily a prodigy!).

• birth to 3 months
  • startles to loud sounds
  • smiles when spoken to
  • responds to pleasure with 'cooing' noises
• 4 months to 6 months
  • notices and pays attention to sounds and music
  • shifts eyes in direction of sounds
  • makes babbling noises that resemble speech
• 7 months to 1 year
  • recognizes basic familiar words such as cup or ball
  • imitates different speech sounds
  • produces first words such as bye-bye or mama
• 1 year to 2 years
  • listens to simple stories
  • identifies pictures by name when directed (point to the cow, e.g.)
  • speaks two-word sentences such as more juice or where daddy?
• 2 years to 3 years
  • understands differences in meaning for basic words (up-down or in-out)
  • produces three-word sentences
  • can name most objects
• 3 years to 4 years
  • understands questions
  • talks about events
  • speech is understood by most people
• 4 years to 5 years
  • pays attention and responds to stories and questions
  • speaks clearly
  • tells detailed, ordered stories

Problems can arise at any stage of development, as well as much later in life. They can be the result of a congenital defect, a developmental disorder, or an injury. If a problem is suspected, an assessment should be made by an SLP who can diagnose and treat communication disorders.