Parenting Rewards & Responsibilities © 2007

Learning to talk is an important developmental milestone for children. You know that your child understands language because he follows verbal directions well. However, his speech is very limited. You notice that other children his age are talking more than he is.

Try This

1			Your 2-year-old is saying a few words but is not speaking in sentences like most of the other children his age. He still points to what he wants or sometimes grunts instead of using words to ask for something. You talk to him all the time, even naming items before you put them in the shopping cart while grocery shopping. The only phrase your son uses is "go bye-bye," and you think it’s more like a single word to him than a phrase. Write your responses to these questions in the spaces below: How can you find out what is normal speech development for your son’s age? Who could you go to if his speech is not developing normally? What could you do at home to promote your son's language development?