Children

This is When you Should see a Speech Therapist

May 12 , 2021

As parents we want children to learn everything quickly, but you must know that every kid learns at their own pace. Sometimes, kids take time to speak properly but still it is necessary to diagnose a speech-language disorder timely. One of the earliest signs is that your child might be able to follow all of your commands but is having trouble giving appropriate responses. Apart from this how do you know if your child needs speech therapy, and at what age should speech therapy begin? Let’s find out

One Year

The earliest signs of any communication issues is a child who has little to no interaction with other people in their first 3 months. At this stage, you should expect your baby to smile and make eye contact, so an absence of these social cues is worth following up on.

12-15 months: 

At this age generally children learn their first words. Their vocabulary will be limited, but they should at least say a few words by now. They are also expected to see some gestures like: pointing, shaking their head etc. 

18-24 months: 

By the age of two, a child’s vocabulary should be increased. They should be able to combine words to convey their message. Remember it is normal for children to mispronounce words up until about 6 years of age.

2-4 years: 

This is the point at which it should become quite clear whether or not your child is having speaking difficulties. By now a child should be able to speak clearly as they would be learning many new words in school too. But if they still have a very limited vocabulary and are not able to speak multiple words together or say fewer than 50 words consult with a therapist.

If you child has any of these signs, you must visit the therapist.