From sounds to babbles to words and finally sentences, a child’s communication skills grow by leaps and bounds in the first five years of life. Communication milestones are important for your child to meet since it’s a major part of everyday life. As with any other milestone, you may wonder, “When should I be worried?” Knowing what communication milestones your child should reach is a great place to start. Here are some communication milestones by age, found on the CDC website (see website for full list):
- 2 months: make sounds other than crying
- 4 months: makes cooing sounds (“oooo” and “aahh”)
- 6 months: takes turns making sounds with you
- 9 months: makes a lot of different sounds like “mamamama” and “dadadada”
- 1 year: calls a parent “mama” or “dada”
- 15 months: tries to say two words besides “mama” or “dada” like “ba” for ball or “da” for dog
- 18 months: tries to say three or more words besides “mama” or “dada”
- 2 years: says at least two words together, like “more milk”
- 30 months: says about 50 words
- 3 years: talks with you in conversation using at least two back-and-forth exchanges
- 4 years: Answers simple questions like, “What is a coat for”
- 5 years: Tells a story she heard or made up with at least two events
Another step you can take if you are concerned about your child’s speech is to talk with your child’s pediatrician or healthcare provider. There are many reasons why your child may not be reaching his or her communication milestones and your child’s doctor can help you look at all of them before deciding what type of treatment, if any, is needed.
Help Me Grow Utah is also a great resource, whether it’s a developmental screening, resources on speech and communication, or a referral to a community agency to help with testing, therapy referrals, or other support. Text or call your Parent Support Specialist at 801-691-5322 for more information!
You can read more about communication and speech delays here and here and in our previous blog posts.
