DS turned 3 this spring. I'm hoping I'm just being a nervous Nelly, but I'm having a really, really difficult time understanding at least half of what he says. His vocabulary is increasing, but I have to really focus and lately, it feels like it's taking A LOT of guessing to initially figure out what he's saying.
I'll be following up w/the pedi soon to get more advice, but just curious if other toddler/preschooler moms are still playing charades, lol.
Our backstory is that from birth to 3, he was in a bilingual environment (one language with us, another with his nanny.)
He has been consistently a little slow to hit milestones for vocabulary, but pedi wasn't overly concerned b/c of the two languages (and the fact that sometimes DH and I won't recognize words in the second language, which obviously complicates things.) When he wasn't completely caught up at 30 mos., though, we had an eval. It was the opinion of the team that whatever shortcomings he has language-wise weren't likely due to anything organic and he'd probably catch up w/o difficulty. (Didn't qualify for EI, but his SLP gave me ideas of activities to do at home to improve his skills which was helpful.)
Post by mollybrown on Aug 24, 2012 15:50:43 GMT -5
Do you mean how much of his language I understand, or how much a stranger could understand? Our SLP always talks about the milestones in terms of how much a stranger understands.
My son has a speech delay and has been getting speech therapy for 2 years, so my experience is skewed. However, I can understand 80-90% of what he's saying. I would guess that strangers could understand about 50-60%.
What makes your son hard to understand? Does he speak softly? Does he mumble? Are his words just unclear/made up? Is he using real words in an odd order? I might be concerned, depending on what the issue is.
ETA: I've always heard that bilingual children speak later because they are learning in 2 languages. I'd give a little extra leeway because of that, but I would still talk to the pedi about when bilingual children tend to catch up.
Do you mean how much of his language I understand, or how much a stranger could understand? Our SLP always talks about the milestones in terms of how much a stranger understands.
Yep: my concern is that a stranger wouldn't be able to understand what he's saying.
It's pronunciation and clarity that are the big issues. He says TONS of things that I only understand now b/c of context and repetition.
ETA: He does occasionally use sentence structure that's not correct in English but would be gramatically correct in his second language. Friends w/the same languages have said that their kids made the same errors from time to time while switching back and forth, so that doesn't concern me as much.
Post by katiescarlett on Aug 24, 2012 16:08:51 GMT -5
I would definitely ask the pediatrician about the bilingual aspect. DS is very easy to understand but he only speaks one language and has been ahead in his verbal skills for a little while. Hopefully your little guy is just figuring out how to use both languages appropriately and will catch up soon(and be ahead of the game on a second language)!
DD is 2.5 and I'd say we understand 80-90% of what she says. A stranger (or even Daddy) would probably peg it more at 70-75%. She still talks like Elmer Fudd and uses sh instead of s sounds a lot. No one can understand her when she says her name.
The second language (and the fact that you can't understand the words) would make me initially say it's probably NBD. But it's a good idea to run it by your pedi.
DD is turns 3 today. We understand 100% of what she says. A stranger would probably understand 85-90% if she's speaking loud enough. Most of the issue with strangers understanding her is context vs. clarity. She's always been ahead on verbal milestones though, so I'm not sure how typical it is for her age.
My DD3 was 3 in June. She cannot do S-blends at the start of words. Like snake is "nake". Otherwise she's completely understandable. She can do the "r" & "l" sounds that landed DD1 in Speech Therapy for a year at 6. DD1 was "normal" range when evaluated at 3 yet never quite caught up so I had her evaluated again at 5 & she did need help.
Post by GailGoldie on Aug 24, 2012 17:29:22 GMT -5
my twins are 3y2mo, and i understand what they say about 75% of the time. One of them has had a speech delay diagnosed since about 18mo (and since then got speech therapy + tubes in his ears)... he has ALMOST tested out of needing speech --- his reasons for needing it are not about articulation- they are still about his receptive language... so at his age, not understanding about 25% of his language is normal.
i would not stress so much - but it's never gonna hurt to talk to the doc, get a screening, etc- but either way - don't stress about it.
DS will be 3 in December, I would say I can understand about 98% of what he says. Sometimes he will say one word and I need him to repeat it once because it sounds sort of like another word. I would say a stranger can probably understand about 80% of what he says without him repeating. He says some words with what I call the "toddler accent " where r can sound like w and so on.
Post by dr.girlfriend on Aug 24, 2012 21:14:58 GMT -5
Does the other language have different phonemes? Like, sounds that aren't in English? If not, I would expect that his articulation should not be affected by the bilingualism. Here's a description of the ages at which different phonemes should be acquired:
Pronunciation (Articulation) The most common speech deviation that parents notice is pronunciation. When listening to your child’s pronunciation, note:
the sounds he has problems with (i.e., sounds made with the lips, teeth, tongue, etc.) the position of those sounds in a word (initial, medial, or final) the frequency/consistency of misarticulation. These observations can help you determine the severity of your child’s speech problem and whether he is developmentally delayed in this area. Sounds which are made toward the front of the mouth (such as m, n, p, b, t, d) are the easiest to make. They are usually acquired first. Sounds requiring special placement of the tongue (l, r, s, voiced th) are the most difficult.
Usually, sounds in the initial position of words are the easiest, followed by sounds in the final position. Consonants which appear in the middle of words are the most difficult. Any sound which occurs in a “blend” is particularly difficult to pronounce.
Consistently mispronounced sounds are a concern as the child gets older. However, if he pronounces a sound correctly some of the time, he may be moving toward standard pronunciation on his own. Most children develop standard speech by the age of six, although some children still have problems pronouncing the more difficult sounds at age seven or eight.
A loosely-drawn developmental scale for standard American speech production would look something like the following:
It is free and can't hurt. Call your school deptartment. They will test his speech and if he qualifies you can get free speech therapy.
2 of my boys are in speech. DS2 has been in speech since he was 15 mos. DS1 I thought had problems and I had him tested when he was 3 but the schools said he didn't qualify. When we put him in school at 1st grade the first thing his teacher said at our conference was she wanted to refer him to speech. He qualified in 1st grade and gets services now.
DS3 I was hoping was going to be okay, but I'm starting to think I should have him tested.
FWIW I think it is a lot easier to qualify for speech as a boy than a girl because of the way the standards are set
Post by statlerwaldorf on Aug 25, 2012 8:10:12 GMT -5
I can understand about 90% of what DD says. Strangers can only understand about half. DD has a language delay where they are concerned about the way she puts sentences together and the number of words in a sentence, but her pronunciation and vocabulary are fine.