Speech Development

A flower is constantly in the process of change. We give the care it needs at each stage watching in awe.

Toddlers and Preschoolers

You may have noticed communication begins at birth through cries, smiles, and babbles. The early years are an opportune time to set your child up for success with school and becoming an adult. As children become older the demands on talking and understanding become greater. Without help, a child who struggles before entering Kindergarten will likely continue to have difficulties throughout their school experience into adulthood, especially children with Autism and other learning disabilities. Why not set your child up for success before Kindergarten? The following milestones are expected at the ages specified:

Year 1
- Says at least 20 words by 18 months
- Copies sounds and words you say
- Understands what common objects are
- Understood 25% of the time
Year 2
- Says at least 200-300 words
- Uses 2 words together
- Understands two-step directions
- Enjoys drawing and looking in books
- Uses sounds p, b, m, d, n, h, t, w at the beginning and at the end of words
- Understood 50% of the time
Year 3
- Uses at least 3 and 4 words together
- Understands and asks who, what, where questions
- Tells short stories or talks about the past
- Understands three-step directions
- Uses sounds k, g, f at the beginning and at the end of words
- Understood 75% of the time
Year 4
Uses sentences with and, because, and but.

Understands and asks why and how questions

Answers questions about stories

Retells a simple story

Has a simple conversation

Responds to “What did you do today?”

Uses ch, sh, s, z

Understood 100% of the time
Year 5
Speaks in sentences 5-6 words in length

Retells a story with more detail (characters, actions)

Identifies rhyming words

Tells you the first sound in a word

Uses sounds l, r, th

School-Aged Children

As children enter school the demands to understand and use language appropriately become highlighted relating to academic performance and building friendships. Speech sound concerns turn into reading and spelling difficulties. Significant speech sound issues may lead to social isolation, as a child may not be understood by peers. Understanding concerns turn into reading comprehension difficulties, keeping up with teacher instruction, and behaviours in the classroom. Minimal vocabulary and sentences can result in difficulties with writing and maintaining a conversation. Poor conversational skills result in difficultly developing friendships. To maintain a conversation a child must understand what is being said and formulate an appropriate response pertaining to the topic. Typically a school age child would present with the following skills:

School Age
- reads at grade level
- understands what is read at grade level
- share with you what they did that day or in the past
- share with you what is to come in the future
- write a story with a variety of sentence types
- understands what the teacher is saying in the classroom
- manage their own behaviour
- initiate and maintain a conversation
- manage turn-taking and understand game instructions
- develop healthy friendships

School-Aged Children

As children enter school the demands to understand and use language appropriately become highlighted relating to academic performance and building friendships. Speech sound concerns turn into reading and spelling difficulties. Significant speech sound issues may lead to social isolation, as a child may not be understood by peers. Understanding concerns turn into reading comprehension difficulties, keeping up with teacher instruction, and behaviours in the classroom. Minimal vocabulary and sentences can result in difficulties with writing and maintaining a conversation. Poor conversational skills result in difficultly developing friendships. To maintain a conversation a child must understand what is being said and formulate an appropriate response pertaining to the topic. Typically a school age child would present with the following skills:

School Age
- reads at grade level
- understands what is read at grade level
- share with you what they did that day or in the past
- share with you what is to come in the future
- write a story with a variety of sentence types
- understands what the teacher is saying in the classroom
- manage their own behaviour
- initiate and maintain a conversation
- manage turn-taking and understand game instructions
- develop healthy friendships

Social Skill Development

Preschool (3-5 years)
– Children initiate interaction and engagecomfortably in parallel play
– Cooperative play emerges and becomes more frequent
– Children can share materials and work together on a common activity
– Coordinated pretend play with complementary roles emerges
– Simple group games are enjoyed
Early Elementary School (5 - 8 years)
– Coordinated pretend play continues and grows in complexity
– Organized and competitive games with rules become more common
– Aggressive behaviour decreases
– Fair play and good sportsmanship are valued
– Empathy and altruism increase
– Negotiation and conflict management skills emerge
Later Elementary School (8 - 11 years)
– Can make social comparisons and consider social values
– “Best frienships” often emerge
– Conversation increases as a form of interaction
– Social understanding and recognition of different perspectives increases
– Decision making is more collaborative
– Problem solving and conflict resolution are often managed without adult support
– Social reputations crystallize, social mobility is more limited
– Intentional victimization and social exclusion emerge