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Pediatric Speech Therapy

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Speech-Language Developmental Checklist
We hope this checklist is helpful for educating yourself about developmental milestones that children reach.  Of coarse children do learn at their own rate so it is a general guideline.
 
By 6 months a child should be:
  • babbling and using vocal play
  • coos, chuckles, and laughs
  • turns toward sound or person
  • transfers an object from hand to hand
  • maintains eye contact
  • recognizes own name

6-9 months

  • using the sounds m,n,t,d,b,p, and y in babbling
  • imitates intonation and some sounds
  • duplicates the same syllable in babbling
  • imitates gestures (i.e. waving, clapping)
  • looks at family member named
  • responds to "no" most of the time
  • searches for hidden object
  • waves "bye-bye"

9-12 months

  • acquires first new word between 10-18 months
  • combines different syllables during babbling
  • vocalizes to call others
  • covers and uncovers face during "peed-a-boo"
  • identifies two body parts
  • says "mama" or "dada" meaningfully
  • imitates some sounds in play
1 to 1 1/2 years
  •  uses sentence like intonation
  • omits most final and some initial consonants
  • most of what the child says you can't understand
  • accurately imitates some words
  • follows simple directions
  • points to wanted objects
  • uses 3-20 words

1 1/2 to 2 years

  • words increasing, jargon is almost gone by 2 years
  • asks questions by raising intonation
  • starting to use more final consonants on words
  • understands about 300 words
  • points to 5 body parts on self or doll
  • responds with 'yes' and 'no' accurately with head shake
  • uses approximately 50 words

2 to 2 1/2 years

  • starts combing 2 words together at approximately 2 years old
  • understand about 70 percent of what child says
  • may still omit some final consonants
  • should be combining two words together
  • comprehends approximately 500 words
  • understands concepts of 'one' and 'all'
  • says about 200 words
  • answers 'where' and 'what' questions

2 1/2 to 3 years

  • understand 80% of what child says
  • mastered consonants: p, m, n, w, h
  • comprehends 900 words
  • knows big/little and matches colors
  • uses 500 words
  • answers and asks simple questions

3 to 4 years

  • uses final consonants
  • consonants mastered: b, d, k, g, f, y
  • responds to directions with two objects
  • uses short phrases to communicate
  • uses "not"
  • using grammaticcal endings (i.e. -ing, -s, -ed)

4 to 5 years

  • understand 90 percent of what child says
  • combines 4 to 7 words in a sentence
  • counts to 10
  • can tell his/her first and last name

5 to 6 years

  • mastered consonants t, r, and l

by 7 years

  • all sounds should be produced accurately