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My son just turned 3 and he is not speaking complete sentences. I don't want to worry but I still do. I understand what he say to me but I think thats because I am used to it.
He knows many words but he doesn't put the words together in sentences yet. He can say things like "I want that one" I want apple" "I'm tiered""I am done".
He doesn't speak fluently. It is a lot of jabber.He talkes all day long but i can only make out 75% of what he says and a stranger would probably only understand maybe 50 %.
He knows most of the alphabet and he counts to 10. He knows all his colors,not only the primary colors.
He is very smart and understand everything people tells him. He follows directions very well. He just got potty trained right before he's 3rd birthday.
Should I be worried? He seams like he is developing good everywhere else expect his speech. I sometimes see other kids in his age and they speak really well for their 3 years.
Every kid is different. If you're really worried, look into having a speech therapist evaluate him (some states have programs that are not $$ based, just needs based that are run through the public school system)
My ds was an AMAZING talker before age 2. Clear as a bell, full sentences. My dd took longer. She has a speech "impediment" that is odd... although she knew NO ONE from Boston, she has always spoken with a Boston accent. When she started kindergarten, she saw the speech therapist - who, oddly enough, was FROM Boston! It wasn't until she called me to discuss the results (she initially found NOTHING wrong) that she learned the accent wasn't normal. It's not a common impediment and it's improving little by little.
Hang in there... some kids talk early, some kids walk early. Most kids are "normal", but comparing them to their peers doesn't help YOU. When she began Kindergarten, her speech problems held her back a little (as did her ability to manipulate adults), but now she can read and do math slightly above grade level (just finished 1st grade).
It sounds like you might want to get a hearing test for your son. If that comes out alright, you might want to try speech therapy.
My son was 3 and wasn't talking except for a few words that really made no sense. He was socially isolated and had other signs of autism. It doesn't sound like your son has the same issues at all.
My son went through speech therapy as part of his treatment and I was amazed at the things those therapists could do. As a result, my son was speaking sentences within 6 months and is doing wonderfully now. Matter or fact, I can't get him to stop talking!
I would not worry. You'd see many other signs if your son had something to worry about. A good eval by a hearing specialist and speech therapist, if needed, would help a lot.
Every kid is different and while there could be something wrong with your child (a hearing impediment, slow development, etc), it's more likey that he's developing at his own pace.
My daughter is now 6. At age 3, she began to stutter. It wasn't all of the time, but she would get stuck at the beginning of a sentence..."I I I I want to ride my bike." Her pediatrician recommended a speech therapist. We went to the speech therapist for nearly a year. Flash cards, repetitive sounds, singing words...it did absolutely nothing. One day, she just stopped stuttering. Our house is very busy. Our family speaks very quickly. My guess is that our daughter finally noticed that she needed to be quick to get a word in. Once we all started to promote a calmer environment, and took the time to stop and let her speak, she made huge progress. Kids react to different environments in unique ways. Some kids are more cautious, some are outgoing. Some will talk your ear off and some wait to say something important.
If you are reading books regularly, giving him time to speak, turning off the tv background noise and talking to him constantly, you should be fine. Perhaps he's growing up to be a person who thinks before he speaks. Perhaps he's more attuned to the world around him and likes to observe before contributing.
It wouldn't hurt to get a hearing test. If they have fluid in their ear (not uncommon during allergy season) it muffles what they hear and in turn, how they learn to talk. I had a child similar to yours and he did have fluid-a course of Zyrtec dried it up. He had about 4 months of speech therapy also, and he was off and running! Sometimes a short bit of therapy is all they need.
Since he understands what is said to him and he can follow directions, a hearing test would be useless.
Considering all the other aspects of speech/hearing, I would wait it out. When you speak to him, use precise words and expect him to use precise words. Since you go along with the baby talk that only you and he understand, and he is comfortable with using that as communication, he is being lazy. As long as you know what he wants, he doesn't need to expand on his vocabulary or his articulation.
When he asks for something, say it over with precise pronunciation, then ask him to repeat it, though not to the point of frustration. When you say things to him, say them precisely and ask him to repeat you some of the time.
Make him practice speaking clearly and he'll come right along.
My son just turned 3 and he is not speaking complete sentences. I don't want to worry but I still do. I understand what he say to me but I think thats because I am used to it.
He knows many words but he doesn't put the words together in sentences yet. He can say things like "I want that one" I want apple" "I'm tiered""I am done".
He doesn't speak fluently. It is a lot of jabber.He talkes all day long but i can only make out 75% of what he says and a stranger would probably only understand maybe 50 %.
He knows most of the alphabet and he counts to 10. He knows all his colors,not only the primary colors.
He is very smart and understand everything people tells him. He follows directions very well. He just got potty trained right before he's 3rd birthday.
Should I be worried? He seams like he is developing good everywhere else expect his speech. I sometimes see other kids in his age and they speak really well for their 3 years.
Thanks for your help.
I wouldn't worry about him. A lot of kids don't talk well at age three, many don't talk much at all.
An extreme case I know was a girl who didn't talk at all until she was 6. They had her tested for everything, she was smart, could follow along with a group of kids, play. She was happy, obedient. They started her in kindergarten thinking that might help -- but she still did not talk even at home with her older siblings or parents.
By first grade the parents became concerned because at some point, a child does have to talk and she still wasn't talking. She was normal intelligence and could keep up with the work in kindergarden but they weren't sure what to do with first grade. They sent her anyhow, and then one day she just started talking. No speech problems, and she knew full sentences.
My little one was the exact same way. She understood everything we said, but wouldn't say many long sentences, etc. Her Dr. sent her for a hearing test, and a speech therapist evaluation. In the end, we were told to wait it out and give her time. Once she was in kindergarten around lots of other kids, she eventually caught up to them.
My youngest daughter (turned three in January) just began using complete sentences and is still not potty trained. I began to worry and had her checked out by the pediatrician, and was told that this is just her "speed". All kids have a certain time frame they do things in and we can try to push it, but when it really comes down to it, they will do things in their own time.
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