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When to be concerned about a child’s speech Age range: 1½-2 years (18-24 months) Child would usually: Don’t worry if: Have concerns if: What to do if you are concerned: - The child may begin using a small number of speech sounds in simple words e.g. ‘p’, ‘b’, ‘m’ and ‘w’. - The child’s words are not always clear. - After 2 years of age, the child makes only a very limited range of noises e.g. noises for animals (moo for cow) transport (beep, choo choo) and actions (uh oh). It would be helpful for you to try the following and let us know the outcome if you refer to the service: Don’t worry if: Have concern if: What to do if concerned: - Some words and/or sounds are still unclear. - The child makes only a very limited range of sounds e.g. vowel sounds such as ‘ee’ and ‘oo’, sounds for animals, or humming. It would be helpful for you to try the following and let us know the outcome if you refer to the service: -Children will often miss the ends off words. - Baby talk/babble is still used for some words. - Likely to make several sound errors so words won’t be pronounced exactly like adults say them. Age range: 2-3 years (24-36 months) - At 2 years of age, parents should understand at least 50% of what their child says. Child would usually: - A child will use a variety of speech sounds including ‘p’, ‘b’, ‘m’, ‘n’, ‘w’ and ‘h’, in everyday words. - The child may begin to use the speech sounds ‘t’ and ‘d’ in words. - At 3 years of age, parents should understand at least 75% of what child says. - Continues to use some babble. - The child can’t say the following speech sounds or doesn’t use them in words- ‘k/c,’ ‘g’, ‘f’, ‘s’, ‘v’, ‘z’, ‘l’, ‘sh’, ‘ch’, ‘j’. -The child uses ‘t’ and ‘d’ for the speech sounds ‘k/c’ and ‘g’ e.g. 1 - Listen to your child's speech and make notes about the sounds you notice they can and can’t say. If you notice sounds your child cannot say what do they say instead? 2. If you are worried your child may have a hearing difficulty speak to your child’s G.P or Health Visitor to discuss a referral for a hearing test. 3 - Discuss your concerns with your child’s Key Worker at Preschool as they may have noticed the same as you and be able to offer you some advice. 4 - Contact your child’s Health Visitor who can provide advice/support e.g. Talking Tips, and access to local Children’s Centre groups. 5. You can check your child’s progress and access further advice from the following website: http://www.talkingpoint.org.uk/directory/free-resources-parents 6 – If you are still unsure about whether your child should be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist, then please contact the Speech and Language Therapy Helpline on: 01208 834488 to discuss your concerns. Please note this is a call back service and a qualified Speech and Language Therapist will return your call. 1 - Listen to your child's speech and make notes about the sounds you notice they can and can’t say. If you notice sounds your child cannot say what do they say instead? 2. If you are worried your child may have a hearing difficulty speak to your child’s G.P or Health Visitor to discuss a referral for a hearing test. 3 - Discuss your concerns with your child’s Key Worker at Preschool as they may have noticed the same as you and be able to offer you some advice. 4 - Contact your child’s Health Visitor who can provide advice/support e.g. Talking Tips, and access to local Children’s Centre groups. 5. You can check your child’s progress and access further advice from the following website: http://www.talkingpoint.org.uk/directory/free-resources-parents 6 – If you are still unsure about whether your child should be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist, then please contact the Speech and Language Therapy Helpline on: 01208 834488 to discuss your concerns. Please note this is a call back service and a car is pronounced ‘tar’. and girl is pronounced ‘dirl’. Age range: 3-4 years (36-40 months) Child would usually: - A child is likely to use the sounds ‘p’,’b’, ‘m’, ‘n’, ‘w’, ‘h’, ‘t’, ‘d’, within words. - A child may begin to use the sounds ‘k/c’, ‘g’, ‘ f’, ‘v’ and ‘s’, as well as some blends e.g. bl,(blue) and sp (spider). - At 4 years of age, unfamiliar adults should understand what the child says in context and the child’s speech is easily understood by family members. - Long words are shortened e.g. ‘spider’ said as ‘-pider’ , ‘banana’ said as ‘nana’. Don’t worry if: - A child’s speech is difficult to understand out of context. -The child uses ‘t’ and ‘d’ for the speech sounds ‘k/c’ and ‘g’ e.g. car is pronounced ‘tar’. - Speech sound blends such as ‘sp’, ‘st’, ‘bl’, ‘cr’ have not yet developed e.g. spoon said as ‘poon’ and blue said as ‘boo’. -The child uses short sounds e.g. ‘t’ and ‘d’ for long speech sounds ‘s’, ‘sh’ and ‘f’. qualified Speech and Language Therapist will return your call. Have concern if: What to do if concerned: -The child is using a limited range of speech sounds and/or overuses one particular sound e.g. he/she might say “dat” for all of the following words ‘sat’, ‘cat’, ‘mat’, ‘fat’ and ‘bat’. It would be helpful for you to try the following and let us know the outcome if you refer to the service: -Missing off sounds at the beginning, in the middle or at the ends of words e.g. cat may be said as ‘at’, elephant may be said as ‘ele-ant’, dog may be said as ‘do’. -The child changes vowel sounds in words, e.g. sun is said as ‘sen’ or pear is said as ‘poor'. -Does not use the correct number of beats (syllables) in words, e.g. bottle is said as ‘bo’, or elephant is said as ‘ephant’. - Close family members struggle to understand what the child says on a daily basis and/or the child is becoming extremely frustrated. 1 - Listen to your child's speech and make notes about the sounds you notice they can and can’t say. If you notice sounds your child cannot say what do they say instead? 2. If you are worried your child may have a hearing difficulty speak to your child’s G.P or Health Visitor to discuss a referral for a hearing test. 3 - Discuss your concerns with your child’s Key Worker at Preschool as they may have noticed the same as you and be able to offer you some advice. 4 - Contact your child’s Health Visitor who can provide advice/support e.g. Talking Tips, and access to local Children’s Centre groups. 5 – If you notice only one or two speech sounds your child cannot say in words, and your child can copy this sound easily on its own (away from words) then please watch these videos for ideas about ways to practise individual speech sounds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90368Ahy6TQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ9AgwYLQAI Picture resources can be downloaded for free from the following website: http://mommyspeechtherapy.com/?page_id=55 6. You can check your child’s progress and access further advice from the following website: http://www.talkingpoint.org.uk/directory/free-resources-parents 7 – If you are still unsure about whether your child should be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist, then please contact the Speech and Language Therapy Helpline on: 01208 834488 to discuss your concerns. Please note this is a call back service and a qualified Speech and Language Therapist will return your call. Age range: 4 - 5 years (Reception Class) Child would usually: Don’t worry if: Have concern if: What to do if concerned: - A child will begin to use the sounds ‘v’, ‘s’, ‘z’, ‘l’, ‘sh’, ‘ch’, ‘j’ and more sound blends e.g. cl and fr. - A child cannot say ‘th’ clearly or says ‘f’ for ‘th’ e.g ‘three’ is pronounced ‘free’. - A child is making the ‘s’ sound by blowing air down their nose. It would be helpful for you to try the following and let us know the outcome if you refer to the service: - A child has a lisp, e.g. ‘saw’ is pronounced ‘thaw’. - A child may continue to simplify sound blends e.g. “spoon” said as “poon” or “flower” as “fower” - At 4 ½ years of age the child is not yet using the following speech sounds at the beginning, in the middle or at the ends of words: ‘k’, ‘g’, ‘f’, ‘v’, ‘s’, ‘z’, ‘p’, ‘t’, and ‘l’. - A child cannot say ‘r’ clearly or says ‘w’ for ‘r’ e.g ‘rabbit’ is pronounced ‘wabbit’. Age range: 5-7 years (Key Stage 1) 1 - Listen to your child's speech and make notes about the sounds you notice they can and can’t say. If you notice sounds your child cannot say what do they say instead? 2. If you are worried your child may have a hearing difficulty speak to your child’s G.P to discuss a referral for a hearing test. 3 - Discuss your concerns with your child’s Class Teacher or Health Visitor as they may have noticed the same as you and be able to offer you some advice. 4 – If you notice only one or two speech sounds your child cannot say in words, and your child can copy this sound easily on its own (away from words) then please watch these videos for ideas about ways to practise individual speech sounds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90368Ahy6TQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ9AgwYLQAI Picture resources can be downloaded for free from the following website: http://mommyspeechtherapy.com/?page_id=55 5. You can check your child’s progress and access further advice from the following website: http://www.talkingpoint.org.uk/directory/free-resources-parents Child would usually: Don’t worry if: Have concern if: - A child will begin to develop the speech sounds: ‘r’,’ th’ and more blends e.g. str, br, and tr. -The child is still experiencing difficulty saying some longer words with difficult sound combinations, e.g. hospital is pronounced ‘hopsital’, or ‘spaghetti’ is pronounced - At 5 ½ years of age the child deletes one sound from ‘s’ blends e.g. ‘sp’ is pronounced ‘pider’ or ‘sider’. - At 5 ½ years of age the child deletes one sound from ‘l’ blends e.g. ‘flower’ is pronounced ‘fower’ or ‘lower’. 6 – If you are still unsure about whether your child should be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist, then please contact the Speech and Language Therapy Helpline on: 01208 834488 to discuss your concerns. Please note this is a call back service and a qualified Speech and Language Therapist will return your call. What to do if concerned: It would be helpful for you to try the following and let us know the outcome if you refer to the service: 1 - Listen to your child's speech and make notes about the sounds you notice they can and can’t say. If you notice sounds your child cannot say what do they say instead? 2. If you are worried your child may have a hearing difficulty speak to your child’s G.P or School Nurse to discuss a referral for a hearing test. 3 - Discuss your concerns with your child’s Class Teacher as they may have noticed the same as you and be able to offer you some advice. ‘spahetti’. - The child deletes one sound from ‘r’ blends e.g. ‘grass’ is said as ‘gass’ or ‘rass’. Please note that there is a wide range of typical variations in how children and young people say words. These often cause concern, however they do not require a speech and language assessment including: - says ‘f’ or ‘v’ for ‘th’ e.g ‘three’ is pronounced ‘free’. - does not use the speech sound ‘r’ in their everyday speech and/or uses a ‘w’ sound in ‘r’ blends e.g. ‘bread’ is said as ‘bwead’. -The child leaves out “t” in the middle or at the end of words e.g. ‘butter’ is pronounced ‘buher’. - A child has a lisp, e.g. ‘saw’ is pronounced ‘thaw’. This is a common pattern and it - At 5 ½ years of age the child does not use the speech sounds ‘sh’, ‘ch’ and/or ‘j ‘ within words. -The family and other familiar people cannot understand the child some of the time. 4 – If you notice only one or two speech sounds your child cannot say in words, and your child can copy this sound easily on its own (away from words) then please watch these videos for ideas about ways to practise individual speech sounds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90368Ahy6TQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ9AgwYLQAI Picture resources can be downloaded for free from the following website: http://mommyspeechtherapy.com/?page_id=55 5 – If you are still unsure about whether your child should be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist, then please contact the Speech and Language Therapy Helpline on: 01208 834488 to discuss your concerns. Please note this is a call back service and a qualified Speech and Language Therapist will return your call. is likely it will disappear as the child’s adult teeth develop. Age range: 7 years and above Child would usually: Don’t worry if: Have concern if: What to do if concerned: - The child has a mature speech system. - The child has a dental brace which makes their speech unclear. - If familiar and/or unfamiliar adults struggle to understand the child. It would be helpful for you to try the following and let us know the outcome if you refer to the service: - The child is unable to correctly pronounce some speech sounds because their adult teeth are not in place. -The child has a lisp and their adult teeth are now in place, they are motivated to work on their speech and/or they are being teased about their speech. -Make themselves understood to familiar and unfamiliar adults all of the time. - The child says ‘f’ or ‘v’ for ‘th’ e.g ‘three’ is pronounced ‘free’. - The child says ‘w’ for ‘r’ e.g rabbit is pronounced ‘wabbit’. -The child leaves out “t” in the middle or at the end of words e.g. ‘butter’ is pronounced ‘buher’. - The child deletes one sound from ‘r’ blends e.g. bread is said as ‘wed’ or ‘bed’. 1 - Listen to your child's speech and make notes about the sounds you notice they can and can’t say. If you notice sounds your child cannot say what do they say instead? 2 - Discuss your concerns with your child’s Class Teacher as they may have noticed the same as you and be able to offer you some advice. 3 – If you notice only one or two speech sounds your child cannot say in words, and your child can copy this sound easily on its own (away from words) then please watch these videos for ideas about ways to practise individual speech sounds: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90368Ahy6TQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQ9AgwYLQAI Picture resources can be downloaded for free from the following website: http://mommyspeechtherapy.com/?page_id=55 4 – If you are still unsure about whether your child should be seen by a Speech and Language Therapist, then please contact the Speech and Language Therapy Helpline on: 01208 834488 to discuss your concerns. Please note this is a call back service and a qualified Speech and Language Therapist will return your call. Frequently Asked Questions: (taken from ICAN Help Speech Sounds Factsheet) How does my child learn different sounds? Children learn sounds by listening to people speaking around them. They have been tuning into the sounds around them since before they were born and they carry on developing their ability to tune into environmental sounds and speech sounds. Babies begin by playing with sounds first of all, then babble. This babble develops into longer strings using a wider range of sounds. I can understand everything my child says but he/she has just started at nursery and staff say they can't understand what he/she is saying. Should I be worried? As parents we are more tuned in to what our child is saying and other people who don't know them can find it difficult to understand. As a rough guide people who don't know your child as well as you should be able to understand about 50% of what a child says when they're 2 years old, 75% at age 3, and most of what they say at 4 years old. Why is my child difficult to understand? The development of speech sounds is a gradual process, usually lasting the first four to five years as children are learning to talk. This means that they cannot say all their sounds straight away, as some are later to develop than others. As a general guide, the above table outlines the ages sounds develop by. When children first begin to talk they make it easier for them to say words by substituting sounds e.g. a 'b' or a 'd' for 'f' or 's' sounds. This is because some sounds are easier to produce than others, but it can mean that you can't quite understand everything they say. Sometimes children also miss the beginning or end of words and reduce sound combinations such as ‘sp’ in spoon to 'poon' or 'boon'. What can affect my child's ability to pronounce sounds? Speech sound difficulties may be due to one or more of the following: A family history of difficulties Delayed language development Difficulties with co-ordination of the tongue, lips and palate Hearing difficulties Additional difficulties e.g. Developmental Verbal Dyspraxia, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy etc. Using a dummy (for more information please click on this link: http://www.talkingpoint.org.uk/parents/speech-and-language/do-dummies-affect-speech) Your child's phonological awareness may also affect their ability to say sounds. Phonological awareness involves knowing how words work – it is things like being able to hear the differences between sounds in words. For example, being able to tell the difference between 'bee' and 'sea' or 'key' and 'tea' when they hear the words; being able to hear when words rhyme; recognising the first sound of a word (e.g. cat begins with 'c') and knowing the sounds that make up words (e.g. cat is made up of c‐a‐t). Is there another reason why my child is so difficult to understand? Other children of his/her age are much clearer. Around 10% of children in the UK experience speech sound difficulties; it is more common in boys than girls (RCSLT). Sometimes children can struggle to use the sounds we expect from them at the right age i.e. this part of their development is a little delayed. This means they can sound like a child younger than them, or their speech can be unclear. Often children will catch up with a little support or practice at home and preschool/nursery. You may need to a Speech and Language Therapist if your child isn’t doing what would be expected for their age and they are showing signs of the speech sound difficulties outlined in the ‘Have concern if….’ column.