Don't wait and see...early intervention is key!
If you're child is a late talker, have you been advised to wait and see? Have you not yet sought advice and family and friends have suggested your child will catch up?
Following a wait-and-see approach delays referral of a child for not only speech, but other developmental evaluation. Late talking at 2-3 years may manifest into life-long disability.
A late talker is a child who:
- is 18-20 months old and has fewer than 10 words; OR
- is between 21-24 months old and has fewer than 25 words; OR
- is between 24-30 months old and has fewer than 50 words AND/OR not combining two-word
ALONGSIDE having no other major areas of concern in their development e.g understanding. play, social, motor, cognitive skills.
So, considering this, how do you know that understanding and play are normal for their age, for example? How can you be sure that all other areas are normal for their age? Do you know which risk factors of a longer term issue may be present?
Speech Mum can assess and diagnose speech and language difficulties, AND offer reassurance when needed. If you have concerns and have not already referred, then please do!
Love from
Speech Mum
References:
Late Talkers: Why the Wait-and-See Approach Is Outdated. Pediatric Clinical North America, 2018.
Vocabulary growth in late talkers: lexical development from 2;0 to 3;0. Journal of Child Language, 2000